The state economists sitting as the Revenue Estimating Conference projected Thursday that next years revenues will not grow enough to overcome a $2 billion budget shortfall.
House Speaker Dean Cannon, R-Winter Park, and Rep. Denise Grimsley, R-Sebring, who chairs the House Appropriations Committee, released the following statements on the projections Thursday:
Cannon:
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Efforts to have voters approve slot machines in Gadsden and Washington counties may not count.
But the pari-mutuels seeking to expand their gambling offerings dispute an opinion issued by the attorney general Thursday.
Attorney General Pam Bondi released an opinion Thursday that the Department of Business and Professional Regulations is not authorized to issue a slot machine license to pari-mutuel facilities even if countywide votes allow such an expansion of gambling.
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He may perform his heroics these days in a Denver Broncos jersey, but the most talked-about player in the National Football League is likely to remain a Florida brand his whole gridiron career.
Quarterback Tim Tebow was a University of Florida Gator before he was the darling of the Mile High City. And what a Gator.
State economists left their revenue estimate for the next 18 months all but unchanged Thursday, prompting renewed calls from the House for lawmakers to finish their budget on time despite the Senate leader's hesitance to move quickly.
The new estimate changes the overall projection by $26.1 million -- about 1 percent of the projected $2 billion budget shortfall and an increase of 0.05 percent in projected revenue. It includes an increase of $46 million in the estimate for the current year and a drop of $19.9 million for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
The long odds for an E-Verify immigration bill appeared to get longer Thursday as House leaders assigned House Bill 1315 to be heard by four committees.
That's a lot of stops in a session that's supposed to run just eight weeks.
The measure, sponsored by Rep. Gayle Harrell, R-Port St. Lucie, must clear the House Government Operations Subcommittee, the Business and Consumer Affairs Subcommittee, the Government Operations Appropriations Subcommittee and the State Affairs Committee.
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With the prison population down for the third consecutive year, the state will begin to close the first of seven state prisons and four work camps by the end of this month.
The move is part of a statewide consolidation plan that is projected to save $14.9 million this year and $75.8 million in the next fiscal year.
The Florida Department of Corrections plan calls for the elimination of 1,293 full-time employee positions, from correctional officers to medical and kitchen staff, and will further impact numerous contractors providing services to the facilities.
U.S. Senate candidate George LeMieux lashed GOP rival Rep. Connie Mack and Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson in a speech to a tea party group Thursday.
"You don't send career politicians to fix Washington," LeMieux told the Indian River County Tea Party in Vero Beach. "I would serve a term or two and go home."
Characterizing Mack's private-sector experience as "a market outreach coordinator for Hooters," LeMieux renewed his call for term limits and noted that he lives and works in Florida.
The Florida Family Association accused a Tampa-based Islamic activist of sending mixed signals on terrorism and questioned the propriety of him speaking to high school classes.
But Hassan Shibly, director of the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, says there should be no confusion or concern.
In a statement Thursday, FFA alleged that "Shibly opposed government detention of suspected terrorists" and that his "two-sided representations regarding last week's Tampa terrorist arrest illustrate CAIRs conflict with the truth."
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WASHINGTON -- There are two stories coming out of New Hampshire. The big story is Mitt Romney. The bigger one is Ron Paul.
On Thursday, Republican presidential hopeful U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas named Miami GOP activist Emiliano Antunez to his national Hispanic outreach team.
The only presidential candidate of any party that is addressing the issues that truly matter, said Antunez of Paul.
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