When Hurricane Andrew impacted Florida in 1992, it exposed deficiencies in our country’s disaster response processes.  Since that time, counties have endeavored to strengthen their response and recovery capabilities, especially in the area of logistics and debris management. Given the scale of disasters in Florida, response and recovery cannot be executed without partners, including those in the private sector.  To understand how private vendors are integrated into county emergency management, in this podcast were are joined by Ashbritt CEO Brittany Perkins Castillo, who discusses a broad range of topics that highlight Ashbritt’s commitment to counties before and after disasters strike.

We are joined by Eryn Hurley, Legislative Director for the National Association of Counties, to discuss the latest updates from Washington D.C.   Relevant Documents: https://flcounties.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/EmFrkzzwALNNlL5X-FAXHJsBg5jnRszWGE0duROK5p7n2g

Although solar energy generation has been around for some time, only recently have we seen this technology really take off. From residential roof-top solar to utility-scale solar centers, investment in this technology is significant and only growing. This emerging trend was recently highlighted by Florida Trend magazine, which detailed where many of these investments are being made in the state and their associated costs. In this podcast, we speak with Florida Power and Light – a FAC corporate partner – regarding its growing footprint in the solar arena in Florida.

On average, eight people are killed and 49 are seriously injured on Florida’s roads every day. In most of those serious and fatal crashes, driver behavior is a contributing factor.  Target Zero is a statewide initiative to reduce the number of transportation-related injuries and deaths across Florida to zero. By using data-driven strategies, Target Zero promotes multi-faceted behavior changes through messaging campaigns and driver education.   A national speaker and advocate for traffic safety, Melissa Wandall talks with us about her work in this area and how counties can play an important role with Target Zero)  (Please note this podcast was originally presented as a webinar on County Connections. Accordingly, there are references to a previous webinar that should not detract from the content of the conversation.  The videos to those webinars can be view Studio 67 webpage: https://flicg.org/uf-webinar-resources/ )

Explore the diversity in the Florida legislature with Sen. Jason Pizzo in this insightful conversation with FAC's finest, Jeff Scala, Bob McKee, and Christopher Mathews.

Explore the diversity in the Florida legislature with Sen. Bobby Powell in this insightful conversation with FAC's finest, Jeff Scala, Bob McKee, and Christopher Mathews.  

We are joined by Eryn Hurley, Legislative Director for the National Association of Counties, to discuss the latest updates from Washington D.C.   

Florida’s 16 ports can easily be taken for granted – simply overlooked as large industrial areas, dotted with heavy equipment, warehouses, and a convergence of transportation modes. While this physical description may be fitting, ports don’t always get the recognition they deserve in terms of their overall contributions to our state’s economy.  In truth, ports are significant economic engines for our state. As evidence of this, in 2022 Florida’s ports --through cargo and cruise activities -- supported 900,000 jobs, with an economic contribution of nearly $118 billion; this equates to more than 13% of the state’s total GDP. To help us understand the critical role of ports, we sit down with Mike Rubin, President and CEO of the Florida Ports Council. A recognizable and respected person at the Florida Capitol, Mike is a champion of our state’s ports and long-time friend of FAC.   

A.I. is all the talk now; but how can you actually leverage it in your county in a controlled manner? In this podcast, we hear from Parth Shah, CEO & Co-Founder at Polimorphic, whose company has helped over 40 local governments use generative A.I. to provide constituents better customer service by replacing physical-based workflows with digital ones.  The result is higher customer satisfaction, decreased workload for employees, and a positive financial ROI for the local government.  Please note that this podcast was originally presented as a webinar on County Connections. Accordingly, there are a few references to slides from that presentation that should not detract from the content presented.  The video can be viewed on the Studio 67 webpage here:   https://flicg.org/county-connections/

Florida has 27 metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs). While the name may imply these organizations perform a general planning function, they actually only plan for one thing: transportation. To improve highway planning across the nation, in 1962 Congress made local planning a condition of federal spending on transportation projects in urban areas through the Federal-Aid Highway Act. That law mandated “a continuing, comprehensive” transportation planning process carried out cooperatively by states and local communities. Metropolitan planning organizations are the venue where that “cooperative” planning takes place.  In this podcast, we talk with the current chairman of the MPO Advisory Council (MPOAC), Commissioner Mayra Uribe of Orange County, and Mark Reichert, MPOAC Executive Director, about the role of MPOs in Florida’s transportation planning process.

While the media continues to report record increases in insurance premiums across the state, there are signs that the market may be heading in the right direction.  The Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) recently reported that eight new property and casualty insurance carriers were approved to enter the market, while Citizens Insurance has reduced its pool of policies by nearly 275,000.  On this episode, we speak again with Mark Friedlander to discuss what these and other changes mean for Florida’s fragile insurance market. 

With a government shutdown averted following passage of the last appropriations bills on March 23, NACo’s Eryn Hurley walks us through some of the major wins for counties, while highlighting other issues of interest – namely, the interim final rule for ARPA; EPA’s final rule on PFAS, and legislation to extend the Affordable Connectivity Plan (ACP).

As Congress edges toward a partial government shutdown, we are joined by Eryn Hurley, Legislative Director for the National Association of Counties, to discuss the final funding proposals in the last “mini bus” for 2024.

What's it like to spend your entire career working in county government? What do you learn along the way and what can you pass on to others?  While some view county work as a job -- albeit an important one -- others see it as a calling, dedicating long hours to make their communities better.  In this podcast, we sit down with Chris Holley, a former county manager and executive director of the Florida Association of Counties, to discuss what he learned during his long tenure in local government and what others can take away from his experience.

Counties are responsible for a broad range of environmental and natural resource issues, many of which are subject to state and federal regulations beyond their control. In this episode of County Conversations, we are joined by Kim Tapley, President of the Florida Environmental Resource Agencies (FLERA) and Dina Ferguson, Executive Director of FLERA, to discuss environmental issues and the role of counties.  

On this episode we speak with Commissioner John Meeks from Levy County. Now in his 12th year on the County Commission, Commissioner Meeks is someone who, through a love of his county -- which he calls a little piece of heaven - puts community first.  Active in several FAC policy committees over the years, Commissioner Meeks currently serves as the Chairman of the Institute for County Government (ICG) at FAC, where he helps shape education programming for county commissioners. Join us as we discuss what it means to be a commissioner on your first day in office; how to be a student commissioner; and, how to work with diverse issues and individuals in small coastal county.  

On this episode of County Conversations we are joined by Brett Mattson, Legislative Director for Justice and Public Safety at the National Association of Counties (NACo) to discuss, the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). The program is set to expire on September 30, 2023, and we discuss options for extending and reauthorizing the program. Other issues discussed include major program changes from 2012 and 2104; Risk Rating 2.0; Increase Cost of Compliance; and, opportunities to make flood insurance more affordable.   

On this episode of County Conversations, we are joined by Eryn Hurley, Legislative Director for the National Association of Counties, where we discuss the upcoming deadline for a new federal budget; FEMA’s Disaster Recovery Fund shortfall; broadband funding; ARPA funding flexibility; and the final WOTUS Rule.    

On this episode of County Conversations, we are joined by Mark Friedland with the Insurance Information Institute, where we discuss recent trends and legislation surrounding Florida’s insurance market.

On this episode of County Conversations, we are joined by Whit Blanton, Executive Director of Forward Pinellas and current President of FAPA.