TALLAHASSEE — After Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a major elections bill Wednesday, legal battles immediately began about new restrictions on voter-registration groups. Organizations such as the League of Women Voters of Florida, the NAACP and Hispanic Federation filed three federal lawsuits arguing that the restrictions violate First Amendment rights and …
Read More »NAACP issues travel advisory for Florida: “open hostility” toward African Americans
The NAACP issued a travel advisory for Florida Saturday, citing recent legislation signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. The civil rights organization describes recent legislation as a “relentless and systemic attack on democracy and civil rights” against African Americans, LGBTQ+ individuals and people of color. “We will not allow our rights …
Read More »The Point, May 10, 2023: Wrapping up the 2023 Florida legislative session
Here's a look back at how over a dozen prominent pieces of legislation settled.
Read More »Florida’s new proposed budget hits record $117 billion
Flush with cash, Florida lawmakers on Tuesday released a $117 billion budget for the fiscal year that will start July 1. The record budget would be about $7 billion larger than the spending plan for the current fiscal year. House and Senate negotiators finished working out details Monday. Tuesday’s release …
Read More »‘Stop being racist:’ Tickets for loud music nearly 3 times more likely for Black drivers under new Florida law
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Darius Jermaine Ned Thomas Jr. was driving west on the Florida parkway in Jacksonville that runs along the St. Johns River, listening to music on a Friday afternoon in August in his Chevrolet Malibu sedan, when a sheriff’s deputy in a marked SUV pulled him over. “When …
Read More »Florida LGBTQ+ lawmaker to GOP: ‘I’m literally trying to exist’
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — State Sen. Shevrin Jones can often be seen at the Florida Capitol greeting staff and colleagues with a smile or laugh, but when he’s alone it’s a different story. “The outward expression is to show God’s love. That’s what I was taught,” said Jones, a Democrat. But, …
Read More »Florida lawmakers pass elections bill, setting up change to the ‘resign-to-run’ law
The law says any state officeholder who “qualifies for federal public office must resign from the office he or she presently holds if the terms, or any part thereof, run concurrently with each other.”
Read More »Monorail becomes the latest target in the Disney feud
TALLAHASSEE — Disney’s iconic monorail system would face periodic state inspections, as Republican lawmakers continue to back Gov. Ron DeSantis in his clash with the entertainment giant. Voting along party lines, the Republican-controlled Senate Fiscal Policy Committee on Tuesday amended a transportation bill (SB 1250) to apply Department of Transportation …
Read More »Upcoming city meeting to provide updates on Thelma A. Boltin Center
While the Thelma A. Boltin Center has been closed off from the public since 2020, Gainesville residents can expect to hear an update on the building’s restoration plans and costs in an upcoming General Policy Committee meeting. The meeting, scheduled for Thursday at 1 p.m. at the City Hall Auditorium, …
Read More »Some DeSantis allies feel growing urgency for him to launch 2024 bid
Inside the Florida statehouse, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Republican allies say they’re working “at warp speed” to finish their legislative business. In South Carolina and Nevada, early voting states that are critical in a presidential primary, his operatives are moving quickly to build out a political team that is essentially a campaign in waiting. …
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