Are we having fun yet?

Day 10
Remaining Committees – 7
Remaining Days to be heard 37
Remaining funding – 20 days

The experience here in Tallahassee is hard to beat if you like this sort of thing. One of our board members asked me last week if I was having fun. Hhmmm, if you like working 15 hours a day with a couple breaks for meals and sleeping in a hotel, then yes. If you think talking to decision makers about creating policy is cool; then, we are definitely having fun.

I mentioned earlier that session is sixty days. The countdown doesn’t pause for weekends, so it is quite disturbing to me lawmakers work a 3-4 day work week. The House of Representatives didn’t even meet today; the Senate in its defense handled some big stuff today. Privatization of prisons in Florida was a major area of debate today.

Two thoughts come to mind as I contemplate the 3-4 day work week are lawmakers are enjoying as the days of session count down.

First, I used today to make appointments to meet with the lawmakers on our committee schedule. Yesterday, I diligently researched 19 lawmakers, standing ready to make appointments today for the remainder of the week. Imagine my surprise when I was told in some offices, the member has no more appointments available through the end of session. We are forty-six days to the end of session and of those days lawmakers will only work in Tallahassee 29 based on what we have seen. No wonder they don’t have time to meet with constituents.

And then there is the idea the Senate handled important business today. The House members didn’t even come back until today. If people are use to the House and Senate not doing business on Friday’s and Monday’s is this a way to reduce civic participation?

Since today was quite at the Capital, I spent the day building strategies with People United of Medical Marijuana, Robert Platshorn and his Silver Tour, SSDP and the Committee for Sensible Marijuana Policy. We are calling all supporters together to push the legislators to educate themselves about this plant.