Florida State Senator John Thrasher believes professors from public universities and colleges should not be able to serve in the legislature, citing a potential conflict of interest whenever lawmakers take up bills impacting these institutions. So the Republican politician from Jacksonville has introduced legislation that would ban professors and other university employees from holding office in the state House or Senate.

 

The problem with Thrasher’s logic, notes journalist Ralph De La Cruz, is that just about anyone serving in the legislature can have a conflict of interest with respect to their profession—lawyers, farmers, business owners, etc. Thrasher himself is a lawyer who spent several years as a lobbyist.

 

Thrasher’s bill, SB 1560, passed out of the Senate Rules Subcommittee on Ethics and Elections on a 7-6 vote. However, it may have a tough time passing in the Senate. Among the obstacles are Senate President Mike Haridopolos, whose occupation is professor at a community college.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

Florida Legislature: College Professors Need Not Apply (by Ralph De La Cruz, Florida Center for Investigative Reporting)