Social conservative leaders are weighing in on Gov. Rick Scotts refusal of federal funds set aside for high-speed rail projects and praising the decision.

U.S. Sen. John Thune of South Dakota said on Tuesday that he would not run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012.

Rep. Bill Proctor, R-St. Augustine, knows a little about education. Not only does he chair the House Education Committee but he has a Ph.D. from Florida State University and is the chancellor of Flagler College. Proctor weighed in on Tuesday on new figures noting that there were more students enrolled in the state university system and that the students admitted did better on standardized tests.

A group of seven teachers spoke out against Senate Bill 736 in front of the state Capitol building in Tallahassee Tuesday. The bill would tie teacher performance and student learning gains to teacher pay.

A bill that would repeal a law passed last year in the state Legislature requiring the Department of Health to inspect septic tanks once every five years passed through the Senate Health Regulation Committee Tuesday.

Senators in support of Senate Bill 168 said the costs of the program would be too heavy a burden on homeowners and businesses in harsh economic times, but admitted some measures need to be taken to ensure failing septic tanks don't pollute Florida's waters.

Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, released a video on Monday, updating his constituents on fiscal issues. Gaetz praised House Speaker Dean Cannon, R-Winter Park, and Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, for being conservative and against increased government spending. Gaetz also touched on his proposal to cap spending in the future.

A Republican in the Senate and a Democrat in the House have teamed up to craft a bill that would stop convicted criminals who injured or killed members of their own family from receiving inheritance or alimony benefits that they would inherit due to their actions.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, and Rep. Richard Steinberg, D-Miami Beach, based the measure on a similar law in New Jersey.

Less than two weeks after being nominated by Gov. Rick Scott, Carl Littlefield withdrew his bid to lead the Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD) on Monday. Littlefield is no stranger to Tallahassee, having served as assistant secretary of developmental disabilities at DCF and as a deputy secretary at the Department of Elder Affairs.

While I am no longer able to currently serve as director of this important agency, I remain supportive of your goals and plans to move Florida forward toward a brighter future, Littlefield wrote Scott.

Pro-life activist Randall Terry, the founder of Operation Rescue, who may be best known to Floridians for serving as a spokesman for the parents of Teri Schiavo, announced last month that he was entering the Democratic presidential primaries to take on President Barack Obama in 2012 -- but now the Republicans are in his sights.