LOOKING AHEAD TO THIS WEEK

Ted Deutch, member, U.S. House of Repre

sentatives

In South Florida, we’re used to seeing puddles in our neighborhoods after heavy rains. But what’s not normal is seeing calfhigh flooding on a sunny day in homes and businesses away from the coast. King Tide, the highest tide mark of the year, is expected to occur this Monday. Stores and restaurants along Las Olas may find inches-high standing water when they open for business. While King Tide is an annual event, sea level rise is leading to an even higher tide pushing farther inland. This worsening and damaging King Tide should serve as a call to action on climate change.

Michael De Lucca, president, Broward Regional Health Planning Council, Inc.

This October show your support by wearing pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month to spread knowledge, awareness and preventions of this disease. Breast Cancer is the most common type of cancer found in women in the United States. Over the last ten years, the death rate for Breast Cancer in Broward County and throughout the state of Florida has shown decreasing trends. To help continue in the right direction, women are encouraged to follow up with their annual clinical breast exams, health screenings and mammograms. Early detection of breast cancer is the best protection; protect yourself today and get tested!

Lori Berman, Florida state senator

Schools are often used as polling locations during election cycles. It’s currently not mandated that schools must close on voting days, even though the presence of students on campus during polling can disrupt the process for both the voter and the student. Not only is it dangerous and distracting for a school to be open to the public while students are on campus, but our schools are now being equipped with more security and single points of entry which can present challenges for voters. Schools that are polling locations should always be closed during voting days to protect our students.

Beam Furr, Broward County mayor

The City of Hollywood signed an agreement with Broward County that will allow millions of dollars in refunded CRA money to be used to revitalize neighborhoods by providing affordable housing projects in low to moderate income (LMI) areas. Providing first time homeowner assistance and home rehabilitation will not only bring needed stakeholders to these areas, but it will also make these neighborhoods more attractive to strong families. This in turn makes the rental properties in the area more appealing. This strategy serves both the county’s priority of affordable housing and the city’s goal of neighborhood redevelopment. A win for everybody.

Marty Kiar, property appraiser, Broward County

There is good news for homeowners who are still in need of repairs to their home as a result of Hurricane Irma. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has provided $616 million to fund repairs to the 6,000 homes that sustained damage during Hurricane Irma. Residents who are unable to afford these repairs should apply for this grant funding. To review the specific requirements for this grant money, please visit www.floridajobs.org/rebuildflorida/housingrepair or stop by their office at 2680 W. Oakland Park Blvd., Fort Lauderdale.

Anne Gannon, tax collector, Palm Beach

County

The benefits Florida derives from the tourist industry is without dispute. Our newest partner, the home sharing industry, is here to stay. It’s an important part of our local economy and provides valuable out-of-county taxes that helps our county and state. Numerous governmental bodies around the country and Florida are updating their many decades-old tourist tax ordinances. In Palm Beach County, the Tax Collector has proposed an ordinance to better reflect the new world of digital bookings and consolidate all tax filing requirements into a single ordinance. The goal is straightforward: help new and existing short-term rental hosts navigate their tax compliance. The proposed ordinance requires online platforms to incorporate the ability to add the tax to the total rental amount, collect the tax on a host’s behalf and submit the taxes to the tax collector with the same information that hosts would provide. No extra taxes/fees are imposed or improper information exchanged! Local governments with the duty to collect, remit and audit tourist development taxes must act. Updating these often decades-old ordinances is simply a reflection of the revolutionary changes in the travel and tourist booking industry. Government must have the flexibility to change with the times.

Bradette Jepsen, president, League of Women Voters of Broward County

Floridians who believe their votes don’t matter aren’t paying attention. On the November 6 ballot voters have the power to choose candidates that present very different solutions to the challenges facing our state and our county. Passage or failure of twelve proposed state amendments, county charter questions, and a penny tax transportation surtax in Broward County will have great impact on how Florida and its communities are governed. To have a say in the future of Florida and Broward County, voters need to go to www.browardsoe.org before October 9 to register and vote on November 6.

Howard Simon, executive director, ACLU

of Florida

While political divisions tear our country apart, there is good news in Florida where people of all political viewpoints seem poised to correct an historic injustice. The passage of Amendment 4 will allow those with a past felony conviction (except murder and a sexual offense) to earn their way back into the community, with all the rights and responsibilities of citizenship including eligibility to vote, by first completing all the terms of the sentence a judge has required. The removal of the lifetime voting ban will end the shameful system that has made about 1.5 million Floridians 2nd class citizens.