Waving aside objections from the Florida Bar and the ACLU, the House Judiciary Committee approved an "anti-Sharia law" bill on Wednesday.
"We're trying to anticipate problems we see in other states and address them proactively," said Rep. Larry Metz, R-Eustis, sponsor of House Bill 1209.
"This will preclude unjust results in cases where the outcome could be different if we didn't have the bill."
Attorney General Pam Bondi released the following statement after the House on Wednesday approved HB 1175, which would expand the list of banned synthetic drugs:
The House of Representatives demonstrated strong leadership by unanimously passing a bill that will protect Floridians from dangerous synthetic drugs, Bondi stated in a release. We will not allow these creative chemists to skirt state law and pose serious harm to our residents.
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The gloves have come off as former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, now running in the Republican primary to challenge Democrat incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, took aim at GOP rival U.S. Rep. Connie Mack on Wednesday, attacking the congressmans character and his handling of personal finances -- even comparing Mack to Charlie Sheen.
Mack's camp fired back, attacking LeMieux as an "insiders insider and a truly extraordinary political hack."
LeMieux called Mack the Charlie Sheen of Florida politics before adding that may be disrespectful to Charlie Sheen.
A "compromise" engineered by state Sen. Jack Latvala sailed through committee Wednesday and left the door open for the continued sale of Floridians' Social Security numbers.
With a brusque call by sponsoring Sen. Garrett Richter, R-Naples, to "move this bill," SB 1208 was quickly passed by the Committee on Government Oversight and Accountability without discussion or debate.
Felons convicted of drug possession will have to jump through more hoops to get food stamps or other taxpayer-funded assistance under a billbacked by the Senate Criminal Justice Committee on Wednesday.
Senate Bill 1128 would require anyone seeking state assistance who had been charged with a felony possession offense once the bill becamelaw -- July 1, if the bill is signed into law -- to first complete a state-approved substance-abuse treatment program.
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Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam joined with the Florida Department of State and the Society of American Foresters in commemorating one of the nations oldest steam engines, the Luraville Locomotive, at a ceremony Wednesday at the Florida Department of Agriculture Conner Complex in Tallahassee that dedicated a newly constructed train depot and state historic site marker.
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Few people doubt that standout performances by Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum in the final debate before Florida's Jan. 31 primary helped both men's campaigns -- and may even have saved Santorum's.
Few doubt that Newt Gingrich's miserable performance on the same stage (he looked like he had gas most of the time) hurt his once surging candidacy.
So, there's no doubt debates are important in the Republican nominating process. But is doing them according to mainstream media rules, with mainstream media moderators, really such a good idea?
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The Westboro Baptist Church, and anyone else who for some reason desires to protest a military funeral, would have to stand at least 500 feet away under a bill that received unanimous support Wednesday from the Senate Criminal Justice Committee.
SB 632 by Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto, R-Fort Myers, expands on a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that allowed a 100-foot distance between military protesters and those involved with a military funeral.
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Amid a sea of students in yellow shirts, Gov. Rick Scott pushed legislators to advance bills on Wednesday that would require county school districts to loosen their tight grasp on construction money needed to build charter schools.
You know that the future of our state is 100 percent tied to your education. If you dont get a great education there are not going to be any jobs, Scott said during the 2012 School Choice Rally in the Capitol Courtyard.
Why would companies want to build their businesses here in Florida if we dont have a great education system?
Before the Presidents Day congressional recess, both houses of Congress voted to pass legislation extending a 2 percent cut in the amount employees must pay into Social Security.
