The Florida House and Senate ended the 2018 legislative session Sunday by passing a budget and a tax-cut package for the upcoming year. The session was largely dominated by the aftermath of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Broward County, sparking debate about state gun laws and school safety. Here's a recap of the big issues.
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Florida Gov. Rick Scott signed a far-reaching school-safety bill Friday that places new restrictions on guns, cementing his state's break with the National Rifle Association and decades of Republican thinking on gun control in the aftermath of the Parkland high school attack.
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All eyes are now on Republican Gov. Rick Scott to see if he'll sign the Florida legislature's narrowly approved response to last month's high school massacre of 17 people, a measure that isn't what he called for, falls short of what survivors demanded and challenges National Rifle Association orthodoxy.
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Florida school shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz has been formally charged with 17 counts of first-degree murder, which could mean a death sentence if he's convicted.
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Under SB 7026, teachers and coaches who aren’t exclusively in the classroom may undergo training to receive a school guardian certificate that would allow them to carry a concealed firearm on school campus.
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If signed, how would this legislative initiative affect Gainesville families and businesses, as well as the soda industry?
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The Florida House is expected Thursday to approve a measure that would allow law-enforcement officers to pull over people for texting while driving, but the brakes have been applied in the Senate.
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A Florida Senate bill would raise the penalty for each stolen hive from $5,000 to $10,000. In some parts of the state, beekeepers had more than $100,000 worth of hives stolen.
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The Senate held a hearing today for Gov. Rick Scott’s three proposed bills regarding school safety, firearm safety and public records as a part of his $450 million school safety plan.
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A call for change has emerged after 17 students were killed in the Parkland shooting on Feb. 14. And while gun control is at the forefront of the discussion, a second topic has surfaced both nationally and within Alachua County: the need to address mental health resources for high school students.
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WUFT News News and Public Media for North Central Florida from the University of Florida in Gainesville