President Donald Trump has tapped Frank Brogan, Florida lieutenant governor under Jeb Bush from 1998 to 2002, to serve as assistant secretary of education for elementary and secondary education.

State Rep. Randy Fine, R-Palm Bay, on Monday filed HB 971, a consumer protection act to keep Floridians from having to pay for garbage pickup, telecommunications, and cable service when those services are not actually provided.

Saying she too has been a victim of sexual misconduct, just-elected Miami Sen. Annette Taddeo, D-Miami, joined the chorus of lawmakers calling for Sen. Jack Latvala to resign so the Senate can get back to the people's business.

The Florida Municipal Electric Association (FMEA) announced Tuesday public power personnel from four Florida municipal electric utilities will be headed to the U.S. Virgin Islands Tuesday and Wednesday to assist with power restoration efforts there following destructive Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

Steve Mostyn, the Texas millionaire trial attorney and Democratic mega-donor who donated $2.3 million in 2014 to gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist and the Florida Democratic Party -- completely out of the blue -- died Wednesday in Houston after "a sudden onset and a battle with a mental health issue."

Florida lawmakers and a coalition of conservative public policy organizations joined the James Madison Institute in front of the Florida Senate Chamber on Wednesday when they unveiled the Conservative Criminal Justice Reform Agenda. The group shared a poll that demonstrates a majority of registered Florida voters support a number of smart justice reforms.
 
Agenda items for 2018 include -- 

Sen. Bill Montford, D-Tallahassee, chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce and Tourism, will lead the committee’s first meeting on hurricane effects and recovery efforts across the business community in Florida.
 
“Hurricane Irma was a catastrophic storm, the likes of which Florida has never seen,” Montford said in a press statement Wednesday. “We continue to face the long and complicated process of recovery statewide, from our businesses and tourist industry, the school systems, to agriculture and infrastructure, there was not an entity left untouched.

Responding to people’s confusion and frustration about their rights related to claims, the Florida Justice Association (FJA) announced Monday the creation of the FJA Insurance Emergency Response Task Force of leading insurance attorneys to assist Florida lawmakers and their constituents who have property insurance questions.

Hillary Clinton lashed out at the National Rifle Association Monday, saying in a tweet, “Our grief isn’t enough, we can and must put politics aside, stand up to the NRA, and work together to try to stop this from happening again.”

South Florida Water Management District gates and flood control structures in the Upper Kissimmee Chain of Lakes are operating at maximum practical capacity to lower water levels in anticipation of a tropical disturbance passing over South Florida, according to a SFWMD statement. 

The disturbance is expected to drop heavy rains over areas still recovering from high water caused by Hurricane Irma. The SFWMD is coordinating with local water managers and drainage districts to prepare for the storm's expected impacts.