A number of the new Florida laws going in effect Wednesday involve public-records exemptions, including one to allow some university boards to meet in private to discuss donors and research funding.
Sunshine Law
Appeals Court Orders City Government to Release “Shade” Meeting Transcript
In a highly critical opinion, an appeals court Wednesday ordered the city of St. Pete Beach to release a transcript of a closed-door discussion about the settlement of a lawsuit.
Sheriff’s Deputies Never Wrote an Incident Report After Fatally Shooting Palm Coast Man
Details of the December 2012 fatal shooting of 32-year-old Troy Gordon on Brownstone Lane in Palm Coast, at a time when Don Fleming was still sheriff, emerged in a court case today that revealed how a union could trump sheriff’s policy even in grave shooting incidents.
How Two Council Members, Out of View, Got WNZF to Back-Pedal on Synthetic Marijuana
What was behind what sounded like a retraction on synthetic marijuana by WNZF’s David Ayres on his Free For All Friday show last week? Private discussions between Palm Coast Council member Bill McGuire with Mayor Jon Netts, and a letter Netts wrote Ayres, that the council never discussed openly–even as the council has yet to vote finally on the matter.
Florida House Candidate Bardley Maxwell Wants Government Employees’ Salaries Kept Secret
Florida House candidate Bradley Maxwell wants to state workers’ salaries and benefits kept secret. He also wants personnel files kept sealed from public view. Maxwell is challenging two-term incumbent state Rep. Michelle Rehwinkel Vasilinda, D-Tallahassee.
3 Flagler Beach Commissioners Attend Closed-Door County Staff Meeting, Clouding Sunshine
Commissioners Jane Mealy, Kim Carney and Mayor Linda Provencher attended the July 12 county staff meeting on beach renourishment with the U.S. Corps of Engineers, which was closed to the public. Dennis McDonald, a candidate for the county commission, raised issues with the potential sunshine violation.