When Gerard Robinson was chosen in June 2011 to become Florida education commissioner, Gov. Rick Scott hailed the newcomer's leadership as "exactly what Florida needs to reach the next level of education reforms that will benefit both our students and the businesses of our state.
But with Robinson's resignation this week, someone else will have to help lead Florida to that next level.
Floridas Trinidadian-born lieutenant governor will head a sales mission leaving this weekend to the island nation of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the Sunshine States 23rd largest trading partner.
Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll and Enterprise Florida will fly from Miami to the Caribbean nation that is also the birthplace of calypso and chutney, and which received $557.4 million in exports from Florida last year.
As she seeks to win a fourth full term in the Florida House of Representatives, Rep. Marti Coley, R-Marianna, is a heavy favorite to head back to Tallahassee despite opposition in the Republican primary in HD 5 on Aug. 14.
First elected to the House in a special election in 2005, Coley currently represents all of Calhoun and Liberty counties and parts of Bay, Gadsden, Jackson, Leon, Okaloosa, Wakulla and Walton counties. After the redistricting process, Coley is running to represent all of Holmes, Jackson, Walton and Washington counties and parts of Bay County.
Rep. Clay Ford, R-Pensacola, faces a challenger in the Republican HD 2 primary on Aug. 14 as he seeks another term in the Florida House of Representatives representing parts of the Panhandle.
Ford currently represents parts of Escambia and Santa Rosa counties and, while the Legislature tackled redistricting earlier in the year, his new district covers parts of the same two counties.
President Obama's unilateral decision to implement parts of the failed DREAM Act legislation has allowed "dreamers" to game the system and stay in the U.S. illegally, according to two union leaders representing immigration agents.
A central question confronting policymakers in Florida and across the nation is: How do we reach consensus on energy policy in a fluid economic environment where technologies are constantly changing?
The state is waiting for a response from BP after Attorney General Pam Bondiinformed the energy giant that Floridians are not being offered a fair share of the pending settlement out of the 2010 spill.
In a letter to John Lynch Jr., the U.S. general counsel for BP America Inc., Bondi expressed concerns this past week that individuals and businesses in Florida are not being equally considered for compensation as with their counterparts in other Gulf Coast states.
State legislative leaders say it remains too early to judge if this years auto insurance overhaul will bring anticipated savings to Florida motorists, because filings since the new law was made may not offer much hope of reform.
As of July 25, only a single rate filing to the state Office of Insurance Regulation has been approved that reflects any savings that could be linked with House Bill 119.
But Office of Insurance Regulation officials stated that other filings pending will include lower rates.
