Both legislative chambers are moving ahead with a measure that would require professional sports teams to agree they’ll play the national anthem before games and events if they want to receive state or local government funding. The House Local Administration & Veterans Affairs Subcommittee voted 12-4 --- with four Democrats opposed — on Tuesday to […]
By Dara Kam TALLAHASSEE --- With the future of mobile sports betting in Florida at stake, the federal government this week took the first step in appealing a judge’s decision that scrapped a deal that gave the Seminole Tribe control over sports wagering in the state. The U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees tribal […]
By Jim Turner TALLAHASSEE --- Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday waved off a decision by the state Senate to not consider a controversial redistricting plan that his administration proposed. The Senate on Thursday overwhelmingly approved new congressional and Senate maps in the once-a-decade redistricting process. It did not take up a congressional map that DeSantis’ […]
TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis’ push to prohibit critical race theory from being taught in schools or used in employee training sessions began moving forward Tuesday in the Florida Senate, as outnumbered Democrats warned that the legislation would stifle educators and lead to frivolous lawsuits. The Republican-controlled Senate Education Committee approved the bill (SB 148) […]
The Florida House next week could start moving forward with a proposal aimed at restricting subjects that can be included in ballot initiatives. The House Public Integrity & Elections Committee is scheduled Tuesday to take up the proposal (HJR 1127), filed by Rep. Mike Beltran, R-Lithia. Under the measure, initiatives would have to be “limited […]
By Jim Saunders TALLAHASSEE — After Florida and other states fought the plans, the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday blocked a COVID-19 vaccination mandate for large employers, while clearing the way for a requirement that health-care workers get shots to try to curb the virus. Justices issued two decisions, drawing distinctions between an Occupational Safety […]
By Jim Saunders TALLAHASSEE — The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday ordered new trials for two Death Row inmates, including for a man convicted in the murders of a Broward County couple after his mother provided key testimony. In somewhat-unusual moves, justices overturned the convictions of Peter Avsenew in the 2010 murders in Broward County […]
TALLAHASSEE — More than nine months after the death of U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings, South Florida voters Tuesday elected Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick to succeed him. Cherfilus-McCormick, a health-care executive, easily defeated Republican Jason Mariner in the Democratic stronghold of Congressional District 20 in Broward and Palm Beach counties. With all but a handful of precincts […]
TALLAHASSEE — In one of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ priorities for this year’s legislative session, two Republican lawmakers have filed a proposal that seeks to ratchet up immigration enforcement. In the state. Sen. Aaron Bean, R-Fernandina Beach, and Rep. John Snyder, R-Stuart, filed identical bills (SB 1808 and HB 1355) on Friday, nearly a month after […]
After the deadly collapse last year of the Champlain Towers South condominium building in Surfside, the chairwoman of the Senate Community Affairs Committee filed a proposal Friday to require inspections of multifamily residential buildings in the state. The bill (SB 1702), filed by Sen. Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island, would require what are described as “milestone” […]
TALLAHASSEE --- Legislative leaders are monitoring the spike in coronavirus cases across Florida but haven’t made plans to reimpose restrictions on public access that were used during the 2021 session. With the 2022 legislative session starting Jan. 11, people will be allowed to roam most of the Capitol complex and address lawmakers in person. “In […]
TALLAHASSEE --- Saying it is among states that are “unshielded,” Florida is pressing a full federal appeals court to at least temporarily block a Biden administration rule that would require health-care workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19. David Costello, an assistant state solicitor general, filed a document late Wednesday afternoon at the 11th U.S. Circuit […]
By Jim Saunders TALLAHASSEE — The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to take up a dispute about how much money Florida’s Medicaid program should be able to recoup after a legal settlement involving a Lee County girl who suffered catastrophic injuries when she was struck by a truck after getting off a school bus in […]
By Jim Saunders TALLAHASSEE — A subsidiary of the Target retail chain is battling the Florida Department of Revenue over millions of dollars in corporate income taxes. Target Enterprise, Inc. filed a lawsuit last week in Leon County circuit court challenging the state’s attempt to collect more than $10.2 million in taxes and interest after […]
TALLAHASSEE --- Saying President Joe Biden exceeded his authority, a Tampa federal judge Wednesday backed Florida’s attempt to block a COVID-19 vaccination requirement for federal contractors. U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday issued a 38-page decision granting a motion by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody for a preliminary injunction against the requirement. Merryday’s decision focused on […]
Two pari-mutuels have dropped an appeal of a Florida federal judge’s decision to dismiss a challenge to a gambling agreement that gave the Seminole Tribe control of sports betting throughout the state. Lawyers for Magic City Casino in Miami-Dade County and Bonita Springs Poker Room in Southwest Florida on Friday asked the 11th U.S. Circuit […]
A House Republican on Monday filed a proposal that would allow people with concealed-weapons licenses to be armed with guns at state legislative meetings. Rep. Anthony Sabatini, R-Howey-in-the-Hills, filed the bill (HB 6099) for consideration during the legislative session that will start Jan. 11. State law includes a list of places where people cannot carry […]
Florida has deployed a nine-member team to Kentucky to assist in the response to a series of deadly tornadoes that devastated parts of the state, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office announced Wednesday. The team, which includes people from the Florida Division of Emergency Management and Clay, St. Johns, and Flagler counties, is expected to be embedded […]
