By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Three years after Gov. Ron DeSantis pushed a congressional redistricting plan through the Legislature, the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a challenge by voting-rights groups that argued part of the plan violated the state Constitution. Justices, in a 5-1 decision, said an alternative requested […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday appointed state Sen. Blaise Ingoglia as Florida’s chief financial officer, gaining more control over the state Cabinet and potentially setting up a proxy battle in 2026 with President Donald Trump. DeSantis called Ingoglia, a Spring Hill Republican whose social media […]
By The News Service of Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds raked in more than $10 million during the year’s second quarter through a political committee and his campaign account, according to newly filed finance reports. The Friends of Byron Donalds PAC raised about $8.9 million from April 1 through June 30, bringing its overall […]
Alleging that Gov. Ron DeSantis did not comply with a constitutionally required deadline, an attorney asked the Florida Supreme Court on Friday to direct the governor to appoint a circuit judge in the Tallahassee area. Attorney Maite C. Garcia contended in the court petition that DeSantis was required to appoint a judge within 60 days […]
By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — The U.S. Supreme Court should reject a request by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier to at least temporarily allow enforcement of a new law targeting undocumented immigrants who enter the state, attorneys for plaintiffs challenging the law argued Wednesday. Attorneys for the Florida Immigrant Coalition, […]
By Jim Turner and Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — With Gov. Ron DeSantis signing a state budget and a flurry of other bills, the dust has settled on the 2025 legislative session. Here are 10 laws that took effect Tuesday, the start the 2025-2026 fiscal year: BALLOT INITIATIVES: A law (HB […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday signed what he said was a $117.4 billion budget for the fiscal year that will start Tuesday and issued $567 million in line-item vetoes, while saying the plan better prepares the state for potential economic downturns. “I think what you […]
By Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Additional restrictions on the state’s ballot-initiative process that take effect Tuesday could make it impossible for groups to gather enough signatures to place measures before voters next year, lawyers for plaintiffs challenging the new law argued Monday. Florida Decides Healthcare, a political committee sponsoring a […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Saying parents should make decisions about their children’s social-media use, industry groups Friday argued a federal appeals court should continue to block Florida from enforcing a law that targets social-media platforms. The groups NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association filed a 30-page document […]
By The News Service of Florida An estimated 7,415 first-time unemployment claims were filed in Florida during the week that ended June 14, according to a U.S. Department of Labor report released Wednesday. The total was down from an estimated 8,786 claims during the previous week. Florida has averaged 6,377 claims a week since the […]