On your ballot is a state constitutional amendment to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. The Argus Foundation strongly urges you to vote no and support our local seniors, families and small businesses.

This was placed on the ballot by wealthy personal injury attorney John Morgan, who has turned ballot initiatives into giant commercials for his law firm. His investment into this initiative reaps incredible advertising benefits for his firm in earned media and he uses it continually in paid promotions of his firm.

But what will his advertising investment cost us? A lot. You only need to look at the warning language with the question on the ballot yourself:

“This proposed constitutional amendment is estimated to have a net negative impact on the state budget. This impact may result in higher taxes or a loss of government services in order to maintain a balanced state budget as required by the constitution.”

Let that sink in, this proposal will result in those receiving a wage increase either losing services or paying more in taxes.

For those seniors on fixed incomes who are not going to receive a raise in income, you too will have to pay more to government or lose services as a result of this amendment. On top of that, you will also be paying more at the cash register to make up for the costs to business. The promoters of Amendment 2 even admit that prices will increase if this amendment passes. There is no way small business can absorb this.

The impact to families is negative as well. It will have a significant impact on childcare, which is already very expensive. In Seattle, a 2018 study by the Social Work and Society International Online Journal, found the Seattle minimum wage ordinance had a profound impact on daycares, “Providers’ most commonly responded to higher labor costs by raising tuition and reducing staff hours or headcount— strategies that may negatively impact low-income families and staff.”

For small business owners, the lifeblood of Sarasota County, many are facing the most challenging time of their lives with government-forced business closures and limitations due to COVID-19. Many businesses have closed. Many are barely hanging on, and many of those hanging on will close if this ballot amendment passes. It will be the final nail in the coffin for them. With closed businesses come layoffs, which leads to a worsening economy for everyone.

This is not the time to place more financial burdens on seniors, families and small businesses. Vote No on 2 because it will hurt your neighbors, and it will hurt you too. 

Christine Robinson is executive director of The Argus Foundation. 

For more information go to: Amendment2hurtsyou.com

Florida is opening up and progressing in its economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, but numerous sectors remain deeply impacted and community members unemployed. To get back to work, many Floridians need to re-skill or up-skill into new professions that will provide them economic security.

The unemployment rates in Manatee and Sarasota Counties are declining, but quantities of workers remain furloughed or unemployed. Others are underemployed or in sectors that remain vulnerable to the impacts of the pandemic. At the same time, other local industries are growing and seeking trained employees.

The State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota, has traditionally offered short-term workforce certification and workforce training programs that will prepare those displaced from the workforce for high-skill, high-wage jobs in our community. We partner with local industry to ensure our programs meet their needs and effectively prepare students for their workforce.

To meet the increased need to quickly re-skill workers SCF recently announced the launch of the “Get Credentialed, Get Noticed!” initiative and its award of $496,346 as part of the Florida Department of Education’s Rapid Credentialing Economic Recovery & Prosperity Initiative. These funds were made available through the Governor Emergency Education Relief Fund, authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. This funding will allow SCF to increase capacity in its rapid-credentialing programs and develop new programs that address specific employee and local workforce needs and includes scholarships of up to $1,000 for 150 students. The program will focus on participants who are either furloughed, unemployed or employed but at risk of losing their job due to automation or disruption of the local economy due to COVID-19. 

SCF’s 16 high-skill, high-wage certificate programs include information technology skills, business operations and entrepreneurship, engineering technology and lean manufacturing, among others.  For more information, visit Programs.SCF.edu/Get Noticed or contact Workforce Education Outreach Specialist, Jennifer Boris, by emailing borisj@SCF.edu, calling 941-363-7200. SCF is offering these courses through face-to-face on-campus courses and online, including our new innovative Go Live with SCF Online program.

SCF will partner with Career Source Suncoast to identify candidates for the rapid credentialing programs and Career Source will provide career services, such as personalized career coaching, essential skills training, screening for other available programs, and placement assistance.

We saw in the recovery from the Great Recession that many types of jobs that were lost did not come back, while others emerged that required new skills but did not require a bachelor’s or advanced degree. This pandemic is also altering how we work, where we work and how we receive and provide services. SCF’s rapid credentialing programs are ideal for providing short-term programs that quickly prepare a student to enter or reenter the workforce. After getting a job, workers can return to SCF for additional certifications that expand their skillset and can eventually add up to a workforce two-year or four-year degree.

The CARES Act grant from the state is critical to providing an increased capacity for rapid credentialing that result in returning our community members to the workforce in a better position than when they left. We hope to build on this momentum and continue at an expanded capacity by requesting a similar amount of funding in the 2021 state budget.

Our philosophy is as simple as A-B-C. First we want you to get “A” job. Then you can return to SCF, earn more certifications and get a “B”etter job. After that, we can help you complete the education and training you need to establish a “C”areer.

Dr. Carol Probstfeld is president of State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota. 

I won’t bury the primary message of this column. Here it is head on:

If you, your business or your nonprofit organization has suffered financially from the COVID-19 pandemic, you may be eligible for federal relief money being distributed through Sarasota County.

But if you don’t complete an application soon, you won’t receive any of these funds.

The potential sum available to our county is significant—nearly $76 million.

But if the money isn’t distributed on some very tight timelines, our community won’t get the full amount we’re due.

If you think you may be eligible for assistance, feel free to stop reading here and go straight to scgov.net/CARES to learn more and consider applying.

If you’re still with me, here’s some background and context.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act is a $2-trillion economic relief package—the largest federal stimulus ever—designed to mitigate the economic impacts of COVID-19. Sarasota County is eligible to potentially receive up to $75.7 million in aid.

Our county government has allocated up to $16 million of this potential funding for assistance to individuals and up to $34 million for small businesses and nonprofits. Households can qualify for up to $5,000 in aid. Business reimbursements for coronavirus-caused losses must be under $50,000. Approved funds are distributed through grants that require no repayment.

You may have heard about—or even experienced—challenges with the initial application process and qualification requirements. As with many multilayered, bureaucratic programs, much was learned upon first implementation. The county has made continued improvements to its Sarasota County CARES program to better meet the needs of those who need this relief.

A collaboration of community organizations has helped guide this responsiveness. My Gulf Coast colleague Jon Thaxton has worked closely with leaders from the Argus Foundation, Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, local arts organizations, and others to raise a unified voice for the community in this process. Christine Robinson of Argus and Paul Caragiulo of the Chamber, in particular, have been courageous advocates for the aid being distributed fairly and quickly, without red tape. 

As they have urged from the outset, our community’s COVID-19 relief funds should be prioritized to support the families and individuals who have suffered the greatest impact from the pandemic, the businesses that employ them and the nonprofits that support them.

If you tried applying already but gave up on the process, please consider trying again. The county has created a variety of resources—video guides, text alerts, a dedicated call center—to help you. Residents applying for relief also can get in-person help at several local libraries. Businesses can access remote support from business-assistance partners like Visit Sarasota County and the Manasota Black Chamber of Commerce.

The nearly $76 million available to our community is significant. It’s roughly 25% of Sarasota County’s annual general fund. And about 17 times what the county spends on contracted human services in a year. The potential positive impact for families, businesses and nonprofits that have suffered is immense.

But the county must distribute the first quarter of available funds—$18.9 million—before it can tap more. And all funds must be disbursed by year end at this point. As I write this, the county’s dashboard shows about $10 million approved and $6 million paid so far, though those totals have been climbing daily. Help is available, but time is running out to accept it.

Mark S. Pritchett is president and CEO of Gulf Coast Community Foundation. 

I want to thank you for the opportunity to hear my views about Lake Okeechobee and water quality for the state of Florida after Joe Gruters and Katherine Norman had their chance to give their views.

Back in 2014 I ran for Florida State Representative, and water quality for the state of Florida was the main issue.

Just to refresh everyone’s memory about water quality, the Florida House moved the waters in the Everglades first before it passed in the Senate. This is when the debacle of red tide algae blooms affected not only the Gulf of Mexico for District 23, but for the whole state of Florida. Because of this, the sugar cane crops at the Florida Keys were destroyed and we, the people, are still paying taxes for the cleanup. This caused Lake Okeechobee’s Dam to have green algae turmoil pumping out of the dam, which caused the debacle to look like green split— pea soup, having a reverse osmosis debacle from the Gulf of Mexico via the Lake Okeechobee Dam. Back in 2014 I told state legislature to fix the Dam first. Nothing was done for three years and monies started to funnel to fix the Dam via Federal Government. Now, your state senator is trying to fine polluters causing raw sewage spills for the state of Florida.

My question is: Do Florida taxpayers have to pay taxes for the polluters making matters worse? Also, I want to know where the monies are, for example , quotation ’a two-dollar fee and a slap on the wrist.’  I am concerned when we have a Hurricane like Hurricane Delta that hit Lake Charles, the same debacle could happen for the state of Florida. The people, for the state of Florida, deserve an answer about high sea levels that will expose Lake Okeechobee when the Army of Engineers start releasing the waters out of the Dam. Because of this situation, small businesses and all people’s health will be in danger. If we do not have homeostasis because of water quality and COVID-19, I fear our water quality will be in serious danger. Florida needs more help to fix this situation.

Robert Samuel Kaplan is a candidate for State Senate District 23 running without party affiliation.