PROGRESS FLORIDA IN THE NEWS
Sleep No More: Florida progressives are getting riled up. Can their efforts reverse the political tide?
By Mitch Perry
Creative Loafing Tampa
Excerpt: Ray Seaman, the online director for the group Progress Florida, came up with the slogan "Awake the State on March 8" after conversations with parents and teachers who wanted to protest the controversial teacher tenure bill SB 736 on the first day of the legislative session, which was March 8. That day there ended up being over 30 such protests.
FEATURED STORIES
Advocates Decry Fla. Budget For Children
By Margie Menzel
News Service of Florida
Advocates for children’s issues are looking to the 2012 election, vowing to hold Gov. Rick Scott and the Legislature accountable for cuts in the budget to services that help children.
APD struggles with budget
By Jim Saunders
News Service of Florida
Under heavy pressure from Gov. Rick Scott and lawmakers to stop running deficits, the Florida Agency for Persons with Disabilities is searching for ways to cut about $84 million in spending.
Scott disputes family council's take on prayer day
By Catherine Whittenburg
Tampa Tribune
Staff for Gov. Rick Scott have partially refuted a report that the governor is declaring a new day of prayer in Florida.
Nearly 100,000 state workers will start paying their pension contributions early
By Gary Fineout
The Florida Current
Florida’s pension plan overhaul -- which mandates that public employees pay 3 percent of their salaries to cover pension costs -- is not supposed to take effect until July 1.
A Federal Study Finds That Local Reporting Has Waned
By Jeremy W. Peters and Brian Stelter
New York Times
An explosion of online news sources in recent years has not produced a corresponding increase in reporting, particularly quality local reporting, a federal study of the media has found.
BEST OF THE BLOGS
Is This The Best They Got?
By Jake
Rantings From Florida
When I read other blogs, I wonder if I should be writing more about Mike Haridopolos.
Scientists confirm Gulf residents' claims about oil dispersant dangers
By Sue Sturgis
Facing South
Anyone who spent time talking to residents of coastal communities along the Gulf of Mexico following last year's BP oil disaster inevitably heard concerns about the widespread spraying of chemical dispersants to break up the oil slick.
Rick Scott Claimed Stimulus Money Was A "Disaster" But Kept It Anyway
By Inkberries
Beach Peanuts
As you'll recall, when Rick Scott was running for Governor, one might have thought he was running for President judging from his ads and his message.
Republicans vying for Miami-Dade mayor shun Rick Scott
By Joy-Ann Reid
The Reid Report
When the two contenders for Miami-Dade mayor met in a live radio debate on Tuesday, they agreed on only one thing: neither of these conservative Republicans want anything to do with Florida Gov. Rick Scott.
The Villages: Where “Jobs Budgets” Go to Retire
By Kevin Cate
KComm
Florida Governor Rick Scott’s “jobs budget,” has officially retired.
FLORIDA POLITICS
Veteran South Florida elections offical tapped to run state elections division
By Gary Fineout
The Florida Current
A former South Florida elections official has been tapped to run the state office that oversees elections.
Governor Scott and the Florida Legislature trampling on the Rights of Florida voters
By Congressman Alcee L. Hastings
Westside Gazette
On May 19th, Governor Rick Scott signed into law HB 1355, a bill attacking one of the most fundamental rights of our democracy: the right to vote.
Business groups praise Republicans for their 2011 session votes
Staff Report
Florida Tribune
Two of Florida's business groups have praised Republicans for voting for pro-business legislation, although the groups differ on some Republican senators.
Florida Rep. Tom Goodson says law on alcohol, minors awaits Scott's signature
By Dave Berman
Florida Today
Florida Rep. Tom Goodson had a serious message in his otherwise-humorous discussion Wednesday about his adventures as a freshman state legislator.
One of Tallahassee's major lobbying firms has a shake-up
By Gary Fineout
The Florida Current
Former Florida Attorney General and Secretary of State Jim Smith is leaving the powerhouse lobbying firm that he has run since 1998 with his son-in-law Brian Ballard.
Competitive bid process could use some scrutiny
Editorial
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
It sailed through the Florida Legislature as an innocuous-sounding public records extension that, taken at face value, would keep key information in a bid for a state or local government contract safe from the competition.
POLITICAL RACES
Romney says no thanks to Florida presidential straw poll
By Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
Sorry Florida Republicans, but Mitt Romney won't be lavishing the kind of attention and money on you that many activists had expected.
ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY
Enviros sue over oil spill
By Michael Peltier
News Service of Florida
Federal officials overseeing a Shell Oil request to drill in deep water in the Gulf of Mexico are relying on false assumptions and accepting inadequate safety standards to prevent a repeat of the BP Deepwater Horizon spill, environmentalists charged Thursday in a complaint filed in federal court to stop it.
Campgrounds at De Leon Springs, Wekiwa may go private
By Kevin Spear
Orlando Sentinel
Florida's park system takes in more than a thousand square miles of the state's most prized woods, springs and beaches; is the nation's only two-time winner of a coveted Gold Medal for excellence; and is a finalist for that prize again this year.
EDUCATION
Healthy Choices For Schools
By Whitney Ray
Capitol News Service
A plan to pair students with fresh fruits and vegetables from Florida farms is one step closer to reality.
Where does all that lotto money go?
By Lloyd Sowers
Fox News Tampa Bay
For 23 years, people have played the games.
The last day of school is last class for teacher
By Rafael A. Olmeda
South Florida Sun Sentinel
Anthony Tabacco was emptying garbage cans and cleaning bathrooms in Broward County's public schools nine years ago when a teacher advised him to become an educator instead because "it's a secure career."
Panel of UF trustees OKs 15% tuition hike
By Nathan Crabbe
Gainesville Sun
University of Florida students will likely see another significant tuition increase in the fall at the same time that a popular scholarship program is being cut.
Bright Futures scholarship recipients must fill out more paperwork
By Ashley Ames
Florida Today
Many college students could find themselves without their Bright Futures disbursement this fall because of legislation that requires the recipients of the lottery-funded scholarship to fill out an additional form before receiving the money.
JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
50-thousand Jobs?
By Whitney Ray
Capitol News Service
Governor Rick Scott is catching heat from his opponents for standing behind jobs they say he didn’t create.
Did lawmakers worsen the condition of an already ailing state?
By Tonyaa Weathersbee
Florida Times-Union
Some 2.5 million Floridians, many of whom are likely casualties of the state's 11 percent unemployment rate, are now receiving Medicaid.
Southwest Florida food stamp use surges
By Frank Gluck
Ft. Myers News-Press
Food stamp use has skyrocketed in Southwest Florida during the past five years, a trend expected to continue as long as the region's poverty and unemployment rates remain high.
Water district, seeking $128 million in cuts, to slash benefits and buy out workers
By Christine Stapleton
Palm Beach Post
With just 20 days left before a new law ends the practice of offering severance packages to state workers, the governing board of the South Florida Water Management District voted on Thursday to offer its workers the chance to leave with one month salary, benefits and limited payouts for vacation and sick time.
HEALTH AND SENIORS
APD called on to better lobby for people with disabilities
By Bill Cotterell
Florida Capital News
Facing more budget cuts, parents and operators of businesses that serve Floridians with developmental disabilities told officials of the Agency for Persons with Disabilities today they need to do a better job of lobbying the Florida Legislature.
Meetings on Fla. Medicaid overhaul to begin Friday
By Kelli Kennedy
Associated Press
Florida health officials will hold public meetings around the state starting Friday to get input from Medicaid beneficiaries on sweeping changes to the program for poor and disabled patients.
Screening claims ‘misleading’: FDA
By Brittany Davis
Health News Florida
Some Florida health-care providers who promote thermography as a screening test for breast cancer say they plan to continue, despite an official warning that there’s no evidence it works.
CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES
Are city, activists ready to compromise on homeless feedings?By Scott Maxwell
Orlando Sentinel
Related: Pictures: Activists arrested at Lake Eola
We have many bits of tid in today's Friday Files. But first, an update on the battle between the city of Orlando and the activists at Lake Eola.
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