The Constitution Revision Commission is considering a measure that could settle future disputes over the appointment of Florida Supreme Court justices, but the proposal will do nothing to resolve a constitutional crisis looming early next year.

At question is whether Gov. Rick Scott or his successor, the winner of the 2018 governor’s race, will pick the replacements for three justices ---  Barbara Pariente, R. Fred Lewis and Peggy Quince ---  whose terms end as Scott’s tenure comes to a close in early January 2019.

(This is the fourth in a series of stories previewing issues for the 2018 legislative session.)

For Florida residents, attending a state university or college is a bargain.

This academic year, in-state students at Florida's 12 universities will pay an average of $6,091 in tuition and fees for 30 credit hours, which is nearly 40 percent below the national average of $9,970 for four-year public schools, according to the College Board.

Florida could be on the verge of losing a key financial tool that helped the state reduce the amount of money it owes by $1.4 billion last fiscal year.

Through June 30, Florida had cut the debt it accumulated to build schools, roads and other infrastructure over the last seven years by some $5.5 billion, Ben Watkins, director of state Division of Bond Finance, told Gov. Rick Scott and the Cabinet on Wednesday.

A measure that would require future tax or fee increases to be approved by two-thirds votes of the Legislature is ready for consideration by the state Constitution Revision Commission.

Florida taxpayers could lose billions of dollars in future savings under part of pending federal tax-reform legislation that would limit the ability of states and local governments to refinance bonds.

“This is down in the weeds, but it is extraordinarily important,” said Ben Watkins, director of the state Division of Bond Finance, after briefing aides to Gov. Rick Scott and Cabinet members on Wednesday.

Lawyers for the state asked a Leon County circuit judge Tuesday to order a trial about the constitutionality of a 2015 state law that would require women to wait 24 hours before having abortions.

But lawyers representing a Gainesville abortion clinic asked Judge Terry Lewis to issue a summary judgment finding the waiting-period law is an unconstitutional violation of women's privacy rights.

There were reminders this week that governors come and go, but the rituals of the Capitol remain.

The three top Democratic candidates for governor sat on a stage Saturday night in the Fiesta Ballroom at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort and answered more than an hour's worth of questions on issues facing Florida.

Buoyed by a win in a special election for a state Senate seat last month, Florida Democrats are using a three-day party conference to prepare plans for the critical 2018 election year when they hope to retain a U.S. Senate seat and reclaim the governor's mansion.

Sen. Bill Galvano, a 51-year-old lawyer from Bradenton, will be designated Tuesday by Senate Republicans as the next president of the Florida Senate.

The Republican lawmaker will lead the 40-member Senate for the two years after the November 2018 general elections, assuming the Republicans hold their majority --- now at a 24-16 margin --- in the chamber.