Federal officials overseeing a Shell Oil request to drill in deep water in the Gulf of Mexico are relying on false assumptions and accepting inadequate safety standards to prevent a repeat of the BP Deepwater Horizon spill, environmentalists charged Thursday in a complaint filed in federal court to stop it.

Pushing back against the National Rifle Association, a group of physicians on Monday filed suit in a Miami federal court to nullify a controversial measure prohibiting health practitioners from routinely asking their patients if they own guns and have them properly stored.

Bargain pricing and the sparks of recovery combined to boost existing housing sales in the first quarter of 2011, according to statistics from Florida Realtors that show a 13 percent increase in sales from the same period last year.

Sales of existing homes through March totaled 44,531 statewide, with 17 of 19 Florida municipalities showing sales gains year-to-year. Condominium sales were even stronger, with the number of sales jumping 29 percent for the quarter ending March 31.

Condo prices rose in all but one statistical region.

Lawmakers Wednesday sent a property tax cap provision to voters following debate over whether the expansion of current law would further widen the gap between property owners who have owned for a long time and those who have not.

Following more than an hour of debate, the Senate approved a measure (HJR 381) that asks voters to approve a constitutional amendment to lower property tax assessment caps on commercial property and prevent assessments on homestead property from going up when market values fall.

An insurance-backed effort to make it easier for the industry to deny personal injury protection claims stalled in both chambers Monday following a withering assault from attorneys who represent motorists, physicians, chiropractors and other providers.

By a 9-8 vote, the House Health and Human Services Committee defeated a pair of measures (HB 967 and HB 1411) requested by auto insurers and backed by state insurance regulators that backers say is needed to address fraudulent insurance claims that cost policyholders collectively $1 billion a year.