Florida Legislature

Gov. Ron DeSantis amplified a podcast Tuesday criticizing President Donald Trump's new plan to shield undocumented farm workers from deportation, insisting that "amnesty" shouldn't be granted to any non-citizen. While DeSantis has tightly aligned with Trump's anti-illegal immigration agenda through harsh state crimes and an "Alligator Alcatraz" detention facility, the governor's indirect criticism on Tuesday […]

Florida Democratic lawmakers will conduct an "official legislative visit" at Alligator Alcatraz, the state's controversial migrant detention facility, amid safety concerns. State Senators Shevrin Jones and Carlos Guillermo Smith, together with state Reps. Anna Eskamani, Angie Nixon, and Michele Rayner, plan to inspect the Ochopee center Thursday afternoon. The safety visit comes a day after […]

OCHOPEE—Despite the rocky, "work-in-progress" relationship between Gov. Ron DeSantis and his potential successor, Rep. Byron Donalds, the top Republicans are both demanding the Key West City Commission bend the knee. Their comments to The Floridian came at the grand opening of Alligator Alcatraz, the state's new migrant detention facility, a day after Key West commissioners voted to […]

OCHOPEE—Florida Sen. Joe Gruters knows that Gov. Ron DeSantis won't pick him to be the state's next chief financial officer, but he says that doesn't matter. Gruters, 48, believes that President Donald Trump's support is his "golden ticket" to the cabinet position in 2026, even though DeSantis plans to fill the vacant role with somebody […]

U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, (D-FL) released a statement, urging the Trump administration to find a permanent solution for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), holders fleeing political collapse in Haiti.  The U.S. initially offered TPS to Haitians in January 2010 following a devastating earthquake and has since extended it to those fleeing the collapse of the Haitian government, […]

Florida's new Senate Democratic Leader, Lori Berman, sent a Friday letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis comparing the "Alligator Alcatraz" detention center to a "makeship prison camp" that may violate the U.S. Constitution. Berman, hastily elected to lead Senate Democrats in the hours after Sen. Jason Pizzo suddenly abandoned the role and quit the party, referred […]

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Thursday that Florida will partner with five out-of-state university systems to create a new college accreditation board, challenging higher education’s “woke cartels.” DeSantis’s comments came at a Florida Atlantic University press conference, where he revealed his plans for the new Commission for Public Higher Education.  He claimed that this new accreditor […]

TAMPA – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, (R-FL), signed SB 1620 and SB 168, two bills designed to bolster Florida’s Mental Healthcare capabilities. Gov. DeSantis said in a statement these pieces of legislation aim to “support Floridians overcoming mental health challenges and substance use disorders” and to turn Florida into the leading nation in “delivering meaningful […]

TALLAHASSEE—Days after Gov. Ron DeSantis approved a new law allowing the death penalty for child sex traffickers, Attorney General James Uthmeier coordinated a historic effort to rescue 60 missing kids from abuse. Uthmeier spoke to The Floridian in a phone interview about the two-week-long “Operation Dragon Eye,” the largest child recovery mission in the history […]

Gov. Ron DeSantis drew a new line in the sand on which beach areas Floridians can enjoy, repealing a controversial law with a new bill signed on Tuesday. At a press conference in Santa Rosa Beach, DeSantis publicly signed a repeal of a 2018 law limiting public access on beaches in Walton County, a small […]

TALLAHASSEE—Despite Florida lawmakers asking for a record $70 million in compensation for families "neglected" by the state's embattled child welfare agency, all restitution bills related to the department died without committee hearings. The 2025 session was the first time ever that the Department of Children and Families was the subject of more than three claim […]

Gov. Ron DeSantis greeted roughly 160 Americans evacuated from Israel on Friday, revealing that the rescue efforts were likely the "most challenging" the state's emergency response team has ever dealt with. DeSantis spoke at an early morning press conference at the Tampa airport Friday morning, just hours after the second evacuation flight out of Cyprus […]

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier hopes to convert an old Everglades airport into the "Alligator Alcatraz,” a new detention facility for captured migrants in the state illegally. Uthmeier posted a one-minute video to his social media account on Thursday, pitching "Alligator Alcatraz" as the state's sixth migrant detention facility in partnership with the federal Immigration […]

TALLAHASSEE—The Florida Legislature sent Gov. Ron DeSantis a severe new bill on Wednesday allowing Florida prosecutors to sentence human traffickers to death if they've exploited a young child or someone with mental disabilities. DeSantis already pledged at a press conference last week to sign the bill, SB 1804, into law. The measure, which takes effect […]

TALLAHASSEE—Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the eighth death warrant of 2025, tying the Florida record for most executions carried out in a year if all goes according to plan. DeSantis set Michael Bernard Bell's execution date for July 15, just weeks after rapist and murderer Thomas Gudinas is set to die on June 24. DeSantis quietly […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Sens. Rick Scott (R-FL) and Rubén Marinelarena Gallego (D-AZ) introduced a bipartisan bill called the Continuing High-Quality Evaluations of Concerning and Known Persons of Interest through National Training Updates (CHECKPOINT) Act. The act aims to modernize and improve U.S. Border Patrol checkpoints by formally codifying the Checkpoint Program Management Office to oversee performance, […]

TALLAHASSEE—An independent watchdog group dedicated to saving Florida tax dollars identified $416 million in the newly passed state budget that they believe Gov. Ron DeSantis should heavily scrutinize—and perhaps veto. Florida TaxWatch released its annual "Budget Turkey" list on Tuesday, a day after the Legislature finalized a $115.1 billion budget for the next fiscal year. […]

TALLAHASSEE—An hour before midnight on the 105th day of session, the Florida Legislature approved a $115.1 billion budget for the next fiscal year, putting the much-anticipated kibosh on a drawn-out standoff between Republican leaders. The near-unanimous vote across both chambers Monday night after 11 p.m. saved the Florida government from a partial shutdown, which would […]