TALLAHASSEE -- From an office near the state Capitol, David Rancourt oversees a growth industry: the lobbying and public-relations operation seeking to lift the long-standing ban on offshore oil and gas exploration off Florida.

A member of the powerhouse lobbying firm Southern Strategy Group, Rancourt represents Florida Energy Associates, a group of out-of-state oilmen seeking to drill off Florida's coast. With its mix of political power, money and raw emotion, drilling could dominate the next session of the Legislature in the spring.

PREPARING

But the battle lines are being drawn now. At Rancourt's direction, pro-drilling forces have assembled a team of nearly three dozen lobbyists, including the wife of the Senate majority leader and leading public-relations and polling firms, while seeding both political parties with $125,000 in contributions.

He frames drilling in stark economic and national security terms: Profits from selling leases and from future royalties could cure Florida's revenue shortfalls while reducing America's dependence on oil that enriches people overseas ``who hate us.''

``We have got to get hold of this economy and we need to create a wealth event,'' said Rancourt, 44, an Army veteran and former aide to Gov. Jeb Bush.

OPPONENTS

Drilling opponents, meanwhile, are mobilizing a network of coastal businesses and elected officials to turn up the volume on what they say is a grave threat. Their message: Drilling would destroy Florida's natural beauty and tourism economy, and drilling advocates are trying to buy victory with campaign cash and lobbying muscle.

Both sides target the same audience: the 160 members of the state Legislature.

Audubon of Florida lobbyist Eric Draper wasn't subtle in making his case against drilling to a meeting of the House Democratic Caucus, calling it a ``dubious scheme advanced by special interests,'' and asking: ``Why do they need to hire 50 lobbyists?''

`IT'S DANGEROUS'

As a PowerPoint slide show displayed grimy images of the coastline of South Padre Island, Texas, Draper said: ``It's dangerous, it's dirty, it's not safe, and it's ugly.''

Draper, who spent the summer collecting anti-drilling resolutions from various cities on the central and lower Gulf Coast, then listed recent gasoline prices at the pump in drilling states such as Texas and Louisiana. They were lower than Florida's, but not by much -- nine to 12 cents a gallon.

``Where's the logic that gas prices are going to come down?'' Draper asked.

INDUSTRY ARGUMENT

On the other side, Florida Energy Associates attorney Frank Matthews said drilling can help Florida cope with revenue shortfalls and high unemployment. The question, Matthews said, is whether to repeal the drilling ban and give the governor and Cabinet authority to accept proposals, for a fee, to lease areas for exploration with the state getting a share of royalties.

``We have a ban that needs to be repealed, just to start the conversation,'' Matthews told legislators in a calm voice. ``The risk is, in fact, manageable, and it's based on the protections you will impose.''

As Draper and Matthews argued, Carolyn Oblin stood in the back of a Capitol conference room, updating her Facebook page, Floridians Against Big Oil. Oblin, 41, a Green Party activist from Tallahassee, is using Facebook to mobilize people to tell legislators why drilling would be disastrous for Florida.

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