July 20, 2010. Communication between Florida House and Senate leaders suggests that more substantive session addressing BP oil disaster will not occur until at least September. From: Maxey, Rick
Sent: Thursday, July 15, 2010 4:41 PM
Subject: Special Session
Board members,
How the Legislature will deal with the July 20-23 special session is clearer after Speaker_Cretul_sent a letter responding to President Atwater’s suggestion that the Legislature meet in special session during the last week of August or first week of September to address “specific, targeted legislative actions that materially address the needs of the citizens and businesses in the area.” In response to President_Atwater's letter, the Speaker has told House members to prepare for a special session to address “…the full exploration of any and all responsible legislation likely to aid Florida’s survival of and recovery from the oil spill.”
The Speaker refers to a special session that would begin “…as early September…” if they can define the issues by that time. Given the two letters attached from Speaker Cretul and President Atwater, we should expect very little to be done next week and that a special session will probably occur in September or later. Because it is possible that the topics covered during any special session could be expanded with a two thirds vote of both chambers of the legislature, we will continue to look for anything that would affect the State University System.
Rick Maxey Executive Director Government Relations State University System of Florida Board of Governors325 West Gaines Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399
(850) 245-9717 Fax: (850) 245-9685