PROGRESS FLORIDA IN THE NEWS
Protest Planned for Gov. Scott's St. Pete Visit
By Linda Hersey
Patch.com
Progress Florida – a grassroots group that has organized voter opposition to Gov. Rick Scott – plans to protest the Florida governor's scheduled appearance Friday at the Vinoy Hotel in downtown St. Petersburg.
AWAKE THE STATE IN THE NEWS
Awake Pinellas protests against Scott and his "puppet" Haridopolos
By Monica Torres
Creative Loafing Tampa
Excerpt: Susannah Randolph, executive director of Florida Watch Action, targeted Sen. Mike Haridopolos as a “puppet” to Rick Scott, the governor the activists would like to give the “pink slip” to.
FEATURED STORIES
4 Florida GOP senate candidates mostly agree
By David Royse
News Service of Florida
The four Republican candidates for U.S. Senate generally agree on most issues facing the nation, with a couple minor exceptions, and spent most of a debate on Thursday directing most jabs not at each other but at Democratic incumbent Sen. Bill Nelson, President Obama and former Gov. Charlie Crist.
Judge rules against putting pensions in separate account
By Bill Cotterell
Florida Capital News
A preliminary round in the legal fight over making public employees pay 3 percent into the Florida Retirement System was won by the state, as a circuit judge refused to make the government hold the money in a separate fund so it can be given back quickly if employees win their suit.
Gov. Scott's SunRail decision will be revealed at 11 a.m. on Friday
By Janet Zink
Miami Herald
Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Ananth Prasad will make an announcement regarding the SunRail commuter rail project at FDOT headquarters in Tallahassee on Friday at 11 a.m.
Will Scott block still more grants?
By Brittany Davis and Carol Gentry
Health News Florida
Dozens of health alliances around the state that are competing for big federal grants are worried that Gov. Rick Scott will block their chances of winning.
Phone deregulation, droopy-drawer regulation among 160 laws going on Fla. books Friday
By Dara Kam
Palm Beach Post
Old-school telephone users may see their rates skyrocket, school kids have to hike up their trousers and military vets can hunt in special areas under more than 160 new Florida laws that go into effect Friday.
Florida's a bleaker place for many
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
There can be no dispute. Today, Florida is a far less hospitable place to live for government workers, the elderly, the unemployed, women, students and property owners.
BEST OF THE BLOGS
Drought! Straight Talk from the Real Book of Revelations
By Gimleteye
Eye on Miami
Drought, wildfires, floods. The first three minutes of network news is like a TV primer from the Book of Revelations.
An afternoon with Charlie, the once-and-future Governor
By Peter Schorsch
St. Petersblog 2.0
“Hey, Governor, please, PLEASE, run again,” said the hundredth or so person to shake hands with Charlie Crist last Saturday at the ‘Hands Across the Sand’ event in St. Pete Beach.
Rotting on the Vine: When Bad Public Policy Actually Works
By Benjamin Kirby
The Spencerian
Via Ghost in the Machine and The Atlanta Journal Constitution's Jay Bookman, the draconian immigration law in Georgia seems to be working.
Jeb's Florida 'miracle' coming to a state near you?
By iTeachQ
Daily Kos
Security at airports around the nation must be getting sick and tired of seeing education 'reformers' come to peddle their wares.
FLORIDA POLITICS
Kids, fall in line on the right for camp
By Daniel Ruth
St. Petersburg Times
Okay, kids, please put down your pitchforks and listen up.
Scott Takes Hardline Approach On Public Records Requests
By Lloyd Dunkelberger
Lakeland Ledger
Gov. Rick Scott's combative relationship with Florida's media includes a hardline approach to providing public records.
New Florida laws take effect today
By Mark I. Johnson
Daytona Beach News-Journal
From requirements that employees in the Florida State Retirement system must contribute 3 percent of their salaries toward their pension to mandates that women get an ultrasound before getting an abortion, a variety of new state laws go into effect today.
They all love Debbie
By Bill Cotterell
Florida Capital News
U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the new chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, spoke at the Florida Democratic Party's Jefferson-Jackson Day dinner in Hollywood on June 11.
Tony Hill's new gig leaves an open Northeast Florida Senate seat
By Matt Dixon
Florida Times-Union
Election season is coming early for Northeast Florida.
POLITICAL RACES
At first GOP Senate debate, 'Crist' tossed around like a dirty word
By Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
He has been off the public stage for nearly seven months and yet Charlie Crist's shadow still looms over the Florida GOP.
GOP Senate hopefuls differ on war plan
By William March
Tampa Tribune
President Barack Obama's Afghanistan troop withdrawal plan drew one of the few disagreements among four Republican U.S. Senate candidates in a debate Thursday.
Rubio to remain neutral during GOP presidential primary
By Alex Leary
St. Petersburg Times
It happens almost every time Sen. Marco Rubio sits down for a national TV interview. Will you be on the Republican presidential ticket in 2012?
Tim Pawlenty slips into Florida to raise cash for presidential run
By Marc Caputo
Miami Herald
Republican presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty slipped into Florida for a series of low-key events to raise some much-needed cash and make a pitch to the state's political elite.
BALLOT INITIATIVES
Proposed ‘Religious Freedom’ amendment could complicate separation of church and state
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
An amendment repealing an existing ban on state funding for religious institutions in the state constitution is slated to appear on Florida’s 2012 ballot.
ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY
Haridopolos: No oil drilling next session
By David Royse
News Service of Florida
Senate President Mike Haridopolos said Thursday that while he’s in favor of boosting domestic oil drilling, and interested in studying “all options,” the Legislature will not pursue new drilling in near-shore Florida waters in the coming legislative session.
Scott says he'll consider meeting with governors of Alabama and Georgia on water dispute
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Current
Gov. Rick Scott says Florida needs to resolve some of its environmental disputes without litigation and indicated that he may consider meeting with the governors of Alabama and Georgia.
State parks issue receives national attention
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
The Rick Scott administration’s proposal to privatize portions of state parks is running up against increasing opposition.
Riverkeeper says Vinyard has promised ‘fresh set of eyes’ on Georgia-Pacific pipeline
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
Since launching its campaign against a pipeline that would reroute much of a Palatka paper mill’s effluent into the St. Johns River, the St. Johns Riverkeeper has continued to maintain a drumbeat around the issue.
LGBT
Gay marriage no threat to traditional vows
By Ana Veciana-Suarez
Miami Herald
Any day now I’m expecting the fires of hell to scorch the earth and lightning to strike down sinners and saints alike.
EDUCATION
Fla. gives most elementary, middle schools A or B
By Christine Armario
Associated Press
More than two-thirds of Florida's public elementary and middle schools received an A or B grade on the state's annual assessment this year, the Department of Education said Thursday.
Rick Scott, Michelle Rhee praised charter school that just got an F (partly)
By Marc Caputo
Miami Herald
When Gov. Rick Scott unveiled some of his education policy proposals with school-choice celeb Michelle Rhee this January, they paid a visit to a second-grade class at Florida International Academy in Opa-Locka to showcase the successes of school choice.
State asks court to toss school-quality lawsuit
By Leslie Postal
Orlando Sentinel
Can Florida's courts judge whether the state's public schools are high quality and adequately funded?
Some States Still Leave Low-Income Students Behind; Others Make Surprising Gains
By Sharona Coutts and Jennifer LaFleur
ProPublica
Florida is a state of stark contrasts. Travel a few miles from the opulent mansions of Miami Beach and you reach desperately poor neighborhoods.
Review of Florida Formula for Student Achievement: Lessons for the Nation
By William J. Mathis
National Education Policy Center
Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and the Foundation for Excellence in Education have embarked on a well-funded campaign to spread selected Florida education reforms to other states.
JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
Unions try to protect money ahead of pending Florida pension changes
By Janet Zink
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Unions challenging a law that requires government workers to contribute to their state pension starting today have asked a judge to sequester the money in a separate fund until the lawsuit is resolved.
New drug tests for welfare applicants face hurdles, questions
By Kate Santich
Orlando Sentinel
A new state law requiring all welfare applicants to be drug-tested goes into effect today — even as opponents say the statute is riddled with problems and will not withstand a legal challenge.
South Florida FHP stations spared in cutback
Associated Press
South Florida Sun Sentinel
The Florida Highway Patrol is closing 10 stations Friday as part of the state's cost-cutting efforts.
HEALTH AND SENIORS
Nursing home staffing level drops today
By Brittany Davis
Health News Florida
Nursing homes residents may have less face-time with their caregivers after a law takes effect today that revises minimum staffing levels.
Mandatory-ultrasound law goes into effect today
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
Starting today, the state of Florida requires a doctor to perform an ultrasound prior to any abortion service, whether it is medically necessary or not.
Health care reform ruling suggests ‘political resolution’ should solve dispute
By Travis Pillow
Florida Independent
The Obama administration touted a victory Wednesday, as the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Affordable Care Act, the first time the federal health reform law was upheld by a Republican appointee.
Happy Birthday Medicare!
The Progress Report
Think Progress
Tomorrow marks the 45th anniversary of the implementation of Medicare (July 1, 1966), following President Lyndon Johnson’s signing of the landmark health care program on July 30, 1965.
CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES
Citing Homeless Law, Hackers Turn Sights on Orlando
By Don Van Natta Jr.
New York Times
The hacker group Anonymous has declared a cyberwar against the City of Orlando, disabling Web sites for the city’s leading redevelopment organization, the local Fraternal Order of Police and the mayor’s re-election campaign.
After a century of pain, former Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys closes
By Ben Montgomery
St. Petersburg Times
He drove up from Fort Walton Beach, to the front gate, and by the time he arrived his daughter's text had come through.
JUSTICE AND THE COURTS
Gov. Scott signs first death warrantBy Paul Flemming
Florida Capital News
Gov. Rick Scott Thursday signed his first death warrant, condemning a cop killer who fatally shot Coral Gables Police Department officer Luis Pena in April 1978.
2 get off death row, face life without parole
By Brent Kallestad
Associated Press
The Florida Supreme Court overturned death sentences Thursday for convicted killers from Jacksonville and Zephyrhills.
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