Retired Army General and Florida Circuit Court Judge and Current Representative for Niceville in the Florida House T. Patterson Maney will serve on a total of six committees during the 2023 legislative session.ย 

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Committees are important for us back here in the Panhandle because it gives the representative on that committee an outsized amount of influence (compared to reps who are not on the committee) over items that come before them. Basically committees can kill or advance a bill they like or donโ€™t like.ย 

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Those committees are meeting right now at the state capitol in Tallahassee to do their fact-finding and orientation about the issues they will face in the next legislative session. Think of it like a preseason for the NFL.ย 

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In a press release, Representative Maney said that he will focus on rising property insurance costs to Florida Families. โ€œStorm after storm, Florida Communities are in near-constant states of short and long-term recovery.โ€

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Insurance issues will take much of Rep. Maneyโ€™s focus in the 2023 session – as he will serve as the Vice Chairman of the Commerce Committee. The committee, like all other committees in the Florida House, is responsible for four primary functions:

  1. Oversight of their subject matter (i.e., commerce in the state of Florida)
  2. Invite public officials and private individuals to give information to it about relevant subject matter.
  3. The committee is also allowed to dig through any state public agency records. It can also compel witnesses to testify through subpoena powers.ย 
  4. The committees can direct business as directed by the speaker of the house.ย 

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The previous Committee vice-chair was Brad Drake, a Republican from Walton County.ย 

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This wonโ€™t constitute Maneyโ€™s only responsibility in Tallahassee between March and May. He will also serve on the Regulatory Reform and Economic Development Subcommittee, the Children, Families and Seniors Subcommittee (Past Rep and Current County Commissioner Mel Ponder once held this chairmanship), the Judiciary Committee, the Civil Justice Subcommittee and the State Administration and Technology Appropriations Subcommittee.ย 

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The full state house and senate will meet for a total of 60 days, beginning March 7th, 2023. Should other issues arise, or certain problems not get solved, the governor can call the legislature back into session for longer.ย 

Special Session 22-A

Representative Maney and the other members of the Florida State Legislature are in Tallahassee this week (December 12-16) for a special session of the Florida State House to specifically discuss a new law to โ€œreduce the cost of property insurance litigation claims, foster the availability of reinsurance for property insurance, improve the financial of the state-owned Citizens Property Insurance Corporation [and to] provide tax relief and other financial assistance to those properties damaged by hurricanes Ian and Nicole.โ€

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Legislative committees will also begin to meet the week of December 12th.ย 

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