Watchdog Report Vol.23 No.9 April 2, 2023 EST:05.05.00 – I go when you cannot a free community education resource for 23 years
WATCHDOG REPORT
Miami-Dade, Fla.
Vol.23 No.9, April 2, 2023, Celebrating 23 -years of free weekly publishing! www.watchdogreport.net & Former Miami Herald news & editorial columnist. 05.05.00, I go when you cannot, for almost 22-years & a trusted community education resource & news service, without the attitude.
>>> Just because you do not take an interest in politics does not mean politics will not take an interest in you. –Pericles (430 B.C.)
ARGUS REPORT: HEARD SEEN ON THE STREET
PHT/JHS
>>> UM/JHS Miami Transplant Program, on pause 721 all transplants last year,17 waiting transplants, new physicians, anonymous complaints being reviewed. Migoya, says any shortfalls are my fault.” In a somber tone, Wednesday at trust board meeting.
With the Miami Transplant Program on pause. Jackson CEO Carlos Migoya, told the trust board Wednesday, “that [there] were opportunities for improvement.” He said some anonymous complaints, now being reviewed. And believes after recruiting new physicians the program could be reinstated in maybe a little over a month, Migoya said.
He also said his clinical commitment is unwavering, and Jackson is not where we should be. Migoya noted Jackson is a beacon to the community, and “Any shortfalls [are]my fault as CEO, and trustee Laurie Nuell agreed [she was] not satisfied with the numbers.
>>>Press release: Alberto Ibargüen steps down at Knight Foundation after 18 years: Led the transformation of the Knight brothers’ legacy for a new era, investing over $2.3 billion to support informed, engaged and inclusive communities through journalism, arts, economic development and research.
MIAMI, FL — Alberto Ibargüen, president of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation since 2005, publicly announced his decision to retire from the $2.5 billion philanthropy this week. Knight Foundation’s board of trustees will begin a national search immediately and Ibargüen’s resignation will be effective upon the appointment of a successor.
Knight Foundation was established by John S. and James L. Knight, brothers who led one of America’s largest and most successful 20th-century newspaper companies. It was their belief that a well-informed community could best “determine its own true interests” and they entrusted future generations of trustees to do just that. Ibargüen, the former publisher of the Miami Herald and El Nuevo Herald, has led the multibillion-dollar fund for nearly two decades and overseen the disbursement of $2.3 billion.
Among Knight Foundation achievements during his tenure:
Defending freedom of speech and the press in the digital age through strategic litigation, research and public education by establishing the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and an endowment at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press to support legal assistance to news organizations.
Helping the City of Detroit come out of bankruptcy and protecting the Detroit Institute of Arts by participating in the “Grand Bargain.”
Developing a field of scholarly research needed to address the impact of technology on media and democracy by creating the Knight Research Network, which includes academic centers and individual research projects throughout the United States.
“Making art general” in Knight’s headquarters city of Miami by investing more than $210 million and leveraging countless more private and public contributions.
Increasing the diverse asset management of the country’s largest endowments by ensuring Knight Foundation’s own endowment was managed by diverse-owned firms and publishing reports on the state of the field.
Improving the graduation rates of college athletes by continuing to support The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.
You can find photos for publication here.
ABOUT ALBERTO IBARGÜEN
Ibargüen joined the foundation at a pivotal time for journalism. New social media platforms and emerging technologies were simultaneously altering established news business models and retooling the dissemination of information. Knight had a chance to play a crucial role in assisting media organizations and others to adapt to this new world. The organization’s leadership wanted to see these new technologies leveraged and applied for good in a way that supported the Knight brothers’ long-standing goal of enabling communities to be informed and engaged.
For nearly 75 years, journalism has played a central role at Knight Foundation. The foundation has sought to make investments that promote quality journalism so that people are able to access the consistently reliable news and information they need to make informed decisions on the issues that impact their daily lives.
“The question in my mind is not how to save the traditional news industry, but how to meet the information needs of communities in a democracy so that the people might, as Jack Knight put it, ‘determine their own true interests’,” Ibargüen has said often.
As a former news publisher, he believed that traditional media was falling behind the pace of digitization, misinformation and disinformation, losing the public’s trust. From 2005 to 2021, more than 2,000 American local print newspapers closed and the number of employed American newspaper journalists fell dramatically. He worked with foundation trustees to support not only journalism education and training, but also finding sustainable business models for the effective delivery of news.
Though well known for its journalism programs, the majority of the foundation’s funding has traditionally focused on the betterment of 26 cities, known as Knight communities, that once hosted Knight newspapers. Reflecting the respect for local news that was the hallmark of Knight Newspapers and, later, Knight Ridder newspapers, the foundation’s funding strategy in each city takes a distinctly local approach to informed and engaged community building. In Akron, Ohio, and Macon, Georgia, for example, Knight supported revitalizing their downtowns, and in Charlotte, North Carolina, the emphasis has been on development of the Historic West End. In Miami and Detroit, the arts are major areas of focus, and in Philadelphia, the reimagining of public spaces.
Knight has also invested in 26 community and place-based foundations, creating donor-advised funds and special purpose funds to encourage the highest levels of engagement in local problem-solving.
Knight’s arts-in-community programs were bolstered by a three-year study in these 26 cities. The study made clear what the foundation had already felt, that in community, arts play a special role in connecting people to place and to one another. That, in part, explains why an average of one-fifth of the foundation’s total annual funding is committed to the arts. And, since 2005, $466 million has been invested in museums and arts organizations, as well as in artists directly.
“When we invest in music and museums, in poetry and performances, we are investing in the connections – shared experiences – that help to build a sense of community in our pluralistic society,” Ibargüen has said, “and it’s also just plain fun.” Funds have been used to support hundreds of projects that include young Bharatanatyam dancers in St. Paul, putting poetry on a sky banner behind a single-engine plane flying up and down Miami Beach, and digitizing the Motown Museum archive in Detroit.
“He has been visionary,” said Francisco L. Borges, chair of the board. “Digital transformation has pushed us to find new ways to sustain our democracy and Alberto has provided us with the insights to do just that.”
In 2019, Knight announced a $300 million investment over five years to scalable news organizations committed to serving communities at the local level by building sustainable, digital business models, strengthening investigative reporting, protecting press freedom, promoting news literacy and connecting with audiences through civic engagement and technology. The foundation endowed dozens of university department chairs and deans advising and developing journalism industry talent, helped establish the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, and financed the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press with funds for legal services to local newsrooms, a project that recently garnered support from Microsoft and the national law firm of Davis Wright Tremaine.
For Knight, a successful investment catalyzed additional funds from others. When the City of Miami, the State of Florida or private donors match a foundation gift, or corporations like Microsoft or IBM join a Knight funding model, trustees can be confident that the impact of their grant will be maximized.
Technology and the speed at which it provokes change in communication and information dissemination is a constant preoccupation at Knight. Its potential for good and bad, along with its impact on U.S. democracy, requires an evolving approach that changes over time. In 2017, Knight began working on research around American trust in news, which served as a corollary to citizen participation, and in 2019, they launched the Knight Research Network, to encourage this field of academic study.
Aimed at fostering diverse perspectives, research and scholarship on how technology affects media and democracy, Knight began with various grants to support centers of excellence at Carnegie Mellon University, George Washington University, New York University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and the University of Washington, and later evolved to include grants to think tanks and scholars with a range of viewpoints. At a recent conference created to gather this group of thought leaders, Ibargüen said:
“As the digital public square continues to evolve, the challenges to an informed citizenry will intensify, power will further consolidate, governments will exert global influence and political leaders will offer solutions that will range from prescient to disastrous. The need for good data and thoughtful alternatives has never been more urgent.
We approach the work with humility and understand it as a call to action to help encourage and develop a field of inquiry many of you in this room have pioneered. That, it seems to us, is the proper role of philanthropy.”
“Alberto has been a steadfast and visionary leader of the Knight Foundation and worked tirelessly to carry out the mission set out by John and James Knight, in a way relevant for in our times, which they only could imagine,” said Borges. “His passionate pursuit of innovative and bold ideas that support the foundation’s mission regardless of the pressures and challenges to our democracy and society is his legacy. We applaud his enlightened leadership and service.”
At a meeting with Knight staff on the day of the publicly announced retirement, Ibargüen reminded the group: “We are social investors and require a return in the form of impact and outcomes in community, that through informed and engaged communities, lead to a more perfect democracy.”
“We believe in free speech, engaged communities in all their diversity, and in equity and inclusion. Operationally, we do not run programs but instead support programs and ideas by people and organizations that actually get things done. Nothing is more satisfying than to be able to support brilliant insights and innovation by capable people and say, ‘I never imagined that but it’s exactly what I had in mind,’” he said.
ABOUT KNIGHT FOUNDATION
We are social investors who support a more effective democracy by funding free expression and journalism, arts and culture in community, research in areas of media and democracy, and in the success of American cities and towns where the Knight brothers once published newspapers. Learn more at KF.org.
>>> The city of Miami for years has had a culture of friends and families getting city jobs or promotions, but it came up when chair Troy Sutton said those words while hearing the case as a lowly firefighter and he is excluded from such closed door closed discussions, he put on the record. The practice is endemic in the city, but first time said in public. Editor’s note: Sutton is no longer chair.
FLORIDA: Gov. Ron De. Santos in course of term will appoint up to 4,000 appointees, state’s governor’s introductory manual. I read years ago, Reedy District could be big impact, Gov. Santos will get blame for any controversies by appointees.
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY: Commission committee unanimously votes to ban Tick Tok on county phones, follows national trend, to ban GPS capable tracking by Chinese owned company- County’s Famus IT system at county overpaying, glitches expected, in new complex IT. System replacing 1970s technology, needs $8.6 million more to complete $66 million upgrade, CFO Marquez accepts lack of info to unions, and new
constitutional offices in 2024, had to be included: >>> Will Home Rule Charter & Septic to Sewer? Be top legislative county lobbying issues in Tallahassee, Regalado asks.
MONROE COUNTY— Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced the appointment of Cara Higgins and Richard Toppino to the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority.
>>>Press release: Cara Higgins: Higgins, of Key West, is the Owner of Cara Higgins Law Firm. She currently serves on the Key West Military Affairs Committee and the Key West Chamber of Commerce Board. Higgins earned her bachelor’s degree from West Virginia University and her juris doctor from Villanova University.
>>> Richard Toppino: Toppino, of Key West, is the President of Charley Toppino and Sons, Inc. He is a current member of the Key West Military Affairs Committee, the Florida Independent Concrete & Associative Producers, and the Florida Road Builders Association. Toppino attended the College of the Florida Keys and the University of Miami.
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Charter schools have expanded to 155 schools and receive $797 million from the Miami-Dade County Public Schools. The schools do not have to follow the same procedures as public districts, and many are managed by private for-profit companies. The district does audits of these schools. Further, the Fla. Leg.is proposing expanding vouchers, that could cut funding over 20 percent, adding to the charter school hit.— Cardiac EKG screening should be required by state, number one killer of young athletes in schools, highlighted at school board Wednesday.
PUBLIC HEALTH TRUST: JHS goes 11years of clean audits, states KPMG audit, firm used by many public institutions, including the school district in the past. audits.https://d3n9y02raazwpg.cloudfront.net/jacksonhealth/b071ed27-6113-11ed-95a3-0050569183fa-6872cee3-98a7-4865-85f1-4b68344022ed-1669154377.pdf,receivables at $265 million& other not-for -profit-systems, under employee cost strains & state cuts to Medicaid matching funds of concern
CITY OF MIAMI: Covo wins Dist.2 special election, Zilber crashes and burns fourth in race.
EDITORIAL: Carollo, wrong to limit public speakers to Miami residents, such diverse county all interrelated public should be able to speak.
Community Events: https://historymiami.org/ The ART Warehouse https://www.margulieswarehouse.com/
>>> CORRECTION: The WDR was Duped when Trump said he would be arrested last Tuesday. The man seems to be relishing the prospect of an arrest.
>>>”WE will be fine,” says Mayor Levine Cava, re replacing housing Dir. Liu, with Alex Ballina, developer BASF incoming president, former county employee, high stakes choice for mayor and affordable housing.
“We will be fine,” wrote county mayor Daniella Levine-Cava, in a text. I had asked about the Housing Dept. Director Michael Lui, leaving the department. She chose Alex Ballina, formerly an incoming president of the BASF, and former county employee.
Because Liu had to totally reform the department that HUD took over after a Pulitzer Prize Miami Herald Series called “House of lies.” Detailing the abuse and political connected friends, getting projects uncompleted and some went to jail like Raul Masvidal, and had charges for a watermelon piece found in a garage. With Levine-Cava’s election coming up next year this could be one of her most important appointees’ for a successful re-election.
EDITORIAL
>>> You may not take an interest but that does not mean politics may not take an interest in you.
The nation is facing two—days of wondering if former president Donald J. Trump will be arrested (or is this like when Trump said Mikhail Gorbachev would come to Trump Tower, and did not), after his message on Truth Social Saturday. The announcement unconfirmed, states he will “be arrested”, and the nation is bracing for what might occur. After the Jan 6,insurrection.He wants his supporters to protest, “and take back our nation,” he wrote, and republican leaders are hedging their bets.
Editor’s note: having gone to G.W.U. in Washington And given how divided we are as a nation. I have great reverence for the Constitution. And actually, carry a mini version in my reporter’s notebook. I also listened to many congressional debates on Vietnam. Plus, all the years living in Asia and first going to China, in 1976 with a medical delegation and it was like stepping back to 1890, and children froze when they saw me. That’s why on Saturday morning the news broke. I Had trouble thinking of local issues still important, but this is a historical event if it occurs, and will further, muddy the political waters, hopefully be peaceful. The issue is a hush fund payment to an adult star Stormy Daniels seven years ago. Trump supporters think these may be bogus political charges, especially so long ago, and the future is unknown. Next week I will be back to normal and want to thank the John.S. and James L. Knight Foundation for all the support since 2000 and too this day.For more on:www.knightfoundation.org
>>> WLRN celebrating 60-years on the air, is a vital resource in diverse south Florida from Palm Beach to Key West, needed now more than ever, helped create the WDR, in 2000
WLRN.org is celebrating its 60th year on the air and it needs the community’s help in delivering unbiased news. I was fortunate in 2000 through 2006 to be a regular radio guest on Joe Cooper’s Tropical Currents, and that helped me expand my readership and impact. I also was the only person contradicting that Al Gore won Florida versus other commentators who believed otherwise. For more on the station or to donate go to:
WLRN Homepage | WLRN, HTTPS://WLRNRADIO.PLEDGECART.ORG/WEB/HOME
A normal WDR will return next week, with the story “I can’t be defeated,” says Miami commissioner Joe Carollo, on Thursday, worse thing politician can say.
>>> Now cameras at Miami City Hall, in lobby because past Com., didn’t want a record of who was going in, says Reyes, and WDR knew in 2002, police to make study& recommendations on security passes no discussion on dais issue kryptonite to commissioners.
With the mystery of who vandalized Miami Commissioner Manolo Reyes office deepening. The lack of cameras in the city hall lobby is because “commissioners didn’t want a record of who was coming into the building,” which I knew from back in 2002 when the chambers and lobby were updated to what it is today.
He confirmed that Saturday, to the WDR at the swearing in of new commissioner Sabina Covo to District 2 replacing out going commissioner Ken Russell who resigned after running for congress, which he lost. She beat out 13 rivals for the coveted seat along the bay. Covo beat out Eddy Leal and fourth was disgraced judge Martin Zilber, who raised the most money got support from Carollo, and Diaz de la Portilla, but had too much baggage resigning the bench for using staff for personal errands and skipped fifty-one paid days of work, not authorized.
What about races being non-partisan?
The idea of municipal races being non-partisan races in Miami is over since Covo is a democrat. The two republican commissioners Joe Carollo and Alex Diaz de la Portilla, did not attend the swearing in and constantly were taking digs at Russell who told the WDR in “the divided nation, being partisan is the only way to win.” Covo, had the support of county mayor Daniella Levine Cava, county commissioner Eileen Higgins both democrats. Covo, a former member of the media, will have her hands full fending off the two commissioners. The WDR wishes her luck and when it comes to honesty, and good government you can’t be a little bit pregnant. She also falls under the Miami-Dade County ethics and public trust commission and their investigators.
What about the lawsuit involving city attorney Vicky Mendez, and her husband, just stirring up trouble, she said Sat., at city hall. She has also said the charges are libelous in the media.
The city attorney’s office should be the center board of good government though one attorney I asked, who do you work for the citizens? He remarked “I work for three votes on the commission,” he said back then.
Former Miami mayor Tomas Regalado is considering running for mayor again, since Francis Suarez is termed out. He originally won, years ago because of the Marlin’s stadium debacle, that after financing costs some $1.6 billion, and cannot be paid off early and has large future debt payments. Regalado has been doing a television show since he left the office and claims Suarez is not working in the office. Suarez is also mulling a presidential campaign, which many consider a long shot.
>>>Redo important: Miami-Dade County Alert: The county’s election department should mandate voter workers wear their county I.D. Since, the current Miami special election is a prime example of this problem. That I witnessed Saturday at 3:45 P.M. at the Miami city hall early voting site.
Men were loading Ryder trucks with one man wearing his ID, but many others had none as they brought out the voting machines and black trash containers. County employees not complying. to reduce the public perception people might be tampering with the equipment. County employees not wearing identification has been a persistent problem around the county for years, except at JHS, since a hospital.
With all the voter conspiracy rumors going on the county’s Christine White the supervisor, should jump on this for the Miami Dist. 2 commission race has only some 4,000 votes so far and will likely be a close race that hopefully doesn’t elect disgraced judge Martin Zilber and his massive war chest for the race versus the challengers, and support from two commissioners Joe Carollo and Alex Diaz de la Portilla, big Zilber fans and is seen as an ally for them.
Former mayor Miami commissioner Carollo once again suggests that any non-Miami resident should not be heard.
>>> Sen. Fetterman’s, D-Pa. addressing clinical depression after a stroke, very common, a godsend to public with similar symptoms, including me after my stroke in 2013.
Sen. John Fetterman’s stroke and being treated for clinical depression, is something I personally felt after my stroke in 2013.My neurologist Dr. Ajay Pande, M.D., at Baptist Health, suggested I seek treatment for the subsequent depression, at the time and I am glad I did, and his advice, has kept me writing the WDR to this day. ,
>>>Termed out county commissioner Sosa, starts cancer treatment soon, solid official, no hint of scandal, over decades in office former mayor, get better soon Rebeca.
County Commissioner Rebeca Sosa via twitter that she is starting cancer treatment, and I wish the former West Miami mayor the best for over the decades there was never a hint of scandal, and she was an advocate for good transparent government over the decades and was a teacher in the public school’s district. She replaced removed replaced indicted commissioner Miriam Alonso, for a bogus slush fund.
>>> County’s use of herbicides on foliage reduction, variation of Round-up to control foliage run-off to Biscayne Bay, says county resiliency officer Murley, trying natural solutions, when possible, coastal storm surge walls out for now with corps new diagrams show.
Miami-Dade County with “366 miles of canals,” uses pesticide to keep foliage trees later leaches into Biscayne Bay. The county is trying to use natural efforts but herbicide like Roundup is frequently used and shows up in fish and peoples urine state Florida universities’ studies on the chemical impact of such foliage removal compounds. Further cars in canals have been a persistent problem. They are also trying to reestablish the Balsam Torchwood tree, long extinct.
The issue came up Friday at the Biscayne Bay Watershed Advisory Board in the commission chambers and Chief Resilience Officer Jim Murley, in discussion with storm surge. The corps plan for surge walls along the water are being replaced with natural solutions if they fit the circumstances after the walls faced a huge public outcry and two charettes to discuss the plan are in the months ahead, with a final plan in 2027, anticipated. The cleanup of Biscayne Bay with state and federal governments, spending millions to clean up the bay.
Which is also should be using the scavenger vessel more with only one in operation and is a technological bargain at $1 million for a second such vessel, to help the bay and Round-up use should be reviewed in Miami-Dade County.
>>> Anniversary of life saving procedure when I was septic at South Miami, Baptist Health, hospital in 2009, and I thank you Dr. Jorge Rabaza for saving my life, back then.
The next few days is the anniversary of my almost passing in 2009. I was septic and operated on at 2;00 p.m., “because I could not wait,” not something you want to hear from a surgeon, said Jorge Rabaza,M.D. at South Miami Hospital back then and he said, “I was a flip of the coin,” that I survived, he said and since then every day is a free day.,
FLORIDA
>>> The Florida Ethics Commission has $799,569.in ethics fines unpaid and the list is a cross section of people on state boards and to see the list go to:
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY
The Miami-Dade County Children’s Trust is celebrating its 20th anniversary and during its time. There have been no scandals except some trust tee shirts being sold in little Havana decades ago. They trust the brainchild of former Miami Herald publisher David Lawrence, Jr. and mayor Alex Penelas and Will Bleckman,M.D. For more on the trust go to: https://www.thechildrenstrust.org/
>>.From the county’s webpage: Work Progresses on the Coconut Grove Playhouse
February 23, 2023
With litigation resolved, work is underway on the Coconut Grove Playhouse project. The City of Miami has approved Miami-Dade County’s submission of a demolition waiver, which exclusively addresses the issue of trees on the property. As the next step in the process, the County has submitted a demolition permit which is being reviewed by the city. This permit covers asbestos removal, shoring up the historic front building (which will be restored in its entirety), extracting the remaining historic architectural elements from the auditorium (to be incorporated in the new theater), and demolishing the auditorium (where the new theater will be constructed). The Miami-Dade County team is working cooperatively with City staff on implementing this important project.
View a comprehensive list of all the previous project updates at https://miamidadearts.org/coconut-grove-playhouse-updates.
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Charter schools have expanded to 155 schools and receive $797 million from the Miami-Dade County Public Schools. The schools do not have to follow the same procedures as public districts, and many are managed by private for-profit companies. The district does audits of these schools. Further, the Fla. Leg.is proposing expanding vouchers, that could cut funding by over 20 percent, adding to the charter school hit.
What about students’ threat assessment teams?
The board’s student advisor Ms. Cori Anna White, with a unique perspective made some saliant comments recently when the school’s code of conduct was being discussed. With all the mass shootings she noted “student safety was paramount regardless of zip codes. She inquired about the role of “threat assessment teams,” and “reporting lines,” and their role “in identifying patterns of behavior,’ of students.
Dr.Steven Gallon, III, a former principal overseeing 3,200 students said the goal was not “to suffer situations that take away opportunities to educate. He said, “parents send the best students they have, and the district policy was going to be applied with “firmness and equity.” Noting a large public school “is one of the most challenging education jobs there is said the veteran teacher
>>> Past WDR: Cardiac EKG screening should be required by state, number one killer of young athletes in schools, highlighted at school board Wednesday, after Bills player cardiac arrest should ACDs? be included on the field?
Student Athletes dying from sudden cardiac death, was highlighted at Wednesday’s school board meeting. Sudden death is common with athletes and the need for a EKG screening is important. And advocates say screening should be mandatory. And Florida has nine districts that have this screening requirement before entering school. Further, some parents are hesitant to screen, and just have to be notified, said advocates including a girl with an implantable defibrillator. For more go to: https://nzdsos.com/2022/09/09/unexplained-coincidental-collateral-damage/
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
What about students’ threat assessment teams?
The board’s student advisor Ms. Cori Anna White, with a unique perspective, made some saliant comments recently when the school’s code of conduct was being discussed. With all the mass shootings she noted “student safety was paramount regardless of zip codes. She inquired about the role of “threat assessment teams,” and “reporting lines,” and their role “in identifying patterns of behavior,’ of students.
Dr.Steven Gallon, III, a former principal overseeing 3,200 students said the goal was not “to suffer situations that take away opportunities to educate. He said, “parents send the best students they have, and the district policy was going to be applied with “firmness and equity.” Noting a large public school “is one of the most challenging education jobs there is said the veteran teacher
PUBLIC HEALTH TRUST
>>> JHS goes 11years of clean audits, states KPMG audit, firm used by many public institutions, including the school district in the past.
March 28 agenda unedited: KPMG Audit Results for the Year Ending September 30, 2022 Monica Flaviani, Managing Director, KPMG introduced Andrew Wetzel, Audit Manager, KPMG. Mr. Wetzel and Ms. Flaviani are the managers in charge of the audit. Ms. Flaviani presented the audit results for fiscal year ending September 30, 2021. The audit centered around KPMG’s commitment to delivering an exceptional client experience for Jackson Health System (JHS) by focusing on quality, experience, productivity, and insights. An overview of the results of the yearend audit began with a summary of the audit results required communications and other matters, overview of significant accounting policies and practices, review of significant accounting estimates, and summary of uncorrected audit misstatements. With there be no significant audit findings identified to report, Ms. Flaviani stated that the KPMG audit team appreciate the opportunity to work with JHS management and accounting team. Mr. Lopez-Castro, III recognized Mark T. Knight, Chief Financial Officer, and the accounting team for all of their hard work and working together with the KPMG managers in charge to timely and successfully complete the fiscal year end audit. Mr. Lopez-Castro, III requested a motion to accept KPMG Fiscal Year 2022 Audit Results with a favorable recommendation to the Fiscal Committee. Antonio L. Argiz moved to accept KPMG Fiscal Year 2022 Audit Results; seconded by Matthew J. Allen and carried without dissent. See the full agenda here: http://www.jhsmiami.org/WebApps/publicDocs/ipDIndex_PHT.cfm
CITY OF MIAMI
Editorial
>>> Carollo, wrong to limit public speakers to Miami residents, such diverse county all interrelated should be able to speak.
The city of Miami limiting public time to non-city residents is a bad policy being pushed by commissioner Joe Carollo and despite his insistence of democracy in the chamber. He is off mark, and all citizens given how interconnected Miami-Dade is should have the right to speak about issues and not just limited to Miami residents, because they vote, is a slap in the face to the public and should be repudiated by the commission. But likely will not.
SPONSORS:
>>> The Miami Herald and Orlando Sentinel & Sun-Sentinel articles on the Watchdog Report published over the years.
Published on September 9, 1999, Page 1EA, Miami Herald, the (FL)
CITIZEN ADVOCATE’ KEEPS TABS ON POLITICIANS
Published on January 3, 2000, Page 1B, Miami Herald, the (FL)
MIAMI-DADE WATCHDOG WILL BE MISSED
Published on January 20, 2003, Page 1E, Orlando Sentinel, PAPERWORK TIGER, Miami’s citizen watchdog piles up government files in his quest to keep the “little people” informed. https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2003-01-20-0301190045-story.html
>>>Watchdog Report publisher named ‘Best Citizen’ 2003 by the Miami New Times
The publisher would like to thank the weekly alternative paper Miami New Times for bestowing their 2003 Best of Miami, ‘Best Citizen’ award to me and I am honored. Thank you. To read the full story go to http://www.miaminewtimes.com/best-of/2003/people-and-places/best-citizen-6399517
>>> And to support the WDR go to my Pay Pal account that is easy to use and right now would be a great time: http://paypal.me/WatchdogReport
Further, if you would rather send a check send it made out to Daniel Ricker and mail it to 3109 Grand Ave., #125 Miami, Fla. 33133. Thank you, Dan.
>>>And having a member of the press at public meetings gives teeth to the Florida Sunshine Law (and why you get a Flu Shot) and open meetings tape recorded keeps good governance in place and reduces waste fraud and abuse, and public corruption, and is why you don’t speed in front of a state trooper for example. And hope you can support the WDR efforts to have informed residents to public institutions issues, in our community.
>>> Further the www.watchdogreport.net in South Florida is an established news service presence, because most people are too busy to go to these important meetings., and all the information comes through me as a central point allowing me to see things at a 100-mile altitude and being an early warning system when projects have overruns or other issues. But my job is to sound the alarm and I have done so many times over the past years in a host of ways.
Publisher’s Statement on the mission of the Watchdog Report and the special people and organizations that make it possible: Government Subscribers/Corporate Subscribers/Sustaining Sponsors/Supporting Sponsors
Daniel A. Ricker
Publisher & Editor
Watchdog Report
Est. 05.05.00
Copyright © of original material, 2023, Daniel A. Ricker
>>>Watchdog Report publisher named ‘Best Citizen’ 2003 by the Miami New Times
The publisher would like to thank the weekly alternative paper Miami New Times for bestowing their 2003 Best of Miami, ‘Best Citizen” award to me and I am honored. Thank you. To read the full story go to http://www.miaminewtimes.com/best-of/2003/people-and-places/best-citizen-6399517
Publisher’s Statement on the mission of the Watchdog Report and the special people and organizations that make it possible: Government Subscribers/Corporate Subscribers/Sustaining Sponsors/Supporting Sponsors
Published on September 9, 1999, Page 1EA, Miami Herald, the (FL)
CITIZEN ADVOCATE’ KEEPS TABS ON POLITICIANS
Published on January 3, 2000, Page 1B, Miami Herald, the (FL)
MIAMI-DADE WATCHDOG WILL BE MISSED
>>>Watchdog Report publisher named ‘Best Citizen’ 2003 by the Miami New Times
The publisher would like to thank the weekly alternative paper Miami New Times for bestowing their 2003 Best of Miami, ‘Best Citizen’ award to me and I am honored. Thank you. To read the full story go to http://www.miaminewtimes.com/best-of/2003/people-and-places/best-citizen-6399517
Sponsors
***** LIFETIME FOUNDING MEMBERS & Initial sponsors since 2000
Mr. ANGEL ESPINOSA – (Deceased) owner COCONUT GROVE DRY CLEANER’S
HUGH CULVERHOUSE, Jr (The first contributor)
FLORIDA POWER & LIGHT www.fpl.com .
THE MIAMI HERALD www.miamiherald.com (2000-2007)
ARTHUR HERTZ
WILLIAM HUGGETT, Seamen Attorney (Deceased)
ALFRED NOVAK
LINDA E. RICKER (Deceased)
JOHN S. and JAMES L. KNIGHT FOUNDATION www.knightfoundation.org
THE HONORABLE STANLEY G. TATE
>>> Watchdog Report supporters – $2,000 a year
BADIA SPICES www.badiaspices.com
RONALD Hall
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY www.miamidade.gov
UNITED WAY OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY
>>> Watchdog Report supporters – $1,000 to $5,000 a year
BADIA SPICES www.badiaspices.com
BERKOWITZ POLLACK BRANT Advisors and Accountants www.bpbcpa.com
JEFFREY L. BERKOWITZ TRUST
BERCOW RADELL FERNANDEZ & LARKIN & Tapanes www.brzoninglaw.com
RON BOOK
BENEDICT P. KUEHNE http://www.kuehnelaw.com/
LINDA MURPHY: Gave a new laptop in Oct. 2001 to keep me going.
Rbb www.rbbcommmunications.com
SHUBIN & BASS www.shubinbass.com
WILLIAMSOM AUTOMOTIVE GROUP http://williamsonautomotivegroup.com/
>>> Public, Educational & Social institutions – subscribers at $1,000 or less
CITY OF MIAMI www.miamigov.com.
CITY OF CORAL GABLES www.coralgables.com
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH www.miamibeachfl.gov
CHAPMAN PARTNERSHIP FOR HOMELESS www.chapmanpartnership.org
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY www.fiu.edu
THE STATE OF FLORIDA www.myflorida.gov
GREATER MIAMI CHAMBER OF COMMERCE www.miamichamber.com
GREATER MIAMI CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU www.miamiandbeaches.com
HEALTH FOUNDATION OF SOUTH FLORIDA www.hfsf.org
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY COMMISSION www.miamidade.gov
MIAMI-DADE COMMISSION OFFICE OF THE CHAIR www.miamidade.gov
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY ETHICS & PUBLIC TRUST COMMISSION
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY HOMELESS TRUST: www.miamidade.gov/homeless/
MIAMI-DADE COLLEGE www.mdc.edu
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY INSPECTOR GENERAL www.miamidade.gov/ig
MIAMI-DADE PUBLIC SCHOOLS BOARD www.dadeschools.net
MIAMI-DADE PUBLIC SCHOOLS SUPT. http://superintendent.dadeschools.net/
MIAMI DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY www.miamidda.com
PUBLIC HEALTH TRUST & JACKSON HEALTH SYSTEM www.jhsmiami.org
THE CHILDREN’S TRUST www.thechildrenstrust.org
THE GOOD GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE http://goodgov.net/
THE MIAMI-DADE COUNTY LEAGUE OF CITIES www.mdclc.org
THE MIAMI FOUNDATION www.miamifoundation.org
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA http://www.firstgov.gov/
>>> Public, Educational & Social institutions – subscribers at $1,000 or less
CITY OF MIAMI www.miamigov.com.
CITY OF CORAL GABLES www.coralgables.com
CHAPMAN PARTNERSHIP FOR HOMELESS www.chapmanpartnership.org
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY www.fiu.edu
THE STATE OF FLORIDA www.myflorida.gov
To contribute to the WDR send and make it payable to Daniel A. Ricker
Daniel A. Ricker
3109 Grand Ave.#125
Miami,Fla.33133