Ralph Haben

Edit links
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Ralph H. Haben, Jr.
Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives
In office
1980–1982
Preceded byJ. Hyatt Brown
Succeeded byH. Lee Moffitt
Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 71st district
In office
1972–1982
Preceded byJack Shreve
Succeeded byFred Burrall
Personal details
Born (1941-11-25) November 25, 1941 (age 82)
Atlanta, Georgia
Political partyDemocratic
Alma materUniversity of Florida (B.A.)
Cumberland School of Law (J.D.)
ProfessionAttorney; lobbyist

Ralph H. Haben, Jr. (born November 25, 1941) is an American attorney,

Governor of Florida
, but decided instead to become a lobbyist for many large interests in the state legislature.

Haben was known as a fairly conservative Democrat who focused on criminal issues; his tenure including multiple attempts to increase the penalties on criminals and create new task forces and funding to combat organized and violent crime. He also sought a number of tax increases to help pay for transportation costs, and opposed both the state Sunshine Amendment requiring that politicians disclose their financial assets, and the Equal Rights Amendment.

Life

Haben was born on November 25, 1941, in

Atlanta, Georgia.[1] Haben graduated from Palmetto High School.[2] He went on to earn an Education degree from the University of Florida in 1964, where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta. In 1967, he received his Juris Doctor from Cumberland School of Law, where he was a member of Phi Delta Phi.[1]

He served in the

Shands at the University of Florida.[4] This was the fourth time he nearly died, following a black widow bite, the sinking of a boat 12 miles offshore, and a plane crash.[5]

Legal career

For the majority of his legal career, Haben served as a government prosecutor. He was City Prosecutor for

Florida legislature.[2]

Political career

Haben was first elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1972. He represented the 71st district, which encompassed parts of Manatee County, Hardee County, and three precincts of Sarasota County.[6] He received numerous awards during his tenure, including 1977 Unified Sportsmen outstanding legislator of the year, 1979 Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers Outstanding Legislative Contribution, 1976 Florida Sheriffs Association Distinguished Service Award for Law Enforcement, and 1980 University of Florida Outstanding Alumnus.[1]

Speaker of the House

Haben ran for the 1980 through 1982 Speakership in 1978. At first, he had an opponent for the position, but won his bid when the other candidate Franklin Mann dropped out of the race.[7]

Committees

Haben served as the chairman of the House Criminal Justice Committee; when he first began, he was the youngest committee chair in the House at 35.[2] He also chaired the Subcommittee on Banks and Banking, as well as serving on the Finance and Taxation, Tourism and Economic Development, and Transportation and Commerce Committees.[8]

Electoral history

Haben was first elected to the House in 1972. That year, he defeated Floyd Price in the

Republican Don Miller, Jr. in the general election.[6] He was re-elected without opposition in 1974 and 1976.[2] He only ever lost one election, when he tried to unseat incumbent Democrat Florida Comptroller Gerald Lewis in 1982.[9] At the time, it was the most expensive Florida Cabinet race ever run, with over $1.7 million spent.[10]

Haben had hoped to use the position as a stepping stone to the position of

1986 election,[11]
but eventually decided not to.

Lobbyist

While in office, Haben fought attempts at lobbying reform pushed by advocacy groups.

lobbyist for a number of interests. These include the Day Cruise Association, a gambling cruise ship company, the Florida Cable Telecommunications Association, the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute,[13] and Alamo Rent a Car.[14] He helped the cruise ship casinos oppose allowing the expansion of gaming by the Seminole Tribe, who they viewed as competition.[15] He ran a firm named Pennington & Haben, which lobbied for bills from both major parties,[16] and currently runs the mediation company Ralph Haben & Associates.[17]

Political views

Crime and gun control

Haben was seen as a fairly conservative Democrat who built his career on "law-and-order" issues.[18] He supported the establishment of a permanent anti-organized crime commission to handle rises in mob related crime in the state.[19] While chairing the Criminal Justice Committee, Haben pushed two pieces of legislation that allowed police officer to shoot fleeing subjects and gave those who carried a gun while committing a crime a mandatory three-year sentence.[20] Haban argued against nearly all forms of gun control, and specifically opposed a bill that would have made it illegal to own inexpensive guns, commonly known as saturday night special.[21]

Taxes

In 1980, Haben called the legislature into special session to increase transportation taxes. In particular, he advocated raising the

Wyon Childers blocked the special session.[23] He pushed strongly for a measure to increase the state sales tax from 4 cents on the dollar to 5 cents on the dollar.[24]

Sunshine Amendment

The Sunshine Amendment to the

Florida Constitution provides that all elected officials and candidates for public office provide a full disclosure of their private assets in a government form available to the public. Haben was highly against the Sunshine Amendment, calling financial disclosure laws the "greatest fraud ever perpetrated on the people of Florida."[2] He felt that the amendment was an unconstitutional invasion of his privacy, and that it did little to inform voters on who would be a good and honest elected official.[2]

Legislative pay

When the legislature sought to increase their pay in the 1970s, Haben opposed the efforts. While he believed that legislatures deserved a pay increase for their hard[

Florida legislature, which only meets for a few months out of the year, closer to a full-time legislature.[2]

Equal Rights Amendment

Haben opposed the

federal courts.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Representative Ralph H. Haben, Jr. Speaker (1980 - 1982)". Representatives. Tallahassee, Florida: Florida House of Representatives. 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Rep. Ralph Haben". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Sarasota, Florida. The New York Times Company. 27 March 1977. p. 6-F. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  3. ^ "Representative Ralph H. Haben, Jr. Speaker (1980–1982)". Representatives. Tallahassee, Florida: Florida House of Representatives. 2010. Retrieved September 3, 2010.
  4. ^ "Haben Moved out of Intensive Care". The Gainesville Sun. Gainesville, Florida. The New York Times Company. 29 July 1991. p. 1B. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  5. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. Times Publishing Company. p. 6B. Retrieved 8 September 2010.[permanent dead link
    ]
  6. ^ a b "Haben is Given Democratic Nod". Sarasota Journal. Sarasota, Florida. The New York Times Company. 12 September 1972. p. 35. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  7. ^ Associated Press (15 November 1978). "Ralph Haben Expected to Win Speaker Post". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Sarasota, Florida. The New York Times Company. p. 5-C. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
  8. Gainesville Sun. Gainesville, Florida. The New York Times Company
    . p. 5A. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  9. ^ a b Crowley, Brian (8 September 1982). "Incumbent Lewis Wins over Habin, Stays on Cabinet". The Palm Beach Post. Palm Beach County, Florida. Cox Enterprises. p. A8. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  10. ^ Associated Press (9 September 1982). "Lewis: Error Downed Haben". The Daytona Beach Morning Journal. Daytona Beach, Florida. The News-Journal Corporation. p. 3A. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
  11. ^ Associated Press (3 April 1984). "Former Speaker Haben Considers Governor's Race". The Gainesville Sun. Gainesville, Florida. The New York Times Company. p. 6B. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  12. ^ Associated Press (18 December 1980). "Lobbyist Reform Sought by Group". Boca Raton News. Boca Raton, Florida. South Florida Media Company. p. 13A. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
  13. ^ "2008 Legislative Lobbyist: Ralph H. Haben, Jr". Tallahassee, Florida: Florida Legislature. 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  14. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. Times Publishing Company
    . p. 4B. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  15. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. Times Publishing Company
    . Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  16. ^ "Distinguished Alumni". Alumni Affairs. Gainesville, Florida: University of Florida. 2010. Archived from the original on 5 January 2011. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  17. ^ "Biography". Tallahassee, Florida: Ralph Haben & Associates. 2010. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  18. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. Times Publishing Company
    . p. 4B. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
  19. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. Times Publishing Company. p. 9B. Retrieved 3 September 2010. [dead link
    ]
  20. Star-Banner. Ocala, Florida. The New York Times Company
    . p. 1. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
  21. ^ Associated Press (28 May 1976). "Move to Ban Cheap Guns Defeated". The Daytona Beach News-Journal. Daytona Beach, Florida. The News-Journal Corporation. p. 3A. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  22. Daytona Beach Morning Journal. Daytona Beach, Florida
    . The News-Journal Company. p. 12C. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
  23. ^ Miller, Sam (20 December 1980). "Session on Gas Tax Blocked by Childers". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Sarasota, Florida. The New York Times Company. p. 9-D. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
  24. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. Times Publishing Company. p. 2B. Archived from the original
    on 13 July 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ralph_Haben&oldid=1210122889"