By Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — When it comes to peddling influence, Brian Ballard has all the bases covered. He’s parlayed his reputation as one of the Florida Capitol’s most powerful lobbyists into a similar niche in Washington, D.C., where his clients range from the American Kitchen Cabinet Alliance to Major […]
By Ana Ceballos, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — The Florida Department of Education on Wednesday asked a Tallahassee judge to toss a lawsuit that seeks to have the state pay money to teachers that school districts deducted from bonuses. The lawsuit, filed last month, accused state officials of improperly instructing school districts to […]
The News Service of Florida Florida students in grades K-12 would be taught about child-trafficking prevention, under a rule proposed by state education officials. The intent of the rule is to have “every school in Florida be a ‘child trafficking free zone,’ ” according to the proposed regulation published by the Florida Department of Education […]
By Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — In a final pitch to a Senate special master, former Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel’s lawyer is insisting that the suspended law enforcement officer wasn’t to blame for two deadly mass shootings that led to his ouster by Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this year. The […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Florida House Democrats say they’ve rounded up more than enough support to require votes from both Republican-dominated chambers of the Legislature to determine if there is any appetite for a special session dealing with gun violence. But such an effort may be futile, as Republican […]
By Christine Sexton, The News Service of Florida DOH Deputy Secretary for Operations Michele Tallent is on administrative leave. She’s the subject of an internal investigation, state officials confirmed to The News Service of Florida Thursday night. Tallent has filled a variety of roles at the department, including helping to hold down the fort in […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida Bolstered by U.S. and Canadian tourists, Florida’s visitor count continued at a record pace through the second quarter of 2019, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office said Thursday. But Visit Florida, the state’s tourism-marketing agency, now faces a test. The estimated 68.9 million travelers to Florida during the first […]
The News Service of Florida With Attorney General Office Ashley Moody’s office citing a new law, the Florida Supreme Court has given the go-ahead to more analysis about the financial impacts of a proposed constitutional amendment that would raise the state’s minimum wage. The Supreme Court on Thursday issued an order that will allow state […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Florida’s top financial regulator was fired Thursday by Gov. Ron DeSantis and Cabinet members, after a controversy sparked by an employee lodging a sexual harassment complaint. But that isn’t expected to end two months of public skirmishing between ousted Office of Financial Regulation Commissioner Ronald […]
By Ana Ceballos, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — Two prominent state senators intend to release proposals for the 2020 legislative session that would set up the Republican platform on immigration, a key issue going into next year’s election cycle. Sen. Joe Gruters, who doubles as the chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, […]