This week, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., joined a push to crack down on foreign lobbyists.

From his seat on the U.S. House Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Subcommittee, U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, D-Fla., helped amend a funding bill to aid veterans who are using medical marijuana and to boost legal marijuana businesses' access to banks.

A congressman from Southwest Florida is happy to see the U.S. Department of Labor picking up a proposal he brought out last year adding more transparency in unions’ finances by bringing back rules ended by the Obama administration. 

Early last year, U.S. Rep. Francis Rooney, R-Fla.,  introduced the House version of the “Union Transparency and Accountability Act,” a proposal championed by U.S. Sen. John Thune, R-SD, in recent years.

U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, D-Fla., has a new Republican opponent and it looks as if Crist can expect more of a fight to keep his seat in 2020 than he did last year. 

Healthcare lobbyist Amanda Makki, a former aide to U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, last week launched her bid for the Republican nomination to challenge Crist . 

“I am fighting to give Pinellas a voice in Washington and a stake in the future of our country. By working together, we can bring effective and principled leadership back to the 13th District,” the new candidate notes on her website. 

Last week, U.S. Rep. Francis Rooney, R-Fla., and  U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, brought back their bill “to stop foreign intelligence services from using college exchange programs to steal technology, recruit agents and spread propaganda."

Back in September, Rooney, who was the vice chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee when the GOP remained in charge of the House, unveiled the “Stop Higher Education Espionage and Theft (SHEET) Act” which Cruz was championing in the U.S. Senate. 

U.S. Rep. Darren Soto, D-Fla., scored a win this week when his proposal to help the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and other government agencies at the state and local levels advanced to President Donald Trump’s desk. 

On Thursday, a senior Republican congressman from the Sunshine State threw his support behind a proposal to expand mental health coverage for seniors under Medicare. 

U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., who sits on the powerful U.S. House Ways and Means Committee, announced he was cosponsoring the “Mental Health Access Improvement Act.”

A congressman from the Sunshine State has an idea on how to save taxpayers money by having the federal government check on the eligibility for benefits of Americans who are 105 or older. 

Last week, freshman Greg Steube brought out the “Valid Benefits Act” which will “require heads of federal agencies and departments to verify eligibility for federal benefits for individuals 105 years of age or older.” 

Steube showcased the bill on Wednesday and explained why he had championed the proposal, insisting it could lead to major savings. 

Last week, two members of the Florida delegation looked to build a closer partnership with Israel, Greece and Cyprus while taking aim at Turkey. 

U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Fla., the chairman of the U.S. House Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, teamed up with U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., and U.S. Rep. David Cicilline, D-RI, to bring out the “Eastern Mediterranean Security and Energy Partnership Act."

Sen. Marco Rubio, on the U.S. Senate East Asia, the Pacific and International Cybersecurity Policy Subcommittee, turned his attention to Chinese aggression last week. 

The Florida Republican is looking to impose sanctions against Chinese individuals and companies that “participate in Beijing’s illegitimate activities to aggressively assert its expansive maritime and territorial claims” in both the South China Sea and the East China Sea.