Karen Harrington Challenges Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Ten Commandments Defender Roy Moore Set to Enter 2012 Race
Despite FTC Support, Bill Allowing Nurse Practioners to Write Prescriptions Stalls
Florida Could Save $11 Million in Medicaid by Switching to Generic Drugs
Political Bits and Pieces
Dean Cannon Changes House Budget Allocations
Rick Scott Signs Teacher Performance Pay Into Law
On Thursday morning, at a school in Jacksonville, Gov. Rick Scott signed into law SB 736 --legislation that reforms the way teachers are paid in the state of Florida. A similar measure, SB 6, passed the Legislature in 2010 but was vetoed by then-Gov. Charlie Crist.
The new law reforms teacher pay to rely on performance and assessments instead of seniority. The new law places new teachers on annual contracts as opposed to having tenure and makes half of a teachers evaluation reliant on assessments in a four-tiered system.
Presidential Derby
Sandy Adams Goes to Bat as Florida Looks to House Retired Space Shuttle
With only two more space shuttle flights scheduled before the program is terminated, a congresswoman from Florida turned up the heat this week on NASA administrators as the Sunshine State dukes it out with other locations to house the retired orbiters.
Freshman Florida Republican U.S. Rep. Sandy Adams sent a letter on Tuesday to NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, asking for one of the retired orbiters to be housed at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC).
One Year After Passage, Debate on Federal Health Care Law Continues
Wednesday marked the one-year anniversary of the passing of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the health care law backed by President Barack Obama -- and the constitutional challenge launched by Florida against it. While the law may have been on the books for a year, the debate on its merits continues to rage and appears likely to be a key issue in the 2012 presidential election. Democrats and their supporters across the state praised the law and vowed to continue to fight for it.