THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE, April 6, 2010.Gov. Charlie Crist defied the incoming legislative leaders of his own Republican Party by vetoing a measure Tuesday that would have given them unbridled control of millions of dollars in campaign cash.
Realtors from across the state started congregating in the Capitol on Tuesday for the 40th Annual Great American Realtor Days, two days of lobbying lawmakers on issues important to the real estate market. Members of the Florida Association of Realtors from across the state spoke about the most pressing legislation affecting them as they advocate for themselves in the Capitol and at home:
With both chambers of the Legislature passing their initial budgets last week, the House spent early Tuesday evening paving the way to meet with the Senate in conference to hammer out a final budget.
Rep. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, said the House was following a procedural roadmap that would pave the way for conferencing with the Senate.
This will get us into a conference posture, he said.
That line was echoed several times as the House took up a number of bills from the Senate and quickly passed them with almost no debate.
Having passed the first version of its budget last week, the Florida House met on Tuesday to tackle economic issues, including creating a sales tax holiday just in time for back-to-school shopping and forming an organization to invest in Floridas ports.
The House created a three-day sales tax holiday running from Aug. 13 until Aug. 15. During that period, books, clothes, shoes and book bags under $50 and school supplies under $10 would be exempt from sales tax.
WASHINGTON -- The times truly are out of joint when the most important IPO -- initial public offering -- of 2010 could come from what was American capitalism's iconic corporation for most of its 102 years. Andrew Bary, writing in Barron's, says General Motors "may go public in the second half of this year, and its stock market value could top $50 billion, more than Ford's $40 billion."
Gov. Charlie Crist announced Tuesday that he wants to make reduced-cost drugs available to all Floridians.
In a press conference with Douglas Beach, secretary of the state Department for Elder Affairs, Crist said he was lifting the age and income limit for his Florida Discount Drug Card program.
To have a discount drug card available to every Floridian regardless of age is extraordinary, Crist said in a press conference.
WASHINGTON -- When you're Michael Steele, there's no waking up and thinking: Ahhhh, at least the worst is over.
Whatever the week, Monday is the start of another very bad one. No exception to the trend, this week began dramatically.
State Sen. Mike Bennett is a true champion. State Rep. Gary Aubuchon is a housing hero. And Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink? A defender of the common man.
That's according to the Sadowski Housing Coalition, a nonpartisan group of organizations dedicated to affordable housing. The coalition is pushing bills that would repeal a cap on a housing trust fund, which was established in 1992 and funnels money toward affordable housing.
The Seminole Tribe of Florida approved the long-debated gambling compact with the state on Wednesday -- an agreement that could bring Florida at least $1 billion, but could eventually doom some dog and horse tracks.
Being the Sunshine State, Florida is prime real estate for solar power, but energy experts say more fertile fields -- and bigger job generators -- can be found in the ground.
"There's huge untapped potential," says Mike Antheil, executive director of the Florida Alliance for Renewable Energy.
