Florida

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PRESIDENT CLINTON AND VICE PRESIDENT GORE’S ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Florida PRESIDENT CLINTON AND VICE PRESIDENT GORE’S PRESIDENT CLINTON AND VICE PRESIDENT GORE’S

ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Florida

EXPANDING ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL

Unemployment Down to 3.6%: The unemployment rate in Florida has declined from 7.3% to 3.6% since 1993.

1,789,100 New Jobs: 1,789,100 new jobs have been created in Florida since 1993 -- an average of 228,396 jobs per year, compared to an average of just 70,750 jobs per year in the previous administration.

1,664,500 New Private Sector Jobs: Since 1993, 1,664,500 new private sector jobs have been created in Florida—an average of 212,489 jobs per year, compared to an average of just 48,775 private sector jobs per year in the previous administration.

97,000 New Construction Jobs: 97,000 construction jobs have been created in Florida since 1993 -- an average of 12,516 jobs per year. In contrast, an average of 15,650 construction jobs were lost each year during the previous administration.

556,000 Have Received a Raise: Approximately 214,000 Florida workers benefited from an increase in the minimum wage—from $4.25 to $4.75 -- on October 1, 1996. They, along with about 342,000 more, received an additional raise—from $4.75 to $5.15 -- on September 1, 1997. President Clinton and Vice President Gore have called on Congress to raise the minimum wage by an additional $1.00 over two years.

Poverty Has Fallen: Nationally, the poverty rate has fallen from 15.1% in 1993 to 11.8% in 1999, the lowest level since 1979. In Florida, the poverty rate has fallen from 17.8% in 1993 to 12.8% in 1999. [Census Bureau]

A $500 Child Tax Credit to Help Families Raising Children: To help make it easier for families to raise their children, the balanced budget included a $500 per-child tax credit for children under 17. Thanks to President Clinton, the balanced budget delivers a child tax credit to 1,333,000 families in Florida.

Business Failures Down 14.9%: Business failures in Florida have dropped 14.9% per year since 1993, after increasing 27.8% per year during the previous 12 years. [Oct. 98 data]

Home Building Up 5.1% Per Year: New home building in Florida has increased 5.1% per year since 1993, after falling an average of 12.1% per year during the previous administration.

Homeownership has increased: Homeownership in Florida has increased from 66% to 67.6% since 1993.

Florida's Families Reap Benefits of Deficit Reduction: Public debt is on track to be $2.4 trillion lower in 2000 than was projected in 1993. Debt reduction brings real benefits for the American people -- a family in Florida with a home mortgage of $100,000 might expect to save roughly $2,000 per year in mortgage payments. Reduced debt also means lower interest rates and reduced payments on car loans and student loans.

EXPANDING ACCESS TO EDUCATION

Nearly 30,800 Children in Head Start: 30,792 Florida children were enrolled in Head Start in 1999. In FY00, Florida will receive $197.2 million in Head Start funding, an increase of $104.5 million over 1993.

More High-Quality Teachers With Smaller Classes for Florida’s Schools: Thanks to the Class Size Reduction Initiative, Florida received $52 million in 1999 to hire about 1,333 new, well-prepared public school teachers and reduce class size in the early grades. President Clinton secured funding for a second and third installment of the plan, giving Florida $56.2 million in 2000 and $70.1 million in 2001.

$49.9 Million for School Repairs: President Clinton fought for and won a new initiative to repair America’s schools, providing $1.2 billion in the FY 2001 budget for urgent school renovation. STATE will receive $49.9 million in school renovation grants.

Over $21.6 Million for Technology Literacy: This year [FY01], Florida receives $21.6 million for the Technology Literacy Challenge Fund which helps communities and the private sector ensure that every student is equipped with the computer literacy skills needed for the 21^st century.

$408 Million for Students Most in Need: Florida will receive nearly $408 million in Title I Grants (to Local Educational Agencies) providing extra help in the basics for students most in need, particularly communities and schools with high concentrations of children in low-income families [FY01].

Turning Around Failing Schools: Florida will receive $11.1 million in Title I Accountability Grants in 2001. President Clinton created the accountability fund to help turn around the worst performing schools through such measures as overhauling curriculum, improving staffing, or even closing schools and reopening them as charter schools.

$475.4 Million in Pell Grants: This year [FY01], Florida will receive $475.4 million in Pell Grants for low-income students going to college.

Expanded Work-Study To Help More Students Work Their Way Through College: Florida will receive $37.8 million in Work-Study funding in 2001 to help Florida students work their way through college.

Over 4,200 Have Served in Florida through AmeriCorps: Since the National Service program began in 1993, 4,252 AmeriCorps participants have earned money for college while working in Florida’s schools, hospitals, neighborhoods or parks. [through 2/00]

Tuition Tax Credits in Balanced Budget Open the Doors of College and Promote Lifelong Learning: The balanced budget included both President Clinton’s $1,500 HOPE Scholarship to help make the first two years of college as universal as a high school diploma and a Lifetime Learning Tax Credit for college juniors, seniors, graduate students and working Americans pursuing lifelong learning to upgrade their skills. This 20% tax credit will be applied to the first $5,000 of tuition and fees through 2002 and to the first $10,000 thereafter. 300,000 students in Florida will receive a HOPE Scholarship tax credit of up to $1,500. 366,000 students in Florida will receive the Lifetime Learning Tax Credit. [fully phased-in FY2000 estimate]

Expanded Job Training to Florida’s Dislocated Workers: President Clinton's FY 2001 budget would triple funding for the dislocated workers program over 1992 levels. Florida received $44.8 million in 1999 to help 26,560 dislocated workers get the training and reemployment services they need to return to work as quickly as possible. In FY 2000, Florida will receive over $41 million to provide job training services for dislocated workers.

FIGHTING CRIME AND VIOLENCE

Violent Crime Falls 8% in Florida: Since 1992, violent crime in Florida has fallen 8%. In Florida’s cities, serious crime, as indicated by the crime index, has declined 17% in Jacksonville, 22% in Tallahassee, 23% in Miami, and 20% in Tampa. [1992 and 1997 Uniform Crime Report]

6,646 More Police: The President’s 1994 Crime Bill has funded 6,646 new police officers to date in communities across Florida. [through 1/01]

Miami and Fort Pierce Will Receive Targeted Funding to Hire More Community Police: Miami and Fort Pierce were selected as pilot cities for the President’s new effort to target high crime neighborhoods. The pilot program will provide full funding for new officers by waiving the usual matching requirements. Miami and Fort Pierce will deploy new officers to help meet the unique needs of their communities, such as combating gangs or targeting drug "hot spots."

Reducing Crime with Drug Courts: Working to reduce drug-related crime in Florida, the Clinton Administration has awarded Drug Court grants to the communities of Ocala, Orlando, Sarasota, DeLand, Miami, Tampa, and Ft. Lauderdale. The Administration had previously awarded grants to a number of Florida communities including: Jacksonville, Key West, Marathon, Moorehaven, Gainesville, Pensacola, and Plantation Key. Drug courts use the coercive power of the criminal justice system to combine drug testing, sanctions, supervision and treatment to push nonviolent, drug-abusing offenders to stop using drugs and committing crimes.

$57.06 Million to Combat Domestic Violence: Through the Violence Against Women Act, Florida has received approximately $57.06 million in federal funds to establish more women’s shelters and bolster law enforcement, prosecution and victims’ services. And in October 1999, the University of North Florida was awarded $143,547 to help address sexual assault, domestic violence, and stalking on campus. [through 9/2000]

Over $3.1 Million in Grants for Battered Women and Children: In FY98, Florida received over $3.1 million in HHS’s Family Violence Prevention Program grants to assist women and children fleeing domestic abuse.

$21 Million to Keep Drugs & Violence Out of Florida’s Schools: Florida receives $21 million in FY01 for the Safe & Drug Free Schools Program, which invests in school security and drug prevention programs.

MOVING FLORIDIANS FROM WELFARE TO WORK

528,501 Fewer People on Welfare: There are 528,501 fewer people on welfare in Florida now than there were at the beginning of 1993 -- a 75% decrease. [through 6/99]

Child Support Collections Up 104%: Child support collections have increased by $264 million—or 104% -- in Florida since FY92. [through FY98]

Encouraging Responsible Choices—Preventing Teen Pregnancy in Florida: Since 1993, President Clinton and Vice President Gore have supported innovative and promising teen pregnancy prevention strategies, with significant components of the strategy becoming law in the 1996 Personal Responsibility Act. The law requires unmarried minor parents to stay in school and live at home or in a supervised setting; encourages "second chance homes" to provide teen parents with the skills and support they need; and provides $50 million a year in new funding for state abstinence education activities. Efforts are making a difference, adolescent pregnancy rates and teen abortion rates are declining. And between 1991 and 1997, teen birth rates declined 16.1% in Florida.

$114.6 Million for Florida Welfare-to-Work: In 1998 and 1999, Florida received a total of $98.1 million in Federal welfare-to-work state formula grants, helping Florida welfare recipients get and keep jobs. In addition, in 1999 and 1998 a total of $16.5 million in competitive grants were awarded to Florida localities to support innovative welfare-to-work strategies. Part of the President’s comprehensive efforts to move recipients from welfare to work, this funding was included in the $3 billion welfare to work fund in the 1997 Balanced Budget Act.

Helping People Get to Work: Through the Access to Jobs initiative, the Clinton-Gore Administration is working with communities across the country to design transportation solutions to help welfare recipients and other low-income workers get to and from work. Jacksonville and Ft. Lauderdale have received a total of $2.5 million this year to fund innovative transit projects.

INVESTING IN FLORIDA’S HEALTH

Health Care for Nearly 155,000 Uninsured Florida Children: In 1997, President Clinton passed the largest single investment in health care for children since 1965 -- an unprecedented $24 billion over five years to cover as many as five million children throughout the nation. This investment guarantees the full range of benefits that children need to grow up strong and healthy. Two million children nationwide have health care coverage thanks to the President's plan, including 154,594 in Florida. [HHS, Health Care Financing Administration, FY99 SCHIP enrollment data]

Helping Over 338,000 Florida Women and Children with WIC: The Clinton Administration is committed to full funding in the Special Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). In FY99, Florida received $192.4 million in total WIC grant funding, helping 338,906 women, infants and children in need receive health and food assistance, 47,000 more than in 1994. [through 8/99]

More Toddlers Are Being Immunized: As a result of the President’s 1993 Childhood Immunization Initiative, childhood immunization rates have reached an historic high. According to the CDC, 90% or more of America’s toddlers received the most critical doses of each of the routinely recommended vaccines in 1996, 1997, and again in 1998 —surpassing the President’s 1993 goal. In Florida in 1998, 92% of two-year olds received the vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis; 89% received the vaccine for polio; 92% received the vaccine for measles, and 92% received the vaccine for Haemophilus influenzae B, the bacteria causing a form of meningitis.

Funding for HIV/AIDS Assistance Programs: In FY 2000, Florida will receive over $27 million in Ryan White Title II formula grants. This funding provides people living with HIV and AIDS medical and support services. Also through the Ryan White Act, Florida will receive nearly $57 million for state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs (ADAPs), which help those without insurance obtain much needed prescription drugs. There has been a tenfold increase in ADAP funding in the last four years, up from $52 million in 1996 to $528 million in 2000. [HHS, Health Resources and Services Administration, 4/7/00]

Tobacco Plan Will Cut Smoking and Premature Deaths by 42% in Florida: The Clinton Administration’s tobacco proposal, combined with the recently enacted state tobacco settlements, will cut youth smoking and resulting premature deaths 42% in Florida by 2004. Between 2000 and 2004, 179,400 of Florida’s youth will be kept from smoking and 57,400 will be spared a premature tobacco-related death. [Treasury Dept., 2/99]

5,470,000 Americans in Florida Cannot Be Assured They Have Patient Protections: Even if Florida enacted all the protections in the Patients’ Bill of Rights, 5,470,000 people in Florida cannot be assured they have the comprehensive patient protections recommended by the President’s Advisory Commission. This is because the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) may preempt state-enacted protections. That is why the President has called on Congress to pass a federally enforceable patients’ bill of rights so that everyone enrolled in managed care may have a basic set of protections. Notably, 2,710,000 Florida women are in ERISA health plans and are therefore not necessarily protected. Women are particularly vulnerable without these protections because they are greater users of health care services, they make three-quarters of the health care decisions for their families, and they have specific health care needs addressed by a patients’ bill of rights.

CARING FOR OUR VETERANS

Invested Nearly $2.86 Billion in Florida's Veterans: President Clinton and Vice President Gore are committed to caring for Florida's 1.7 million veterans. The Veterans Administration invested nearly $2.86 billion in Florida in 1999 alone. In 1999, 243,355 Florida veterans received disability compensation or pension payments, more than 27,804 went to college on the GI Bill, and 38,525 bought a home using VA loan guarantees.

Providing Health Care for Florida's Veterans: Since 1993, the VA health system has increased the number of patients treated every year by over 29 percent; treated 83 percent more homeless patients; organized approximately 1,300 sites of care delivery under 22 Veterans Integrated Service Networks; and established more than 250 new community-based outpatient clinics. Florida VA operates six major medical centers at Bay Pines, Miami, Tampa, West Palm Beach, Gainesville and Lake City. Additionally, there are nine multi-specialty VA outpatient clinics located in Pensacola, Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Daytona Beach, Orlando, Viera (Brevard County), Port Richey, Ft. Myers, and Oakland Park. Primary care also is provided at 25 community-based outpatient clinics located throughout the state, and 18 more are planned by 2003. In 1999, 204,704 veterans received health care in Florida's VA facilities.

PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT

29 Toxic Waste Sites Cleaned Up: Since 1993, the EPA has completed 29 Superfund toxic waste cleanups in Florida -- more than three times the number of sites cleaned up in Florida under the previous two administrations. [through 3/1/00]

$22.5 Million in Safe Drinking Water Funding: This year [FY00], thanks to President Clinton, Florida will receive $22.5 million for the Drinking Water State Revolving Funds to provide low-interest loans to municipalities to build, improve, and prevent pollution of drinking water systems.

Revitalizing Brownfields in Florida: As part of the Clinton-Gore Administration’s efforts to clean up Brownfields, the EPA has awarded grants to 10 Florida communities and regions—Clearwater, Gainesville, Miami, St. Petersburg, Jacksonville, and Tallahassee—for environmental clean-up and economic revitalization. Dade County, Escambia County, Seminole Tribe and Southeast Florida will also receive Brownfields grants. These projects are intended to jump-start local clean-up efforts by providing funds to return unproductive, abandoned, contaminated urban properties to productive use.

SPEARHEADING URBAN AND RURAL RENEWAL EFFORTS

Revitalizing Florida’s Communities: In 1994, Tampa, Jackson County and Miami were all designated Enterprise Communities and were awarded $3 million each to create more jobs, housing, and economic opportunity for area residents. In 1999, Miami was designated as a new Urban Empowerment Zone and Immokalee was named as a Rural Enterprise Community.

Expanding the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Will Help Develop 6,500 To 7,800 New Affordable Housing Units in Florida Over the Next 5 Years: Last year, the President and Vice President pushed for a 40-percent expansion in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. This year, the President and Vice President will try again to enact tax incentives to develop affordable housing. In Florida alone, this proposal would mean an additional 6,500 - 7,800 quality rental housing units for low-income American families during the next five years.

PROVIDING DISASTER RELIEF

$803.2 Million in Federal Emergency Assistance: Since 1993, Florida has received $803.2 million in disaster relief. This includes over $146 million in 1998 to aid victims of Tropical storm Josephine, flooding, severe storms, tornadoes, extreme fire hazards, Hurricane Earl and Hurricane Georges. Also included in this total was $107 million in assistance Florida received for Hurricane Opal, which occurred in 1995. [FEMA, 2/29/00]

EXPANDING FUNDS FOR TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT

Over $3.6 Billion in Federal Highway Aid: Since 1993, Florida has received over $3.6 billion in federal highway aid. This includes $149.3 million for emergency relief in response to natural disasters and $600,000 for scenic byways. These funds have helped generate 161,426 jobs. [through FY99]

Over $558.2 Million in Aviation Funds: From FY93-FY99 Florida received over $558.2 million in Airport Improvement Program funds to help build and renovate airports, and, when necessary, to provide funds for noise abatement to improve the quality of life for residents who live near airports.