TALLAHASSEE — A measure that moved forward Tuesday in the House would allow pregnant women convicted of felonies to seek to delay going to prison for up to three months after giving birth — a move that one supporter said will “save babies.” The House Justice Appropriations Subcommittee voted 14-1 …
Read More »GRU, other utility companies face possibility of more oversight
TALLAHASSEE — Florida House members Tuesday raised the possibility of giving state regulators more oversight of municipal utilities. Members of the House Energy, Communications & Cybersecurity Subcommittee repeatedly touched on the issue as they received presentations about the Florida Public Service Commission and the state Office of Public Counsel. The …
Read More »DeSantis asks universities for transgender care information
TALLAHASSEE — Continuing to target treatment for transgender people, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration is requiring state universities to provide information from the past five years about services they have provided to people with gender dysphoria, according to documents released Wednesday. Chris Spencer, director of the governor’s Office of Planning and …
Read More »DeSantis to scrutinize higher ed programs in Florida colleges and universities
TALLAHASSEE — As Gov. Ron DeSantis targets “trendy ideology” in higher education, his administration is asking state colleges and universities for information about resources they are putting into activities related to diversity, equity and inclusion and critical race theory. DeSantis has made the fight against critical race theory — which …
Read More »DeSantis focuses on ‘freedom’ to start second term
TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis was sworn in Tuesday for a second term, offering a theme of “freedom” in Florida to counter “faddish ideology” nationally. Speaking on the steps of the Old Capitol, the state’s 46th governor balanced some campaign-style rhetoric and generic policy stances with the confidence of a …
Read More »UF professors say high-profile lawsuit now ‘moot’
TALLAHASSEE — Saying the case is “moot,” University of Florida professors are asking a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit that challenged a controversial conflict-of-interest policy that gave school administrators discretion over allowing faculty members to serve as expert witnesses in litigation. The university adopted a revised policy in October …
Read More »By the numbers: County abortion totals in Florida during 2022
A new state report shows that, as of Dec. 2, Florida totaled 68,217 abortions this year. That was up from 61,956 abortions as of Nov. 1 and 57,067 abortions as of Oct. 4. Statewide, there were 79,817 in 2021 and 74,868 in 2020. Here are the counties with the most …
Read More »Report: Florida’s new insurance changes will help, but it’s going to take time
TALLAHASSEE — Florida lawmakers last week made changes that will provide “much needed relief” in the troubled property-insurance system, but effects of the legislation won’t be immediate, the AM Best financial-rating agency said in a new report. The report pointed to parts of the new law designed to curb litigation, …
Read More »DeSantis takes aim at teacher union dues
Gov. Ron DeSantis has signaled that he will make a priority of passing a long-debated proposal that would prevent teachers from having union dues deducted from their paychecks.
Read More »Flood maps fall short in Florida, researchers say
TALLAHASSEE — After crashing ashore in September in Southwest Florida, Hurricane Ian caused flooding across the state. Now, Florida faces more flooding as Tropical Storm Nicole is poised to hit the East Coast and move up the state. But North Carolina State University researchers say federal flood maps underestimate the …
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