Lawmakers are already seeking about $120 million for projects and programs in their local communities, while the latest state revenue estimates have spurred the House budget leader to urge “restraint” as the 2020 legislative session nears.
And based on past sessions, the number of local funding proposals --- sometimes derided by critics as “pork” or “turkeys” --- will soon explode.
A Florida congressman is looking to ensure that unions can’t offer financial incentives to recruit federal employees working for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
Last week, U.S. Rep. Neal Dunn, R-Fla., introduced the “VA Workplace Integrity Act” which, he insists, will help “combat the use of financial incentives to pressure federal employees into joining unions” and protects VA employees “from undue financial manipulation stemming from labor unions.”
As Hurricane Dorian threatened to cause massive damage to Florida’s East Coast in early September, residents --- and electric utilities --- prepared for the worst.
As residents emptied store shelves of supplies or evacuated their communities, utilities lined up thousands of workers to be ready to deal with downed power lines and destroyed equipment.
As it turned out, Florida got lucky. Dorian stayed far enough off the coast that it largely spared the state from damage.
The Blue-Green Algae Task Force appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in January to study ways to prevent or reduce algae blooms spawned by Lake Okeechobee runoff into the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie rivers is nearing completion of its first draft of recommendations to lawmakers.
And it’s apparently going to include data referencing “climate change” and “global warming,” words former Gov. Rick Scott forbid from being mentioned in previous state-funded efforts to address blue-green algae and red tide.
The Florida Supreme Court will conduct its mandated review of proposed ballot language in prospective constitutional amendments seeking to impose an “assault weapons” ban and to legalize recreational marijuana on Feb. 4.
Both measures are seeking to qualify for the November 2020 ballot and are among three initiatives being challenged by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody.
Impeachment. Impeachment. Impeachment.
That was the drama that dominated Washington, D.C. this week as Democrats backed impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump.
But in the nation’s largest swing state, Florida Republicans’ support of the president remained unwavering, with some GOP officials using the unfolding events to raise money.
The State Board of Education is pushing for more accountability in how schools teach classes included in Florida statues including civics, the Holocaust and the history and heritage of African Americans, Hispanics and women.
This week, Gov. Ron DeSantis and Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran cheered the board for its efforts to have schools focus more on civics and other topics.
Starting Tuesday, law enforcement officers across Florida will pull over drivers using handheld cellular phones while in a designated school crossing, school zone or active work zone area.
From Tuesday through the start of the new year, officers across the Sunshine State will issue warnings but they will start issuing moving violations, with a base fine of $60, and drivers could also see fees, court costs and three points added to their driver licenses.
In one of his earliest --- and most far-reaching --- actions as the state’s chief executive, Gov. Ron DeSantis reshaped the Florida Supreme Court, with the appointment of three justices who have cemented a decidedly conservative majority.
And now, with the help of two fellow Republicans who serve on the Florida Cabinet, DeSantis has delivered the same brand of conservative jurisprudence to an administrative court system that has been a go-to place for citizens and businesses to redress grievances against state agencies.
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., the co-chairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), scored a win this week as his “Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act” cleared the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
After protests in Hong Kong, which started over a proposed extradition policy that could lead activists in that city to be deported to mainland China, Rubio pushed his proposal, including calling on Congress to pass it at a CECC meeting earlier this month.
