Economics

• Reverse past agenda of prioritizing corporate profits over people

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• Centralization of wealth and power contributes to social and economic injustice and environmental destruction. Therefore, we support a restructuring of social, political, and economic institutions away from a system that is controlled by and mostly benefits the powerful few, to a democratic, less bureaucratic system. Decision-making should, as much as possible, remain at the individual and local level, while assuring that civil rights are protected for all citizens.

• We recognize it is essential to create a vibrant and sustainable economic system, one that can create jobs and provide a decent standard of living for all people while maintaining a healthy ecological balance. A successful economic system will offer meaningful work with dignity while paying a “living wage” which reflects the real value of a person’s work. Local communities must look to economic development that assures protection of the environment and workers’ rights; broad citizen participation in planning; and enhancement of our “quality of life.” We support independently owned and operated companies that are socially responsible, as well as co-operatives and public enterprises that distribute resources and control to more people through democratic participation and away from corporate consolidation of power over Tallahassee.

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• Center our focus around those who make our economy run, the working class

  • All workers have the right to a safe, humane working environment. We need to create a state version of OSHA and empower it to investigate workplace hazards and protect Floridian workers.

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• My Campaign supports:

1. Phasing-out toxic substances in the workplace in favor of non-toxic alternatives.

2. Safe agricultural practices that do not endanger farmworkers.

3. Worker safety programs at the state, and a worker’s right to be notified of all workplace hazards.

4. Protection of “whistleblowers” from job termination and harassment.

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• Our current centralized approach to economic and monetary policy serves the few wealthy CEOs, rather than the whole community. Profits from large national and multinational corporations go to owners and investors who often live apart from the communities where the goods and services are produced. Too often our communities are reduced to being an expendable source of labor and resources, and a repository for waste. We must change this and give workers and locals more say in economic decisions that impact their community.

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• We support locally owned businesses. The majority of new jobs are created by small businesses, yet their failure rate remains inordinately high because they are hampered by overly complex and costly regulations, and they receive limited assistance from governments. In contrast, the efforts of states and municipalities to attract large businesses are characterized by tax breaks, compromised land-use planning, and dubious enforcement of environmental codes. We seek to nurture the vitality and ecological sustainability of our local economies.

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• My campaign supports:

1. A revamping of the tax, fee, and regulatory burdens on small business. We advocate fiscal policies that encourage the development of smaller-scale and locally-owned businesses that are ecologically sound. Incentives should be created for companies to hire employees at a living wage.

2. The establishment of more local, nonprofit development corporations, and the giving of grants to community-based enterprises. Large businesses whose ownership lies outside the region, or whose profits transfer outside the region, should be required to invest in these development corporations, which would monitor the impact of business on the community and promote their community’s economic and ecological health. This should also include the support of neighborhood nonprofit development corporations which would further community-based economics.

3. The creation of jobs in poor neighborhoods via “enterprise zones” (Enterprise zones are designed to stimulate business growth and job creation in economically distressed communities, where market forces would not normally operate), coupled with profit-sharing structures as a minimum; ideally, they would be employee-owned.

4. Further development of land trusts and intentional communities.

5. The significant redirection of public funds toward local and bioregional investment in ecologically, socially, and economically sustainable projects through the establishment of local banks owned by the public and chartered for the public good.

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• Raise the minimum wage to $15/hr 

  1. My campaign supports living wage laws because they allow families to prosper, promote dignity in the workplace, and will even result in a reduction of government services as real salaries increase. We reject any attempts by the state or national governments to restrict the rights of communities to enact such ordinances.

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• Boost affordable housing trust fund 

  • Adequate housing is a basic human right to which all people should be entitled, regardless of their economic status.

  • In order to assist in making homes affordable to all, my campaign advocates:

1. The establishment of publicly funded, non-profit housing banks to provide residential home mortgage and construction loans at low-interest rates.

2. The non-profit financing of co-housing, cooperatives, ecological villages and all innovative housing which is low-cost and uses land and resources sustainably and efficiently.

3. Urban planning which fosters diverse, integrated neighborhoods, rather than de facto housing discrimination.

4. The regulation of real estate speculation to increase the availability of low-income and single-occupancy housing.

5. Promoting statewide initiatives to fund locally planned and administered affordable housing programs.

6. Providing safe and sanitary housing to migrant and other agricultural workers.

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• End Homelessness

  • Homeless people have a right to full acknowledgment of their human dignity and a voice in those decisions that affect them. The present level of involuntary homelessness is evidence of the severe shortcomings of our society. Today, homeless people are hounded, threatened, and often unable to access services they need. Though affordable housing will alleviate many of the problems of homelessness, homeless people also have needs beyond housing.

  • To address these needs, our campaign calls for:

1. Full participation of homeless people in decisions about long and short-term solutions to their situations.

2. Increasing public funding and services for the homeless.

3. Repeal of laws that seek to criminalize any facet of homelessness or the giving of aid to the homeless.

4. Reform of anti-sleeping laws to prohibit punitive treatment of homeless people and facilitate their adequate sheltering.

5. Strict enforcement of all laws designed to provide for homeless people, such as those requiring the opening of National Guard armories to them during inclement weather.

6. Increased funding and accessibility of mental health and substance abuse rehabilitation services as well as educational and medical services.

7. Allocation of community garden space for homeless people.

8. Increased provision and accessibility of public restrooms.

9. Provision of voucher systems and alternative economic programs to enable homeless people to begin meeting their own needs.

• Institute rent control programs 

  • A 2007 study by David Sims and a 2014 study by Autor, Palmer, and Pathak both look at the effects of the end of rent control in Massachusetts, after the passage of Question 9 by Massachusetts ballot referendum in 1994. Sims found that the end of rent control had little effect on the construction of new housing. He did however find evidence that rent control decreased the number of available rental units, by encouraging condo conversions. In other words, rent control seemed to affect the quantity of rental housing, but not the total quantity of the housing stock. Unsurprisingly, Sims also found significant increases in rent charged after decontrol, suggesting that rent control was effective in limiting rent increases. Finally, he found that rent-controlled units had much longer tenure times, supporting the idea that rent control promotes neighborhood stability. The author and coauthors reached similar conclusions. They also found that eliminating rent control raised rents in homes in the same area that were never subject to the controls, reinforcing the idea that rent control contributes to neighborhood stability.

  • The main conclusions from this literature are, first, that rent regulation is effective in limiting rent increases, although how effective it depends on the specifics of the law. Vacancy decontrol in particular may significantly weaken rent control. Second, there is no evidence that rent regulations reduce the overall supply of housing. They, may, however, reduce the supply of rental housing if it is easy for landlords to convert apartments to condominiums or other non-rental uses. This suggests that limitations on these kinds of conversions may be worth exploring. Third, in addition to their effect on the overall level of rents, rent regulations also play an important role in promoting neighborhood stability and protecting long-term tenants.

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• Tax policy

  • The primary function of taxes is to collect revenue to pay for public services. A secondary function of tax policy is to discourage undesirable behavior and encourage desirable behavior. Fundamentally, tax policy should be simple, progressive and fair, and sufficient to provide for the needs of Florida citizens.

  • My campaign proposes significant changes to improve the quality of life, promote a vibrant economy, encourage ecologically sound economic activities, and make the burden of taxation fairer.

  • To begin correcting these defects in the current tax system we must:

1. Impose pollution taxes and full-cost pricing. In a fair tax system, the full cost to the public of a particular economic activity should be paid by those who benefit from the activity; presently, the costs of pollution and other effects of industry are paid by the public through the health care and social service systems.

2. Imposition of consumer taxes on environmentally harmful and luxury items.

3. Amend Florida’s constitution allow a simple majority to pass new taxes

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• Government spending

  • I advocate providing for the general welfare and education of the populace through efficient and effective service delivery. A thorough objective analysis of the Florida state budget is necessary. How money is raised and where it’s being spent are issues of concern to everyone.

  • My campaign calls for:

1. Cost-effectiveness studies of the major departments in state and local governments.

2. Strategic social investment to avoid future costs. For example, investing in quality education and social development will make much of the future spending for prisons and welfare unnecessary. For example, providing family planning services now will avoid many of the economic and emotional hardships associated with unwanted children later.

3. Local and state budgets to be determined with input from citizen organizations. Preliminary budget drafts should be made readily available to the public in time to allow discussion and feedback.

4. Local and state government should actively solicit citizens and citizen groups to participate in the budgeting process

5. Eliminating the privatization of traditional and essential government services.

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• Corporate Accountability

  • My campaign believes corporations should be held to a stringent public interest standard in all facets of their operations, whether they are located here in the US or abroad.

  • We would promote legislation to:

1. Require democracy in the workplace. Workplace democracy is the application of democracy in various forms (examples include voting systems, debates, democratic structuring, due process, adversarial process, systems of appeal) to the workplace.

2. Mandate corporations to adopt rigorous environmental standards, such as the Valdez Principles.

3. Enforce charter revocation when a corporation fails to conduct its business according to its charter, or in a way that harms the public interest.

4. Eliminate the legal fiction of corporate personhood.

• Invest in green mass public transit 

• We need ecologically sound forms of transportation that minimize pollution and maximize energy efficiency, safety, and public accessibility. The widespread use of fossil-fueled, low-occupancy vehicles is inefficient, costly, and environmentally destructive.

• One type of ecologically sound form of transportation is green energy powered high-speed railways. High-speed trains reduce the need for cars and airplanes, therefore reducing greenhouse gas emissions (27% of the US’ total emissions) and air pollution that kills millions annually. Increased use of high-speed rails would decrease traffic collisions and fatalities that kill 35,000+ people per year.

• Many other countries around the world have had high-speed rail systems for decades and Florida must become a leader in the US and sponsor high-speed rail projects to connect all of Florida by building railways that mirror our interstate system (pictured below)

• High-speed rails have already begun in Florida thanks to Virgin Trains. Currently, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach are connected by a modern rail system and the company plans to build to Orlando and Tampa. This is the perfect opportunity for the state of Florida to partner with Virgin Trains to fully connect all of Florida with high speed, comfortable, modern trains.

• Public investment in this project would not be a blank check. We will make sure this investment benefits all Floridians not just the wealthy CEOs and corporate executives. We will attach many stipulations and regulations to any taxpayer investment in a statewide rail system. Such regulations will include strict environmental standards mandating recycling, proper toxic waste disposal, and creating a green energy infrastructure to power the trains. We will also require strict protections for workers’ rights including mandating a living wage be paid, mandating benefits be offered, and protecting their workers’ right to unionize and collective bargaining. There should also be a requirement that the people of Florida receive a certain percentage stake in Florida’s high-speed rail system in exchange for their public investment. The state of Florida and its residents will become a shareholder in the rail system. Floridian residents will be paid dividends from the company and the state will have a say in corporate decisions to protect the best interests of Floridians.

• Plans for high-speed rail systems are being drawn up to connect the entire united states including connecting our state’s rails system all the way to Las Vegas and Las Angeles. A nationwide system would drastically change the US for the better and revolutionize our transportation system to match the needs of a green society.

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• Legalize Marijuana 

  • By 2025 it’s predicted that the medical marijuana industry alone will create over 120,000 jobs. Full legalization would increase job growth exponentially.

  • Marijuana legalization in FL will increase tax revenue, increase employment, and increase consumer spending as it has in other states.

  • If approved recreational marijuana could generate $190 million in sales tax and tourism dollars into Florida each year.

    1. Figure based on standard state sale tax of 5/6 percent, the $190 million could be much higher if legal marijuana were subject to an increased tax similar to Colorado (15%)

    2. Also, elimination of incarceration costs would be a benefit there were about 39,000 arrests in Florida in 2018 for marijuana possession

  • A University of North Florida (UNF) poll in Oct. of 2019 showed 64% of FL voters support the legalization of rec. Marijuana.

  • We must also retroactively release all non-violent drug offenders in Florida and scrub their records of drug charges.

• Invest in a Florida Green New Deal 

  • Florida needs a Green New Deal — a 10-year WWII-scale mobilization, as put forth by Senator Edward Markey and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, to stop climate change, achieve environmental sustainability, create millions of good jobs, and realize economic prosperity for all.

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• Support labor and workplace democracy 

  • Employees have the right to organize and operate democratically governed unions. Too often, companies are permitted to harass, intimidate, or otherwise thwart employee efforts to organize.

  • My campaign supports:

1. Plant closure warning laws and other measures to discourage strike breaking, de-unionization, and the exporting of jobs to countries without labor protection.

2. Legislation which would empower workers and/or communities to assume ownership of plants which are slated for closure by corporations.

3. The repeal of the Taft-Hartley Act and all Florida right-to-work laws.

4. Amending the state constitution to allow public-sector unions (such as teachers) to strike.

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• The best way to ensure a genuine connection between Floridian communities and businesses is to have them intimately associated and connected with each other through the encouragement of cooperative ownership and small business incentives. 

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• All across Florida, you have entire industries dominated by a few politically connected, powerful corporations which simultaneously crush competition as well as do local communities a disservice through attempting political corruption, violating worker rights and committing massive amounts of ecological damage then passing the responsibility to cities, counties and the state.

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• Encouraging the incorporation of cooperative enterprises that are owned by those who work inside of them, sharing in their profits according to their work, will ensure that the fruits of their labor are enjoyed fully as well as right back into the local economy via the patronage of small businesses.  On this note small businesses, while expected to treat their workers with respect and benefits as any company must, should be protected and encouraged in recognition of unfair, slanted competition they face from multinational corporations that come in and attempt to undermine these local enterprises.

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• An open bias towards local businesses and cooperatives should be the cornerstone of any representative who claims to serve the people and communities of Florida.  

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• My campaign calls for:

1. The conversion to an ecologically sustainable civilian economy, with public support for the retraining of displaced workers.

2. Local job training programs, a shortened, flexible workweek, and job sharing.

3. Comparable pay for comparable work.

4. A 35-hour workweek, with full benefits and a four-week, paid vacation for all full-time employees.

5. A living wage and fair working conditions for all migrant and other agricultural workers.

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• Create a public investment and comercial bank of Florida 

  • Publicly owned municipal banks located across the state of Florida in both rural and urban areas can provide an essential service to communities, small businesses, and families alike by having their money kept in a safe place which is dedicated to the direct improvements of local economies.

  • Rather than having the money of everyday Floridians be used for fraud and gambling on Wall Street by way of the international finance system, these locally centered public banks will be held accountable to the voters as stakeholders in this community institution.

  • Small business loans, resources for community projects, and scholastic grants for local students and the organizations who help them succeed are the sorts of investments these municipal banks will pursue as opposed to funneling Floridians hard-earned money into some offshore bank account or trust fund of the top 1%.

  • While chartered and dedicated to the responsible management of local resources, the vision behind these Municipal Banks are just as much to give voice to the idea of “people over profit” where you won’t see fraudulent Credit Card Registration Scheme or risky investments all designed less to ensure the safekeeping of your money but rather to line the pockets of the bankers through bonuses and dividends. 

  • Wealth is also extracted from our communities through the practice of depositing public money in large private multinational banks. These banks invest this money outside of our communities for their own gain, with no transparency or accountability. We seek the recapture of this public wealth to be invested locally for sustainable economic growth.