A bill was approved by the House panel that gives judges discretion in deciding whether to award attorney fees in public-records lawsuits. The bill was created to stop people who flood governments with public records requests just so they can file lawsuits, but may decrease the state's level of government transparency.

Attorneys for a convicted murderer scheduled to be put to death on March 17 are asking the Florida Supreme Court to delay the execution, arguing that some records were destroyed.

During the final meeting of Gov. Rick Scott's Commission on Healthcare and Hospital Funding on Tuesday, Sen. Don Gaetz said proposals about expanding health care coverage for uninsured Floridians could be dead for years. Gaetz added that lawmakers are now focused on "second tier" health issues.

The Florida Supreme Court has refused to grant a stay in an execution scheduled for next month but ordered oral arguments to hear about the potential impact of a seminal U.S. Supreme Court decision this week striking down the state's death penalty sentencing structure.

TALLAHASSEE — Five dispensing organizations selected by state officials, including one from Alachua County, promised lawmakers Wednesday they would meet a deadline next month to get medical-marijuana production off the ground, despite legal challenges that could threaten their licenses. The Senate Regulated Industries Committee received updates from the state Office of Compassionate …

The light is fading for one of two solar-energy initiatives trying to get on Florida's 2016 ballot. The "Floridians for Solar Choice" coalition, remains about 400,000 petitions short of qualifying for the 2016 ballot and is in the midst of a contract dispute with a petition-gathering firm.

A proposed constitutional amendment led by the group People United For Medical Marijuana, was unanimously approved to be placed on the Nov. 16 by the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday. Supreme Court justices said the proposal met legal tests that includes a clearly worded title and summary.

The Florida Department of Health received 13 petitions from nurseries challenging the medical-marijuana licenses that were granted to five nurseries. Loop’s Nursery, Plants of Ruskin, Tornello Landscape, Redlands Nursery, Dewar's, and McCrory's Sunny Hill Nursery on Monday joined three other nurseries that filed petitions late last week challenging the awarded licenses. The nurseries filed the petitions because they believe the department did not allow them to defend their presentations before the licenses were awarded.

Perkins, TropiFlora and Gainesville-based San Felasco Nurseries, which were rejected by health officials for medical-marijuana licenses, are challenging the licenses granted to Florida's first "dispensing organizations." The deadline for appeals is Monday.

The outlook for production of Florida oranges, the state's signature crop, continues to drop. For the second consecutive month, the Florida orange-harvest forecast for the 2015-2016 growing season was adjusted down Wednesday by the National Agricultural Statistics Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.