By Dara Kam, The News Service of Tallahassee TALLAHASSEE — Opening the door for hundreds of thousands of convicted felons to be added to Florida’s voting rolls, a federal judge on Sunday struck down major parts of a state law requiring felons to pay court-ordered “legal financial obligations” to be eligible to vote. U.S. District […]
By Ana Ceballos, The News Service of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday said he is lifting coronavirus-related restrictions on youth activities, including summer camps and athletic events, because he trusts parents and local governments will make the right decisions for kids. “We trust parents to use common sense. We trust our local officials. We […]
By Brian Burgess, The Capitolist Dozens of media outlets, both in Florida and nationally, published the sensational story of Dr. Rebekah Jones, a state Department of Health employee who was fired by the administration of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Trump ally, after – she says – she refused to manipulate data to support the […]
By Ana Ceballos, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Vacation rentals in seven Panhandle counties Tuesday were allowed to reopen with some restrictions, after weeks of being shut down as part of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ response to the coronavirus pandemic. Halsey Beshears, secretary of the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, approved plans […]
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration said Tuesday evening that a Department of Health employee who helped create Florida’s COVID-19 information “dashboard” was fired for insubordination, disputing allegations that she was terminated for refusing to manipulate data. “Rebekah Jones exhibited a repeated course of insubordination during her time with the department, including her unilateral decisions to modify […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — State university system Chancellor Marshall Criser next week will present guidelines for reopening university campuses in the fall, after students were sent home in March to curb the spread of COVID-19. Criser is slated to offer the guidelines during a May 28 meeting of the […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Florida Democrats hope to make wildfires that destroyed homes and other structures in the Panhandle the latest political wedge between Gov. Ron DeSantis and Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, who some believe could clash in the 2022 gubernatorial election. The Florida Democratic Party wasted little time […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Gyms and fitness centers can start to reopen Monday and restaurants can seat more customers, as Gov. Ron DeSantis continued Friday to take “small steps” with his economic recovery plans amid the coronavirus pandemic. DeSantis said restaurants on Monday can expand their indoor seating to […]
In an effort to measure the impact of COVID-19, a number of experts are turning to a measure called excessive deaths. Excessive deaths occur when deaths during a current time period are greater than what would be expected based on an average of deaths over a previous time period. The measure of excess deaths does […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday defended his administration’s efforts to get the state’s much-maligned unemployment system to handle the unprecedented surge in applications caused by the coronavirus. Meanwhile, Democrats blasted the management of the system, which has had nearly 40 percent of applicants rejected and […]