By Jim Turner, The News Service of Tallahassee TALLAHASSEE — As state lawmakers face a revenue shortfall amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration says a request for $50 million for business incentives wouldn’t have that large of an impact on the upcoming budget. Adam Callaway, director of strategic business development at the Department […]
By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — After Florida has received widespread praise for its handling of the 2020 election, Republicans and Democrats clashed Tuesday as a Senate committee approved a bill that would require voters to more frequently request vote-by-mail ballots. Senate Ethics and Elections Chairman Dennis Baxley, an Ocala Republican […]
By Christine Sexton, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — A scheduled committee vote on a high-profile bill that would protect businesses from coronavirus-related lawsuits was delayed Monday after the measure’s primary sponsor, Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, was delayed in another meeting. Senate Commerce and Tourism Chairman Sen. Ed Hooper, R-Clearwater, told The News […]
By Christine Sexton, The News Service of Florida Get ready for reefer madness on February 18th. That’s when members of the state’s two physician licensing boards begin working on the practice standards Florida-licensed physicians must follow when ordering smokable medical marijuana for their qualified patients. The Board of Medicine and the Board of Osteopathic Medicine […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Florida has posted its lowest weekly total of first-time unemployment claims since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, despite mounting issues confronting the travel industry. The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday estimated 17,621 first-time jobless claims were filed in Florida during the week that […]
By Ryan Dailey, The News Service of Tallahassee TALLAHASSEE — Following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in May and the ensuing summer of nationwide protests, the Florida Legislative Black Caucus is pushing a slew of bills for the 2021 legislative session that members say “promote fair and just” police reforms. […]
By The News Service of Florida With members of the Florida Legislative Black Caucus set to debut a slate of proposals to “support fair and just policing,” House Minority Co-leader Evan Jenne told reporters Monday “they are not trying to defund the police.” The Black caucus will hold a news conference Tuesday to roll out […]
By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — An appeals court wants The Florida Bar to consider taking action against a Panhandle attorney who pursued a high-profile case seeking to force Gov. Ron DeSantis to close beaches because of the COVID-19 pandemic. A panel of the 1st District Court of Appeal, in an […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to set penalties and allow the state and members of the public to file lawsuits against five tech giants he says are imposing arbitrary, monopolistic rules mostly focused on the discourse of Republicans. Arguing Facebook, Twitter, Google, Apple and Amazon control […]
By Ryan Dailey, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Florida legislators and local education officials are trying to pinpoint what happened to nearly 90,000 “missing” public school students, as public school enrollment estimates have dropped amid the COVID-19 pandemic. A mid-school-year estimate by state economists projects that 87,811 fewer students have enrolled in public […]