BY MARCY SHORTUSE - I’ll bet you weren’t prepared for another tarpon column in the end of November, but it’s time again for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to meet on December 5 and 6, this time in Apalachicola, and one of the items on the agenda is to talk again about whether tarpon should be considered a sport fish.

BY MARCY SHORTUSE - Some days, it really pays to go to work. Like a day when you pick up the phone to find Jack Damioli on the other end saying, “We’d like the Beacon staff to sample our new bakery menu ...

The Boca Beacon has been running a breakdown of the proposed amendments on the Lee County Ballot prior to the election on November 6. This is a four-page ballot, and voters need to be prepared. Here is the breakdown of the last three amendments. See the last two issues of the Boca Beacon for the rest.

Amendment 9 - Homestead Property Tax Exemption for Surviving Spouse of Military Veteran or First Responder

Proposing an amendment to the State Constitution to authorize the Legislature to provide by general law ad valorem homestead property tax relief to the surviving spouse of a military veteran who died from service- connected causes while on active duty or to the surviving spouse of a first responder who died in the line of duty. The amendment authorizes the Legislature to totally exempt or partially exempt such surviving spouse’s homestead property from ad valorem taxation. The amendment defines a first responder as a law enforcement officer, a correctional officer, a firefighter, an emergency medical technician, or a paramedic. This amendment shall take effect January 1, 2013.

Sponsor: Florida Legislature

Effect: Would grant full homestead exemption to the surviving spouses of military veterans who die on active duty and first responders who die in the line of duty.

Vote Yes: You support this tax exemption.

Vote No: You do not support this tax exemption.

The Boca Beacon has been running a breakdown of the proposed state amendments prior to the election in November. This is a long ballot, and voters need to be prepared.

This is the second in a three-part series of official summaries of each of the 11 proposed amendments to the state constitution, along with a plain-English explanation of what each amendment would do, who is sponsoring the amendment and what your ‘yes’ or ‘no’ vote will mean.