Apair of unions went to court late Friday in an effort to block plans to privatize inmate health-care services in state prisons.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and the Federation of Physicians and Dentists/Alliance of Healthcare and Professional Employees filed suit in the 1st District Court of Appeal against Corrections Secretary Ken Tucker, saying he doesn't have authority on his own to allow private companies to handle health-care services.

Even as universities prepared contingency plans to deal with a budget cut of as much as 5 percent, the Florida Board of Governors approved a plan Thursday asking for as much as $118 million in new funding to be divvied up among its 12 institutions based on performance.

A trial court will decide whether state lawmakers are adequately funding public education after the Florida Supreme Court turned aside a last-ditch effort by Senate President Mike Haridopolos to block the suit.

The Supreme Court's decision Tuesday largely hinged on a procedural issue. In November, the 1st District Court of Appeal issued a divided ruling, with eight judges voting to allow the case to go forward, though one of the judges differed with the other seven on the basis for that ruling. The other seven judges said the lawsuit should end.

Even as Florida Democrats gathered in Charlotte, N.C., to nominate President Barack Obama for re-election, they were still mindful of a target closer to home: Republican Gov. Rick Scott.

Party officials and activists are clearly animated by the prospect of defeating Scott, who emerged from one of the closest elections in Florida's history to become one of the most unpopular governors in recent memory. And while Scott's numbers have improved recently, Democrats are still hopeful that 2014 will bring their first victory in the race for governor in 20 years.

Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz has spent her time at the Democratic National Convention here much the same way she has since becoming chair of the party last year: with a spirited defense of President Barack Obama, sharp barbs aimed at Republicans and a splash or two of controversy along the way.

As Democrats gather in Charlotte, N.C., this week to officially nominate President Barack Obama for a second term, their national convention is expected to have a strikingly different tone than last week's Republican celebration.

In Tampa last week, GOP speakers and nominee Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, tried to use their nationally-broadcast platform to remind voters of the struggling economy and give them a reason to reverse course in hopes of turning things around.

With a blend of presidential nominee Mitt Romney's biography, a few parting shots at President Barack Obama and a surprise and surprising appearance by Clint Eastwood, the Republican National Convention in Tampa closed, even as Florida remained central to the presidential election.

It was a night studded with stars of the Florida Republican scene, a nod both to the critical role the state's 29 electoral votes will play in the November election and the Latino populations that could dictate the outcome in several other swing states.

Republicans would be able to make inroads in the Hispanic community if they would focus on the values the party shares with Latinos and "just stop acting stupid," former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush told a group of Latino conservatives Tuesday.