By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — An appeals court Monday declined to take up a fight stemming from a “financial impact statement” that will appear on the November ballot with a proposed constitutional amendment on abortion rights, saying the case is moot because the statement was revised last week. A three-judge […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Florida’s unemployment rate held steady in June for a third consecutive month, as baby-boomer retirements affect the size of the labor force and the hospitality industry has shed some jobs. The Florida Department of Commerce on Friday released a report that said the state’s June […]
By The News Service of Florida The voter-registration gap between the Republican Party of Florida and the Florida Democratic Party continues to widen. The GOP had 5,257,407 registered voters at the end of June, while the Democratic Party had 4,300,964, according to newly posted data on the state Division of Elections website. That 956,443-voter advantage […]
By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Florida A&M University President Larry Robinson announced Friday he will step down after nearly seven years leading the state’s only historically Black public university and plans to return to the faculty. In a letter addressed to “FAMUly and Friends” that was posted online, Robinson did […]
By The News Service of Florida State general-revenue tax collections in May were 4.2 percent higher than expected, according to a report released Tuesday by the Legislature’s Office of Economic & Demographic Research. The report said net general revenue during the month totaled about $4.48 billion, $182.4 million more than expected when a forecast was […]
By The News Service of Florida The state’s Citizens Property Insurance Corp. topped 1.211 million policies last week, as it continued to add thousands of customers. Citizens had 1,211,914 policies as of Friday, up from 1,207,292 policies a week earlier and 1,202,696 policies two weeks earlier, according to information on its website. Citizens, which was […]
By The News Service of Florida The sponsor of a new Florida law designed to prevent homeless people from sleeping in public places praised a U.S. Supreme Court ruling Friday that upheld the constitutionality of an Oregon city’s ordinance cracking down on public camping. Rep. Sam Garrison, R-Fleming Island, called the Supreme Court ruling in […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida Eleven candidates, mostly incumbents, won legislative races Friday as they did not draw opponents before a qualifying deadline, while the Florida Democratic Party hit a goal of having candidates vie for every seat up for election. Two Democrats — former House members Carlos Guillermo Smith of Orlando […]
By The News Service of Florida House and Senate leaders rushed to assure about 200 legislative workers that “they do not need to worry” after Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday slashed more than $56 million from part of the state budget that pays for “legislative support services.” DeSantis’ vetoes included roughly $28.3 million for the […]
By Jim Turner & Ryan Dailey, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday signed a $116.5 billion budget for the upcoming fiscal year, after vetoing close to $950 million in spending approved by lawmakers in March. “Some of the stuff I don’t think was appropriate for state tax dollars,” DeSantis […]