Symphony Under the Stars
VOLUME 4 ISSUE 19
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MAY 12 - MAY 18, 2023
School district amps up school security Lawmakers pass $117B budget, end session By Jim Turner and Ryan Dailey Florida News Service
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Students leave West Port High School in Ocala after the last bell on Wednesday, May 10, 2023. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2023.
By Lauren Morrish Correspondent
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he Marion County School Board gave Director of Safe Schools, Dennis McFatten, its full support in an April 20 work session to move forward with changing the employment status of three district employees to become sworn law enforcement. Under the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Act an officer must be at every school in the district and in the case of Marion County- the district is under contract for officers to provide security at schools from Marion County Sheriff ’s Office and Ocala Police Department. The Florida Legislature passed the act
following the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the Broward County School District. The officers from the MCSO and OPD cost the district approximately $4.5 million annually. The safe schools department, a division under Marion County Public Schools, acts as the district’s law enforcement agency. The department’s main focus is to take preventive measures for student and faculty safetywhich swells to more than 50,000 people on any given school day. Five personnel are included under the authority of Marion County’s school district. One of them being McFatten, who is the only instated sworn officer so far. The other four staff are security specialists, but one
is already an acting guardian protector for the schools. Last month, McFatten asked the school district to consider allowing the other three specialists, all with law enforcement certifications, to become sworn officers. “This is simply the four people that’s in the safe school’s department who has the ability to be sworn and armed so that when they are on any of our school’s campuses, if something happens, they can respond,” said McFatten. “And right now, currently they are not in that position, they’re not able to do that.” McFatten proposed two recommendations that would add a supplemental layer of safety to schools See School, page A4
CITY ELECTION COVERAGE
A Q&A with Mayoral Candidate Ben Marciano Zone Health and Fitness owner Ben Marciano is passionate about helping the well-being of Ocala if elected mayor. By Julie Garisto julie@magnoliamediaco.com
B File photo: Ben Marciano, the owner of Zone Health and Fitness, at Zone Health and Fitness on South Pine Avenue in Ocala on Monday, July 12, 2021. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2021.
en Marciano, the owner of Zone Health and Fitness, is currently an uncontested candidate for mayor of Ocala and will take office if no one challenges him in the nonpartisan city election on Sept. 19. Born in New York on May 4, 1979, Marciano came to Dunnellon as a child and lived with his grandparents. Named a distinguished alum by the College of Central Florida, he has an associate degree in criminal justice. He shifted his career path
to health while studying recreation and leisure at Florida State University. After undergoing recovery from an alcohol and substance abuse addiction, he returned to Ocala where he met his wife, Danielle, and started a family. They now have three children. Marciano’s civic participation and leadership roles have included being named 2015 Boys & Girls Club Board Member of Year and the 2019 Heart Walk Chair. In 2020-21, he won the Rotary Club Community Service Award, and he’s a board chair of MainStreet Bank. See Mayoral, page A2
lorida lawmakers on Friday finalized a $117 billion budget and an accompanying $1.3 billion tax package to end a legislative session that carried out many of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ priorities. After adjourning “sine die” — the traditional declaration that marks the end of the annual 60-day session — just before 11 a.m., House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, pointed to a series of key issues that he said lawmakers addressed. “When we were traveling the state, we were often reminded of the major things on Floridians’ minds,” Renner said during a ceremony in the Capitol’s fourth-floor rotunda between the House and Senate chambers. “Affordability was one of those. The runaway litigation climate was one of those. Having an educated workforce was one of those. And … we had the worst hurricane that we’ve ever faced. On each and every one of those issues, we delivered for the people of Florida.” Lawmakers began the session in early March after also holding special sessions in December and February. During a news conference Friday, DeSantis touted issues passed by the Legislature. “I don’t think we’ve seen a six-month stretch that has ever been this productive in the history of our state,” DeSantis said, pointing to legislation on issues such as immigration, expanded school vouchers and changes to higher education. “And I would put us up against any state in the modern history of our country.” Democrats, however, argued that the regular session was filled with “missed opportunities” and “culture war” legislation that did not address issues such as high insurance rates, skyrocketing rent costs and unaffordable health care. As an example, Rep. Dotie Joseph, D-North Miami, pointed to $12 million that Republicans approved for a program to transport migrants to other states. That came after the DeSantis administration last year flew 49 migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts. “Instead of spending $12 million to hunt down or profile immigrants legally admitted by federal immigration officials and fly them on a private jet to Martha’s Vineyard, we could expand Medicaid, which unlocks billions in federal dollars to help U.S. citizens in Florida,” Joseph said. House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell, D-Tampa, said the session was highlighted by DeSantis’ “extremist agenda” on issues such as restricting abortion, allowing people to carry guns without concealed-weapons licenses and expanding a fight with Walt Disney Co. While Republicans and Democrats battled throughout the session on major policy issues, the House and Senate passed the budget (SB 2500) and tax package (HB 7063) with little opposition. The tax package includes a series See Budget, page A6
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