By Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — In a snub to Gov. Ron DeSantis amid a widening House probe into First Lady Casey DeSantis’ signature welfare-assistance program, the Florida Senate will not take up confirmations of two state agency heads before the end of the legislative session. Senate Ethics and Elections Chairman […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Florida’s jobless rate held steady in March. The Florida Department of Commerce on Friday released a report that said the state had a 3.6 percent unemployment rate in March, the same as in February. Florida had an estimated 403,000 people who qualified as out of […]
By Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Seeking to “restore confidence” in its mission, directors of an embattled foundation affiliated with First Lady Casey DeSantis’ signature Hope Florida welfare-assistance program on Thursday agreed to strengthen the nonprofit’s structure amid widening scrutiny by the Florida House. The Hope Florida Foundation Inc. directors finalized […]
By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Florida argued this week it should be able to move forward with a new law aimed at cracking down on undocumented immigrants who come to the state, after a federal judge temporarily halted the measure. Attorney General James Uthmeier’s office, in a 22-page court document […]
By Jim Turner and Mike Exline, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Two people were killed and six others were injured Thursday after a shooter, the son of a Leon County sheriff’s deputy, opened fire around lunchtime at Florida State University. The shooter, 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, also was shot after confronting police officers, authorities […]
By Jim Turner & Tom Urban, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — An effort to keep students off cell phones throughout the school day passed the Florida House on Wednesday, though differences remain with a Senate proposal. The House unanimously approved a bill (HB 949) that would expand a law that prohibits the use […]
By Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Amid ongoing scrutiny of First Lady Casey DeSantis’ signature welfare-assistance program and an affiliated foundation, the executive director of the Hope Florida program is poised to step down from the job. Erik Dellenback, who also serves as Gov. Ron DeSantis’ “liaison for faith and community,” […]
By Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — The chairman of a foundation tied to Hope Florida — First Lady Casey DeSantis’ signature welfare-assistance program — said under oath Tuesday that “mistakes were made” with the foundation’s record-keeping, as a skirmish over the group’s finances continued to escalate. Joshua Hay, chairman of the […]
By The News Service of Florida Enrollment in Florida’s traditional public schools is expected to decrease in the coming years while voucher programs expand, according to a new report from state economists. The report, compiled by the state Education Estimating Conference, said enrollment in traditional public schools is projected to go from 2,805,298 in the […]
By Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Amid an escalating feud between Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican-controlled House, the chamber’s budget chairman on Friday sent letters to six state agencies seeking a broad array of documents as part of a probe into government spending. The inquiry into DeSantis-administration spending, ordered by […]