With a third of the annual regular legislative session already gone, a bill that would close gaps in access to health care coverage for Florida children has passed just one committee and appears in danger of not passing.
Florida
Banning Internet Cafes While Gambling on Guns
Florida is quick on the trigger to ban Internet cafes, which have never killed anyone, but is doing nothing to rein in the state’s worship of guns, while 191 people have been killed by firearms in this state alone since the Newtown massacre.
Exonerated Death Row Inmates Tell Flagler Beach Group of an Enduring Florida Injustice
In turns moving, startling and informative, a day-long workshop on the death penalty in Flagler Beach, featuring two exonerated men, urged an assembly of 60 to more actively get involved in a movement to abolish capital punishment in Florida.
Florida House Votes to Boost Campaign Donation Ceiling in State and Local Elections
The proposal cleared the chamber on a 75-39 vote, as four Democrats broke with their party to support the GOP-backed measure. The bill would boost contribution limits, allowing each donor to give $5,000 per election to a statewide candidate and $3,000 per election to local and legislative candidates.
Latest Salvo in Tallahassee’s War on Local Governments: Higher Lawsuit Limits
Under current law, the highest lawsuit payout by a local government is between $200,000 or $300,000, depending on how many people are involved in an incident — totals that would go to $1 million and $1.5 million under the House bill.
Parent Trigger Bill: A Trojan Horse of Corporate Charter Schools
The so-called parent-trigger bill does not empower parents. Rather, it empowers out-of-state corporate interests and their lobbyists to siphon Florida tax dollars away from our already underfunded public school system, argues Paula Dockery.
Second Poll in 2 Days Shows Crist Routing Scott as Governor’s Low Approval Drags Down GOP
The latest Quinnipiac University poll shows Crist beating Scott by 16 points and other Republicans losing as well as Scott’s unpopularity appears to be dragging down the GOP brand.
Parent Trigger Bill That Would Boost Conversions to Charter Schools Nearing Law
The measure would allow parents to petition their school board to adopt a specific turnaround option for any school that draws an “F” on state report cards for two straight years.
Furloughs Hit Florida National Guard and Anti-Drug Programs as Sequester Spreads
The furloughs of 993 uniformed guardsmen, which will effectively cut their pay 20 percent, will carry through the wildfire season and into the heart of hurricane season and could affect the Guard’s ability to respond to disasters.
The Death Penalty Comes to Flagler Beach: Saturday Workshop Takes On “Broken System”
The workshop between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday, March 23, at Santa Maria Del Mar’s Community Hall, will feature former death row inmates Herman Lindsey (exonerated in 2006) and Seth Penalver (2012), along with several other death penalty experts and advocates for the repeal of Florida’s capital punishment.