Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi on Wednesday praised at least one aspect of the U.S. Congress's "fiscal cliff" compromise: aone-year tax relief extension for borrowers who have mortgagedebt canceled or forgiven due to financial hardship.

The Florida lottery will unveil a new logo on Jan. 7 at its Tallahassee headquarters to mark its quarter century mark. The release from the lottery doesnt say what will become of the iconic pink flamingo. Over the past 25 years, the Florida lottery has become an integral part of Floridas culture and landscape with its iconic logo and its funding for education," a release from the Florida lottery stated.

Former Florida Rep. William Snyder will return to the Martin County sheriffs office as he is sworn in as Martin County sheriff on Jan. 8 in Stuart, a release from Snyder's campaign stated on Wednesday. A Republican from Stuart, Snyder spent six years in the Legislature after 33 years in law enforcement, starting in Miami-Dade County and from 1993 to 2006 with Martin County, where he was major, director of law enforcement. Snyder will be just the third sheriff for Martin County since 1972.

Floridas government is slowly getting back to work with the new year. Gov. Rick Scott will meet with members of the public in Hardee County at the Historic City Hall in Wauchula this afternoon starting at 1 p.m. He is attending a business round-table at the Desoto County Chamber of Commerce this morning in Arcadia and has an hourlong lunch meeting with Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, at the Pioneer Restaurant in Zolfo Springs.

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi's Office of Civil Rightstoday released the 2011 HateCrimes in Florida Report, which includes detailed information on the typesof hate crimes being committed throughout the Sunshine State. In 2011, 139 hate crimes were reported by 58 of the 407 local lawenforcement agencies that provide data to the Florida Department of LawEnforcement through the Uniform Crime Reporting information system.

As many prepare to shed some of those pounds gained during holiday feasting, Florida's Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services released Friday five tips to Floridians soliciting the services of health studios (e.g., gyms). They are: "1. Shop around. Many health studios allow prospective members to use the facility on a trial basis. If the health studio offers this option, consumers should consider trying out the health studio to determine whether it is the right health studio to help them meet their fitness goals.

The potential economically crippling port strike along the U.S. East and Gulf coasts has been diverted for a least a month. The International Longshoremen's Association and the United States Maritime Alliance, which is comprised of container companies and port associations, have agreed to extend their contract negotiations through January. The decision to continue talks was praised by the National Retail Federation, which has expressed concerns that the strike would harm the nations supply chain.

Will Florida outlaw certain types of political campaign speech, or protesting within 500 feet of a funeral, or texting while driving? Will the Sunshine State finally ratify the Equal Rights Amendment? Will the state provide financial incentives for students to take classes inPortugueseand Mandarin? Will "Stand Your Ground" stand its ground in the 2013 session?

Florida Today is reporting that despite an earlier report that pushed the Disney-friendly Port Canaveral ahead of PortMiami in terms of cruise passengers, the Miami port is still No. 1. But its close. Port Canaverals record-setting year of 3,761,056 passengers -- a 21 percent jump from 2011 -- falls just short of PortMiamis 3,774,000. The South Florida Business Journal had reported that PortMiami had dropped to 3,758,066. But PortMiami Director Bill Johnson advised Florida Today that the final audit had yet to come in.

Violators of the states Do Not Call list and telemarketing were the top consumer complaints by Floridians in 2012, the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services reported Friday. The departments consumer assistance center,entering the final weekend of 2012, had fielded 191,200 calls via the 1-800-HELP-FLA (435-7352) hotline and 33,450 emails -- www.800helpfla.com -- this year, of which 50,622 were complaints --a 21 percent increase from 2011. Of the complaints, 17,337 were about callers violating the Do Not Call list.

Florida Democrats gave a backhanded compliment to Gov. Rick Scott as he repeated his call for the White House to step into the looming longshoremens strike because of its potential economically crippling impact on Florida jobs and families.

What do you get when you cross pop artist Romero Britto, FloridaMarlins' great Jeff Conine,the Miami Heat's DJ Irie,boxing promoter Don King,Heat forward Rashard Lewis,celebrity chef Steve Martorano,former National Hurricane Center director Max Mayfield,"People's Court" judge Marilyn Milian,former Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula, the Miami Dolphins cheerleaders, the Miami Heat dancers, and Dolphins players Mike Pouncey, John Jerry, and Sean Smith?

The following statements were released Sunday following the death of William McBride, the Democratic Partys 2002 gubernatorial candidate and husband of the partys 2010 candidate for governor Alex Sink. McBride, 67, suffered a heart attack while in Mount Airy, N.C., on Saturday. Florida Democratic Party Chairman Rod Smith

U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R- Miami, has announced that 27-year-old U.S. Marine Corps veteran Jon Hammar of Miami has been released from a Mexican jail where he had been held since August on a questionable gun charge. This is a great day for the Hammar family. I have spoken with the family, and can confirm that Jon has been released from Matamoros prison and is back safely in the United States, Ros-Lehtinen stated.

Gov. Rick Scott on Friday announced three appointments -- Daniel E. Nordby, Nilda R. Pedrosa, and Israel U. Reyes -- to the Supreme Court Judicial Nominating Commission. In the announcement, he described the credentials of each: