Groups that successfully challenged the Florida Legislature's congressional map aren't entitled to recover millions of dollars in legal fees from the state, an appellate court ruled Thursday.

A three-judge panel of the 1st District Court of Appeal unanimously rejected arguments from a coalition of voting-rights organizations and a group of voters that their lawyers had essentially done the work of a "private attorney general" while state Attorney General Pam Bondi "sat on the sidelines."

Gov. Rick Scott signed a bill Friday to expand Florida’s “Right To Try” compassionate use registry to allow terminally ill patients to use medical marijuana. 

Donald Trump apparently has done more than energize just the Republican base. In Florida anyway, he may be helping to nudge angry Democrats to the right. 

Already one of the leading Republican critics of businessman Donald Trump, U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo, R-Fla., did not rule out voting for former U.S. Sec. of State Hillary Clinton over the GOP frontrunner in November. 

CBS Miami reported that Curbelo ruled out voting for Trump and has told some Democrats he might vote for Clinton. 

Lois Frankel is continuing her third act on the political stage as a member of Congress with a bigger profile than most second term members in the minority party. 

Now 67, Frankel has been a player in Florida politics for almost three decades now. First elected to the Florida House in 1986, Frankel served 14 years in there which was interrupted by an unsuccessful congressional bid in 1992 when she lost to Alcee Hastings in the primary. Frankel ended up in the leadership twice, as majority whip and, in her second stint, as minority leader. 

Florida’s unemployment rate continued to drop to an eight-year low of 4.9 percent for the month of February. According to a press release from Gov. Rick Scott’s office, the Sunshine State’s unemployment rate plummeted from 10.7 percent in December 2010, shortly after Scott took office.

Even as his political future remains uncertain, Marco Rubio is showing no signs of heading to the sidelines. 

Rubio’s in a bit of an odd spot politically following Donald Trump driving him out of the Republican presidential race. While he carried Miami Dade County, Rubio was blown out across the state by Trump in the primary earlier this month as the GOP frontrunner won in every other county. 

It can be a humbling experience for a member of the U.S. House to run for statewide office.

Aside from the most-prominent leaders, congressmen and congresswomen aren't generally household names even in their own districts. Expand that to the entire state, and the percentage of the population that knows much about a House member can fall even further.

The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) threw its support behind a proposal from a Florida congresswoman ending the embargo on Cuba, drawing fire from another member of the Sunshine State’s delegation. 

With President Barack Obama having visited Cuba earlier this week, NAM threw its support to a measure from U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Fla., and U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., ending the embargo. 

Linda Dempsey, NAM’s vice president of international economic affairs, sent a letter to Castor and Emmer on Wednesday, backing their proposal. 

President Barack Obama’s efforts to normalize relations with Cuba are taking center stage in South Florida as what promises to be one of the most competitive congressional races in the nation is starting to heat up.