Don’t forget to vote. Special Election March 7th
VOLUME 4 ISSUE 9
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Polling sites pg A7
MARCH 3 - MARCH 9, 2023
SEYF: An honored tradition
Federal COVID-19 relief is weaponized in the special election By Jennifer Hunt Murty jennifer@ocalagazette.com
D Mark Sapp of Grandview describes the operation and controls of a John Deere tractor to participants in the Junior and Intermediate classes during the Tractor Driving Contest at the Southeastern Youth Fair in Ocala on Wednesday, March 1, 2023.
T
his year’s Southeastern Youth Fair (SEYF), which has been running since Feb. 23, will wrap up Saturday with hundreds of local students having competed in competitions involving animals, cooking, gardening, tractor driving and more. The SEYF is the oldest allyouth fair in the country without a midway and the largest allyouth fair event in Florida. The mission is to give participants,
who must be registered with a local 4-H club or the National FFA Organization, enhanced educational opportunities and help them with self-esteem and personal growth and development. The fair also helps educate residents about the importance of agriculture locally, such as that roughly 22% of our workforce is involved in agriculture in some capacity and Marion County is ranked 10th in the state for beef cattle, first in the state for
sheep and goat numbers, and has prominent farms dealing in peanuts, watermelon and seasonal vegetables. Many of the SEYF activities, such as raising a steer or pig, or the tractor driving competition, in which the participant must navigate a course that includes being able to back up a trailer, provide valuable skills for the youngsters who are poised to become future farmers and ranchers in our community.
Photos By Bruce Ackerman Ocala Gazette
uring the run-up to the March 7 special election for Florida House District 24, candidates Charlie Stone, Jose Juarez, and Dr. Stephen Pyles have come under attack for their acceptance of COVID-19 relief funds from the federal government during the pandemic. Campaign rhetoric during candidate forums and in negative mailers tied to another of the candidates in the race, Ryan Chamberlin, has recoined federal relief under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) into “bailouts” or money “stolen” from taxpayers. The allegations fall apart when the details and the program are objectively examined. According to the last report posted to the Small Business Administration’s website, more than 11 million businesses nationwide received PPP loans and at least 93% of those loans were entirely forgiven because the recipients followed the rules set out by the government. Ironically, the reason why there is a vacant District 24 seat, and thus a special election expected to cost Marion County taxpayers $500,000, is because of alleged fraud related to a second pandemic-related business relief program. Former State Rep. Joe Harding, an Ocala Republican, resigned the seat in December after being indicted on several federal fraud charges related to his receiving low-interest loans for defunct businesses under the Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL Program), also administered through the Small Business Administration. Juarez owns Victory Solutions, a niche marketing company serving motorcycle dealerships all over the country for 20 years. The company lost the majority of its business when the pandemic hit and many of those dealerships had their supply chains interrupted and stores were forced to close down under the circumstances. “The PPP money was used to keep my employees, rather than send them to unemployment lines, while we pivoted See Special, page A3
Left: William Smith, 13, of the Belleview Middle School FFA, drives a John Deere tractor and pulls a trailer between the marking poles.
New state sky diving record 10 big issues in 2023 session Right: Axel Ballien, 4, plays with his own toy tractors and trucks in the dirt.
By Jim Saunders Florida News Service
F
lorida lawmakers next week will start the annual 60-day legislative session. Here are 10 big issues to watch: — AFFORDABLE HOUSING: Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, R-Naples, has made a priority of trying to find ways to make housing more affordable for workers. The Senate could quickly pass a wide-ranging bill that includes providing incentives for investments in affordable housing and encouraging mixeduse developments in struggling commercial areas. — BUDGET: Gov. Ron DeSantis has proposed a $114.8 billion budget for the fiscal year that will start July 1. Among other things, the proposal includes money for increasing teacher salaries, $1.1 billion for Everglades restoration and water-quality issues, 5 percent across-the-board pay hikes for state workers and additional money for targeted jobs such as correctional officers. — DEATH PENALTY: After
Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz was sentenced to life in prison, lawmakers could scrap a requirement that unanimous jury recommendations are needed before death sentences can be imposed. House and Senate bills would allow death sentences based on the recommendations of eight of 12 jurors and also give judges more authority. — DEFAMATION: Lawmakers will consider revamping the state’s defamation laws, potentially weakening protections for journalists. DeSantis, who frequently criticizes the media, and House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, have called for revisiting the 1964 U.S. Supreme Court ruling known as New York Times v. Sullivan, which helps shield reporters from lawsuits. — GUNS: Republican lawmakers have started moving forward with a proposal to allow people to carry concealed weapons without obtaining state licenses, an idea that supporters call “constitutional carry.” The proposal has drawn opposition from gun-control groups — and from some gun-rights groups, who say the state should allow people
to openly carry guns. — IMMIGRATION: Continuing to criticize federal border and immigration policies, DeSantis wants lawmakers to pass a series of proposals involving undocumented immigrants. Among other things, he wants to expand the use of the E-Verify system, which is used to verify the employment status of workers, and bar out-of-state tuition waivers for undocumented students. — LAWSUIT LIMITS: With Republican supermajorities in the House and Senate, lawmakers could pass far-reaching changes to help shield businesses and insurance companies from costly lawsuits. The proposals, which target issues such as attorney fees, have touched off a lobbying fight, with critics arguing they would harm the ability of injured people to go to court. — SCHOOL BOARDS: DeSantis has taken the unusual step of getting involved in schoolboard races to elect conservative candidates. Now, Republican lawmakers want to amend the See 2023 session, page A7
David Bosanko lands one of his 77 skydiving jumps at the Marion County Airport in Dunnellon on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2023. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2023.
Dave Bosanko made 77 “hop and pop” jumps on Sunday at the Marion County Airport near Dunnellon, breaking the previous record by five jumps. By Andy Fillmore Correspondent
O
n Sunday, Feb. 26, Dave Bosanko’s 31st birthday, he broke the state of Florida’s record for the most
skydiving jumps in a 24-hour period, with 77 tumbles from a perfectly good airplane. He completed the feat at Central Florida Skydiving, based at the Marion County See Florida, page A4
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Highway 200.................................. A2 Local Leaders Honored............... A8 Public Art....................................... B1 Ocala Civic Theatre...................... B3 Calendar......................................... B5
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