Floridas effort to build its port-to-rail freight infrastructure in anticipation of increased global trade is receiving high marks from one of the oldest Washington, D.C., think tanks.

A report from the Brookings Institute, a nonpartisan outfit that has a reputation of leaning to the left, listed as smart the states freight game plan as directed last year through the creation of the Office of Freight Logistics and Passenger Operations.

If there is ever a contest for the law with the most grossly misleading title, the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 should be a prime candidate, because the last thing this Act protects is the welfare of Indian children.

Florida Rep. Rob Schenck, R-Spring Hill, has been named chairman of the House Select Committee on Gaming by House Speaker Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel.

And as with the Senate Gaming Committee, the House effort is viewed as a two-year endeavor.

The House Select Committee on Gaming will be charged with looking at Floridas gaming activity holistically to determine ways to improve the states oversight of the industry, Weatherford stated in a release.