Gov. Rick Scott signed an executive order requiring drug testing, and compared the testing of employees to the drug-testing of welfare recipients, a proposals lawmakers also approved unanimously in a Senate committee Tuesday.
Ron DeSantis
Floridaâs Deficit Grows by $135 Million, To $3.75 Billion, As Growth Remains Anemic
State revenue forecasters essentially tacked about $135 million dollars onto a budget shortfall that already stood at $3.62 billion, forcing lawmakers to consider deeper cuts as they craft a spending plan for the budget year that begins July 1.
Teacher Tenure Out, Merit Pay In: Legislature Whips First Bill of 2011 to Gov. Scott
The Legislature passed the biggest change to the stateâs education system in more than 10 years, sending to Gov. Rick Scott a bill tying teacher salaries to test scores and ending multi-year contracts.
All Business All the Time as Gov. Scott
Tells Lawmakers: âDonât Blinkâ
Scott mentioned the word âjobâ or âjobsâ 31 times in the 27-minute State of the State speech, lauded privatization, vouchers for private and parochial schools and the needs and virtues of business.
Rally Draws Out Teachers, Supporters and Honks. Lawmakers May Not Be Listening.
Some 150 teachers and other school employees and supporters lined Belle Terre Parkway in Palm Coast, one of dozens such rallies across the state, hours before Gov. Rick Scott rebuffed them by telling lawmakers: âDonât blink.â
State of the State Tonight: Scott and Legislatureâs GOP Keep Their War CivilâSo Far
Donât expect Gov. Rick Scott to deviate much from his frequent message as he delivers his first State of the State speech Tuesday night before a joint session of the Legislature: Budget cuts, tax cuts, potshots at Washington rather than his own dissenting GOP.
Flagler Schools Prepare to âAwake the Stateâ As Night of Long Budget Knives Falls on Florida
As school employees prepared to demonstrate against massive state budget cuts on Tuesday, the Flagler School Board got closer to proposing cuts of its own that would eliminate classes and up to four dozen teachers.
End of the Line for Rail Brawl As Supreme Court Ruling Sends $2.4 Billion Elsewhere
The Florida Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Gov. Scott could not be bound to spend $2.4 billion in federal high-speed rail money. That money will now go to New York or California.
Governor and Senatorsâ High-Speed Rail Brawl Crashes a Skeptical Florida Supreme Court
Judging from Justicesâ questions, the legislatorsâ case to force the governor to accept $2.4 billion in federal funding for the bullet train looked slim after Thursdayâs arguments before the high court.
Senators Against âKingâ Scott Face Off at Florida Supreme Court Over High-Speed Rail
Set for 3 p.m. Thursday, the Florida Supreme Court showdown over $2.4 billion in federal money underscores the divide between Gov. Rick Scott and the Republican-dominated Legislature ahead of next weekâs legislative session.