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Florida Legislature

New College’s Descent from Stellar Florida College to ‘Eugenicon’

October 20, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 12 Comments

florida new college

Steve Sailer, a “eugenicon” who believes Black people are genetically inferior to whites, race is biological, interracial marriage is wrong, and “core Americans” are by definition white, has been invited to speak at one of New College’s “Socratic Stage Dialogues.” Socrates himself would not know whether to laugh, cry, or take an even bigger swig of hemlock.

Federal Appeals Court Backs Florida Law Cracking Down on Protesters, Overturning Injunction

October 8, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 2 Comments

Gov. Ron DeSantis's crackdown on protest was a reaction to the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020. (© FlaglerLive)

After seeking help from the Florida Supreme Court on the meaning of the word “riot,” a federal appeals court Monday overturned an injunction against a 2021 state law aimed at cracking down on violent demonstrations. A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the law is not unconstitutionally vague and overbroad and would not affect peaceful protesters. Civil-rights groups contended the measure could lead to peaceful protesters facing criminal charges when demonstrations turn violent.

Judge Refuses to Block Florida Government From Disseminating What Critics Call Abortion ‘Misinformation’

October 1, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 9 Comments

Judge Jonathan Sjostrom in a still from a 2021 Marsy's Law for Florida video.

Saying courts “must trust the people to decide what information is important to them,” a Leon County circuit judge refused to issue a temporary injunction to block the state Agency for Health Administration from disseminating what critics call “misinformation” about a proposed constitutional amendment on abortion rights. Judge Jonathan Sjostrom rejected arguments by Floridians Protecting Freedom, a political committee sponsoring the proposed amendment, and wrote that the case is “not justiciable by courts because political power is reserved to the people in an election by means of each ballot.”

Ban on Homeless Sleeping in Most Public Places Among 34 New Florida Laws Going in Effect Oct. 1

September 24, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 6 Comments

homeless ban

Nearly three dozen new state laws will take effect Oct. 1, including a contentious measure that will limit where homeless people can sleep. Other measures include creating a license plate for Parrot Heads living the life of the late singer Jimmy Buffett and requirements about flood disclosures for home buyers. In all, 34 laws that passed during the 2024 legislative session will take effect, with the homeless changes (HB 1365) drawing the most attention.

Senator Who Sponsored Vacation Rental Bill Deregulating Local Control Says He Won’t Do So in Next Session

September 19, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 2 Comments

A vacation rental property in Flagler Beach, where local regulations have been grandfathered in all attempts to deregulate local control since 2014. (© FlaglerLive)

Florida lawmakers may once again attempt to pass legislation tightening regulation of short-term vacation rentals next year but, if they do, the state senator who has sponsored those bills during the past two sessions won’t be the one carrying it.

Property Owners Opposed to Public’s ‘Customary Use’ Of Beach Appeal Ruling in Case with Implications for Flagler

September 11, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 6 Comments

customary use beach

Property owners are challenging a ruling by U.S. District Judge Virginia Hernandez Covington that said the town had adequately shown a history of “customary use” by the public of parts of the beach that are privately owned, to let the public keep using those beaches.

Legislative Analysts Warn Florida’s Surpluses Could Turn to Billion-Dollar Deficits as Federal Aid Dries Up

September 6, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

House Appropriations Chairman Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach, expressed optimism about the state's finances.

While there are numerous caveats, the picture could go from a $2.09 billion surplus during the upcoming 2025-2026 fiscal year to a potential deficit of $2.826 billion in the 2026-2027 fiscal year and a potential deficit of $6.941 billion in the 2027-2028 fiscal year.

Abortions Down 13% in First 8 Months After Florida’s Restrictions Became Law

September 5, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 10 Comments

Aortion protesters at the state Capitol in 1985. (Florida Memory)

The number of abortions reported in Florida during the first eight months of this year was nearly 13 percent lower than during the same period in 2022 and 2023, as a law preventing abortions after six weeks of pregnancy has led to fewer procedures.

The “School Choice” Swindle Is Demolishing Public Schools

August 16, 2024 | Pierre Tristam | 73 Comments

Paul Renner channeled his inner Jerry Falwell school choice. (© FlaglerLive)

“School choice” is an orchestrated demolition of public schools and the social contract. The focus-group euphemism masks the thieving of tax dollars to subsidize private schools, transforming what was once an aspiration of fringe Christian and anti-government militants into state doctrine. Flagler County schools are losing close to $11 million this year to “choice.”

Senator Proposes Banning Smoking in All Florida Public Places

August 15, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 6 Comments

banning smoking florida

While he supports a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow recreational use of marijuana, state Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, said Thursday he will propose legislation that would ban smoking of all types in public places.

Religious Leaders Warn Schools of Liability Dangers of Voluntary Chaplain Program

August 14, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 2 Comments

From left to right Revs. Joe Parramore, James Golden and Rachel Gunter Shapard photographed on Jan. 25, 2024. Golden and Gunter Shapard spoke against HB 931, which would authorize public and charter school districts to allow chaplains in schools. (Photo by Jackie Llanos/Florida Phoenix)

School districts have shown little interest in welcoming volunteer chaplains to serve in their facilities, an initiative recently permitted by the Legislature that, according to the ACLU, could create legal liability for schools and risk creating an environment of “religious coercion and indoctrination of students.” For school boards and districts that may move to implement the program, religious and civil rights leaders have recommended approaches they believe would best protect children.

Producer of Lab-Grown Poultry Sues Florida Over ‘Cultivated Meat’ Ban

August 13, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 2 Comments

lab made meat cultivated

A California-based producer of lab-grown poultry filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday challenging a new Florida ban on selling or manufacturing “cultivated” meat. UPSIDE Foods, Inc., contends, in part, that the law violates a constitutional prohibition on favoring in-state businesses over out-of-state competitors.

After Lawmaker Complains of Alleged Anti-Israel Bias, Florida Universities Are Ordered to Scan Materials

August 12, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 5 Comments

Rep. Randy Fine, R-Palm Bay. (Florida House)

Florida university presidents have been instructed to scan their syllabi for material deemed antisemitic or exhibiting anti-Israeli bias following concerns raised by Rep. Randy Fine. Once a course has been reviewed and all instances of antisemitism and anti-Israel bias have been flagged, universities must report their findings to the chancellor’s office.

To Succeed Travis Hutson, Tom Leek’s Battle of the Fliers with David Shoar Is Among Key Florida Senate Races

August 6, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

Tom Leek. (© FlaglerLive)

The Republican primary for Senate District 7–made up of St. Johns, Putnam, Flagler and part of Volusia counties–has drawn a flood of money and endorsements as House Appropriations Chairman Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach, former St. Johns County Sheriff David Shoar and financial adviser Gerry James seek to represent the heavily Republican district. Term-limited Sen. Travis Hutson, R-St. Augustine, cannot seek re-election in the district.

Florida Officials Want Supreme Court to Approve a Manipulated ‘Impact Statement’ on Abortion Amendment

August 3, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 4 Comments

Rep. Paul Renner. (© FlaglerLive)

Lawyers for Senate President Kathleen Passidomo and House Speaker Paul Renner on Friday urged the Florida Supreme Court to reject an attempt to invalidate a revised “financial impact statement” that would appear on the November ballot with a proposed constitutional amendment on abortion rights. A state panel made controversial changes to the financial impact statement, which Floridians Protecting Freedom–leading efforts to pass the constitutional amendment–wants invalidated.

Florida Has the Highest Rate of Heat-Related Illnesses, Report Finds

July 23, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

florida heat dangers

More than 5.7 million Floridians are vulnerable to extreme heat, according to a report from the Florida Policy Institute, which called upon state lawmakers to repeal a new law that prohibits local governments from enacting heat protections for outdoor workers.

Sales Tax Is Lifted On Slew of Recreational Items For All of July

June 25, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

florida sales tax holiday recreational

Sales taxes won’t be collected in July on many supplies for boating, fishing and camping and tickets purchased for live music events, sporting events, fairs, festivals, theater performances and movies. Last year, the state offered the tax holiday for three months, but it will be limited to July this year.

Palm Coast Reels Back Talk of Firing Its Lobbyists as Southern Group’s Emissaries Deliver Veto-Proof Defense

June 25, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

Laura Boehmer and Oscar Anderson of Southern Group, Palm Coast's lobbying firm, in a screen capture from one of the firm's videos. Boehmer and Anderson appeared before the Palm Coast City Council this morning.

A presentation to the Palm Coast City Council today by its Southern Group lobbyists was a response to an inquisition, albeit an inquisition that, by the time the pair of lobbyists had sat down in person in front of the council, had already been sharply dialed down to a sort of Marriage Encounter session. The council critics’ aim was no longer to criticize or threaten dissolution but to learn, recalibrate and grow, especially as the lobbyists twice reminded them of Palm Coast’s record appropriation hauls of the last two years.

DeSantis Protects Left-Lane Laggards and Residents Who Shoot Bears in ‘Stand Your Ground’ Encounters

June 23, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

The killing of bears is about to increase in Florida. (FWC)

Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed a controversial measure that will bolster self-defense arguments for people who kill bears on their property, while vetoing a bill that would have prevented motorists from cruising in the left lanes of highways.

Florida Supreme Court Finds No Threat to ‘Peaceful’ Protest in DeSantis Restrictions on Protesters

June 20, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 6 Comments

rioters or protesters

Rejecting arguments that the law is ambiguous, the Florida Supreme Court said Thursday that peaceful protesters are not threatened by a measure that Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Legislature passed in 2021 to crack down on violent demonstrations.

Social Media and Gun Laws Await Supreme Court Rulings, with Big Implications for Florida

June 17, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

Anybody's platforms. (© FlaglerLive)

The social-media ruling likely will decide whether Florida can carry out a 2021 state law that placed restrictions on platforms such as Facebook and X. The gun ruling in a Texas case could help determine the fate of a 2018 Florida law that barred people under age 21 from buying rifles and shotguns.

Integrity Florida Calls on Governor DeSantis to Veto Senate Bill 7014

June 17, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 5 Comments

Wish lists have an advantage in a one-party state. (Facebook)

This bill threatens to undermine the very principles that our government should uphold. The bill includes provisions that would restrict the ability of citizens and watchdog organizations like Integrity Florida to hold elected officials accountable.

Florida Argues in Court It Is Free to Censor or Control State-School Professors’ Academic Freedom in Classrooms

June 15, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 14 Comments

The University of South Florida. (USF Facebook page)

The state of Florida is free to forbid college professors from criticizing the governor in the classroom, an attorney argued on behalf of the state during an appellate court hearing over the Stop Woke Act — adding that those professors are free to seek work elsewhere if they don’t like a legislature-controlled curriculum.  Academic freedom and when the government can insert itself into the classroom were focal points for a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit panel.

Federal Judge Stops Florida’s Law Banning or Restricting Transgender Care, Calling It Discriminatory

June 12, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

For now. But the ruling is unlikely to survive an appeal to the right-leaning 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. (© FlaglerLive)

A federal judge on Tuesday ruled that a 2023 Florida law and regulations prohibiting the use of puberty blockers and hormone therapy to treat children for gender dysphoria and making it harder for trans adults to access care are unconstitutionally discriminatory and were motivated by “animus” toward transgender people.

Judge Blocks Florida Law Requiring Cities’ Elected to Disclose Same Financial Details as County and State Officials

June 11, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

personal finances municipal officials

A federal judge has blocked a 2023 Florida law that required municipal elected officials to disclose detailed information about their personal finances, ruling that the law likely violated First Amendment rights. U.S. District Judge Melissa Damian on Monday issued a preliminary injunction, siding with municipal officials throughout the state who challenged the law. The decision came three weeks before a July 1 deadline for filing the information.

In Florida and Elsewhere, New GOP Rules Hostile to Voter Registration Threaten Fines and Criminal Penalties

June 9, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 50 Comments

Roxanne Perret, an organizer with People Power for Florida, registers Mark Wendell to vote at a May festival in Orlando. Third-party voter registration groups have been threatened with fines and workers with jail time if they violate new state laws.

Republican lawmakers in Florida , Alabama, Georgia, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, and Texas have enacted a variety of voter registration laws over the past four years. The measures add new requirements around registering and communicating with voters and threaten hefty penalties for violations. The stated goal of the new laws is to prevent fraud, but in the absence of any evidence of more than very rare fraud some voting rights groups contend their real purpose is to dampen participation by likely Democratic voters.

Sprawling Vacation Rentals Becoming a Nuisance to Palm Coast Residents. City’s Answer: ‘Our Hands Are Tied.’

June 6, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 49 Comments

A property on Fircrest Lane in Palm COast advertised as a short-term rental that can sleep 12 people. (Google)

As resident after resident complained about short-term renters next door–the noise, the partying, the traffic, the garbage, the unexpected–the Palm Coast City Council chambers Tuesday evening sounded more like a scene transplanted from the County Commission a decade ago, or legislative committees in Tallahassee every year since. But the legislature just passed a new law that forbids cities like Palm Coast from imposing stricter regulations on vacation rentals than they would on permanent residents.

DeSantis Signs Bills Adding Judges and Revising “Live Local Act”

May 16, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

new judges florida

Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday signed 11 bills, including a measure that will increase the number of circuit-court and county judges and a bill that will revise a major housing law, known as the “Live Local Act,” that passed in 2023.

Judge Rules Unconstitutional Part of Florida Law Forbidding Non-Citizens from Gathering Petitions

May 16, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 14 Comments

It's much harder to find petition-gatherers. (Erin M McCuskey)

A federal judge Wednesday issued a final decision blocking part of a 2023 Florida elections law that placed new restrictions on voter-registration groups, including preventing non-U.S. citizens from “collecting or handling” registration applications.

Bacardi Jackson , New Florida ACLU Leader, Points to ‘Urgency of Now’ at ‘Deeply Disturbing’ Juncture

May 14, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 4 Comments

Bacardi Jackson by "The Embrace," the Hank Willis Thomas sculpture on Boston Common in Boston. (Instagram)

Bacardi Jackson, a veteran litigator seeped in civil-rights advocacy, took the leadership of of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida on Monday amid a growing number of challenges to laws passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature and signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. Jackson views her new position as an opening to spur action at a critical juncture in the history of the state and the nation.

Florida Law Restricting Property Ownership By Nationals of 7 Countries Draws 2nd Discrimination Lawsuit

May 6, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

A Florida law forbidding certain property ownership by nationals of seven countries harkens back to the days of housing discrimination. (Florida Memory)

Almost exactly a year after Florida lawmakers and Gov. Ron DeSantis approved a measure to restrict property ownership by people from China and six other countries, housing and real-estate groups Monday filed a federal lawsuit alleging it is discriminatory. The lawsuit, filed in Miami, contends that the law violates the federal Fair Housing Act and part of the Florida Constitution.

Florida’s 6-Week Abortion ban Goes in Effect Wednesday. Here’s What It Means for Patients and the South.

April 29, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 16 Comments

More than 25,000 women traveled to Florida for an abortion over the past five years, most from states like Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi with little or no access to abortion. Hundreds traveled from as far as Texas. Starting on May 1, Florida’s 6-week ban goes in effect. The ban could be short-lived if 60% of Florida voters in November approve a constitutional amendment adding the right to an abortion.

Signing Bill Inviting Chaplains Into Public Schools as Counselors, DeSantis Scoffs at Challenges and Church State Wall

April 18, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 10 Comments

ron desantis chaplains

The state won’t allow satanists to take advantage of a new law allowing religious chaplains to serve as counselors in public schools for students whose parents approve, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday while signing the legislation. The governor also predicted the state would prevail if the new law draws a legal challenge over separation of church and state concerns.

DeSantis Signs Education Bill Controlling Book Challenges and Broadening Charter School Takeovers

April 16, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 16 Comments

John Green's "Looking for Alaska" was challenged in Flagler County schools last year. It survived at the time. It may not have survived since. (© FlaglerLive)

After more than 1,200 objections were filed to school-library books and other materials last school year, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday signed a bill that will limit challenges by some people. The wide-ranging bill (HB 1285) also includes making changes designed to ease the process of charter schools taking over operations at traditional public schools that lag in performance.

Civilian Oversight Boards Are Now Prohibited from Investigating Police Misconduct in Florida

April 15, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 11 Comments

desantis ban civilian oversight boards

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two bills last week that would prohibit civilian oversight boards from investigating police misconduct and stop people from getting too close to first responders doing their jobs.

Rest Easy: Florida Law Erases and Bans All References to Climate Change

April 14, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 53 Comments

climate change sunsets in florida

You probably think Ron DeSantis and the yahoos, grifters, simps, dolts, and dunderheads who populate the Florida Legislature are collectively incapable of solving even one of the bazillion issues facing this state. But the Legislature has figured out how to fix climate change. Your bought-and-paid-for Legislature has delivered a bill that amends Florida statutes to delete all references to climate change. Thanks to them, climate change is gone. Erased. Kaputt. Ya no es. C’est fini.

Evading Usual Bill-Signing Spectacle, DeSantis Kills Local Efforts to Protect Workers from Florida’s Brutal Heat

April 14, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 54 Comments

Gov. Ron DeSantis has quietly signed into law a measure barring local governments from requiring employers to provide workers with basic protections like shade, accessible water, and breaks from the Florida’s scorching heat and humidity.

Yes, Efforts to Eliminate DEI Programs Are Rooted in Racism

April 13, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

new college dei florida racism

In the past year, a number of states have begun to dismantle their DEI programs. Alabama, Utah, Texas and Florida have all passed and signed into law anti-DEI legislation ranging from prohibiting diversity training to terminating all positions associated with DEI efforts. Florida lawmakers have restricted the teaching of what they call racially “divisive” subject matter in public schools, colleges and universities. Legislatures in more than two dozen additional states are considering similar measures.

DeSantis and Surgeon General Turn Fentanyl Bill-Signing Into Attack on Transgender Athletes

April 9, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 13 Comments

ladapo and desantis

Just moments after the governor said that he would sign two bills, one promoting opioid antagonists to prevent deaths from overdose and another boosting penalties for recklessly exposing first responders to fentanyl, Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo opened fire on athletic competitions that pit transgender women and girls against those who are biologically female.

6-Week Ban and Abortion-Rights Measure on November Ballot Could Boost Florida Democrats

April 3, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

abortion rights sign

Following a pair of blockbuster decisions by the Florida Supreme Court, Democrats are galvanizing around abortion as a “front and center” issue that they say could affect races up and down the ballot in November. Focus on the abortion issue exploded shortly after the Supreme Court overturned decades of precedent and triggered a 2023 law preventing abortions after six weeks. Critics maintain that the six-week restriction, which will take effect next month, amounts to a virtual ban on abortions.

You May Not Have An Abortion Past 6 Weeks in Florida. You May Vote To Restore Abortion Rights in November.

April 2, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 10 Comments

abortion waiting period

The Florida Supreme Court released two blockbuster rulings on abortion rights on Monday — one that within a few weeks will allow a ban on the procedure after six weeks’ gestation to take effect, and another allowing the voters to decide in November whether to amend the Florida Constitution to protect access to the procedure.

DeSantis Signs Off and Drinks Up: You Can Now Buy a 4-Gallon Bottle of Wine in Florida

March 28, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 14 Comments

Gov. Ron DeSantis at a bill signing ceremony at Wine Watch in Fort Lauderdale on March 28. (Screenshot from the Florida Channel)

Under current state law, wine distributors and manufacturers are allowed to sell wine to other distributors and manufacturers in containers of any size, but regular Floridians are prohibited from purchasing wine in containers larger than one gallon. Under the new law (HB 583), wine will be allowed for purchase up to 15 liters, which is 3.963 gallons, according to the legislation.

Lawsuit Challenges Constitutionality of Florida Law Restricting Employment for Chinese and Some Others

March 26, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 6 Comments

Two graduate students and a professor on Monday challenged the constitutionality of a 2023 state law that restricts employment of people from China and six other nations at Florida public universities and colleges. The challenge alleges, in part, that the law is unconstitutional because it is trumped by federal immigration laws.

DeSantis Signs Bill Restricting Children’s Social Media Accounts and Inviting Yet Another Lawsuit

March 25, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 9 Comments

House Speaker Paul Renner expressed confidence that a new social-media law will withstand a First Amendment challenge. Colin Hackley/File

With the state preparing for a legal challenge from the tech industry, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday signed a high-profile bill aimed at keeping children off social-media platforms. Paul Renner and other key supporters argue that social-media companies have created addictive platforms that harm children’s mental health and can lead to sexual predators communicating with minors. But critics, including tech-industry groups, argue the bill is unconstitutional and point to courts blocking similar legislation in other states.

Pressure Mounts on DeSantis to Veto Vacation Rental Bill as Flagler County’s Exception Draws Sneers

March 22, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

A sign captured in front of a home on Harbor Drive in Indian Rocks Beach on Jan 14, 2023 (credit: Mitch Perry)

A growing list of opponents have been inundating Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office with emails and phone calls to veto the vacation-rental bill that, after 10 years’ tries, succeeded in scaling back local regulation of the short-term rental industry–except in Flagler County, which got the favor of an exception thanks to Paul Renner, the house speaker and Palm Coast representative.

DeSantis Signs ‘Live Healthy’ Package Spending $1.5 billion to Bolster Health Care Programs

March 21, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

A radiation beamer at UF Shands hospital in Gainesville. (© FlaglerLive)

The plan focuses on retaining and attracting health care workers to the state, creating a loan program for innovative health care projects, establishing behavioral health teaching hospitals, and providing at-home and community-based services to Floridians with disabilities.

Florida Spring Break: Come for the Sunshine, Stay for the Measles.

March 17, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 23 Comments

Volusia County's tourism headquarters, combined with the local chamber of commerce, in DeLand, in 1937. (Florida Memory)

Too many dunderheads are buying what dangerous anti-vaxxers like Ron DeSantis and his pet quack Joseph Ladapo are selling, so the measles virus is roaring back in Florida as the governor basks in a series of retro-reactionary new laws, from the end of the DEI movement in state universities to the ban on local governments’ attempts to treat their workers humanely in the face of climate change–a pair of words disallowed in the governor’s administration.

DeSantis Says Undocumented Immigrants Will ‘Regret’ Coming to Florida as He Signs Harsher Penalties Into Law

March 16, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

Gov. Ron DeSantis stages a press conference in Winter Haven on March 15, 2024. Source: Screenshot/DeSantis Facebook

One bill doesn’t mention migrants specifically but imposes a mandatory 10-day jail sentence for a third or subsequent conviction for driving without a license or with a license that has been suspended, cancelled, or revoked. Another bumps criminal penalties for people who commit felonies after having been deported and returning to the United States.

Paul Renner Vaunts His Tenure as Speaker and the Millions He Steered to Flagler, But Evades Saying What’s Next

March 15, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 12 Comments

House Speaker Paul Renner, who has represented Flagler County for the past eeight years but is term-limited this year, at a Humane Society fund-raising event in Flagler in October 2022. (© FlaglerLive)

House Speaker Paul Renner, the Republican who has represented Palm Coast at the Legislature for the last eight years, spoke for the first time at length about the record $150 million in appropriations he helped steer toward Flagler County while boasting of a successful session that increased money “across the board” for roads, schools, health care and green spaces. But he remained mum about his future as his term-limited tenure ends this year.

Watchdog Groups Call on Gov. DeSantis to Veto Ethics Bill Restricting Investigations of Corruption

March 14, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 4 Comments

"Bosses of the Senate," Joseph Keppler's 1889 cartoon first published in Puck. (Wikimedia Commons)

A coalition of state watchdog groups have sent a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis, calling on him to veto an ethics bill that prohibits ethics commissions from pursuing any investigation of public officials or candidates for public office unless it comes from an individual “based on personal knowledge or information other than hearsay.”

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