Daily Clips for October 31, 2011

PROGRESS FLORIDA IN THE NEWS

October 24th Weekly Show
By Gayle Andrews
The Blu Vu: Florida’s Political Reality Show
A federal judge blocks the drug testing of welfare applicants, an aide to Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carol is arrested, Sen. Nan Rich reminds us that Republicans have turned away $150 million in federal revenues hurting the elderly, children and working Floridians and Progress Florida’s Damien Filer discusses some scary people lurking in the Florida capitol…all this and more coming your way.

AWAKE THE STATE IN THE NEWS

Awake the State gears up for 2012 (audio story)
By Lisa Marzilli and Beth Bell
WMNF Community Radio Tampa
Excerpt: Our guests today are Tim Heberlein, a community organizer with the Florida Consumer Action Network and Ray Seaman, online director with Progress Florida, two main players in the Awake the State movement. They're with us to talk about the Awake the State Summit held last weekend in Orlando and about the call to actions taking place across the state, including Tampa, St. Pete, Sarasota and Orlando on Tuesday, November 1.

FEATURED STORIES

Florida Democrats point fingers at Gov. Scott, GOP lawmakers
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
Related: Vice President Biden scolds GOP as 'obstructionist' in two Central Florida speeches
Regardless of who wins the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, Florida voters can expect to hear a lot from Democrats about Rick Scott, George W. Bush and the tea party next year.

Florida Sen. Bill Nelson in unfamiliar political territory
By Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
If you're Sen. Bill Nelson, you must feel good about the campaign year ahead: flush with $7.5 million in your campaign account; President Barack Obama preparing a massive get-out-the-vote campaign for Florida Democrats; a crowded Republican primary lacking any titans and promising to be bloody.

Obama is counting on one-on-one 2012 campaign strategy
By Marc Caputo
Miami Herald
Barack Obama’s re-election hopes are a numbers nightmare: 9.1 percent unemployment, increasingly negative job-approval ratings and a gap in enthusiasm between Republican and Democratic voters.

Fla. teacher may be fined under new election law
Associated Press
St. Petersburg Times
A Florida Panhandle teacher who registered students to vote but turned in their applications late may be fined for violating the state's new election law, which has drawn fire from critics who say it will suppress voting.

In Florida Battle, Casino Cash vs. Disney Image
By Lizette Alvarez
New York Times
The battle for Florida’s tourism soul has been joined.

EDITORIAL CARTOON OF THE WEEK

By Jim Morin
Miami Herald

FLORIDA POLITICS

Florida Democrats: Rick Scott the poster boy for GOP extremism
By William March
Tampa Tribune
At the state Democratic Party's convention this weekend in Orlando, one of the political figures most talked about, maybe more than any other, is a Republican -- Gov. Rick Scott.

How Florida’s new elections law may impact the youth vote
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
This week, reports surfaced of a New Smyrna Beach high school teacher becoming embroiled in possible legal problems because she preregistered high school students to vote.

Federal court refuses to speed review of election law
By Mark K. Matthews
Orlando Sentinel
A three-judge federal panel on Friday denied a motion by Florida to speed up a review of controversial changes to the state's voting laws -- a decision that all but guarantees Florida will hold its Jan. 31 presidential primary under two sets of election rules.

Opponents line up against new casino bill
By Mary Ellen Klas
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau
An array of opponents, from South Florida to the state capital, has lined up swiftly in response to proposed legislation to bring gigantic “destination resort” casinos to South Florida, despite promises of economic development and an infusion of jobs.

POLITICAL RACES

Sen. Bill Nelson resolute in face of opposition
By Lloyd Dunkelberger
Gainesville Sun
When a sore throat stopped Jill Biden from introducing her husband, Vice President Joe Biden, to a partisan crowd of Florida Democrats attending their state convention, Bill Nelson eagerly took up the task.

Sen. Nelson takes low-key path to race
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson has five Republicans firing shots at him, and he'll be just below the low-polling President Barack Obama on the 2012 ballot, and yet he's acting like he doesn't have a re-election coming up.

Why Rubio won't help GOP get Latino vote
By Maria Cardona
CNN
Repeat after me, GOP: "Marco Rubio will not be our savior with Latinos in the 2012 election."

Despite contracts, Republican National Convention officials tell hotels they want cheaper rooms, higher fees
By Steve Huettel and Richard Danielson
St. Petersburg Times
A crowd of hotel managers gathered in the ballroom of the Wyndam Tampa Westshore on Wednesday expecting a routine update on plans for the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa.

BALLOT INITIATIVES

State, union clash in court over "no-aid" repeal
By Lynn Hatter
WFSU Public Radio Tallahassee
A lawsuit led by the Florida Education Association is aimed at getting Amendment 7 kicked off the 2012 ballot.

How an anti-abortion push to redefine ‘person’ could hurt women’s rights
By Jessica Valenti
Washington Post
A common message from anti-abortion activists is that “women deserve better than abortion.”

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

St. Johns water district eases permitting to tap aquifer
By Kevin Spear
Orlando Sentinel
Daytona Beach and the region's main water authority went to war last year over whether the city was pumping the life out of a state forest.

Soon-to-be-introduced bill would give utilities more power over reclaimed water
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
GOP state lawmakers will soon introduce a bill to eliminate regulations on the reclaimed water often used by Florida utilities — treating it as an alternative water supply owned by utilities, and not by the state.

USF receives $11 million grant to fund BP spill research
By Valerie Quintana
Tampa Tribune
Eighteen months after one of the worst oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico, researchers at the University of South Florida in St. Petersburg are studying the effects of the deep water blowout with the help of an $11 million grant.

Fighting against Florida's alien invaders
By Craig Pittman
St. Petersburg Times
One day this summer, Susan Arehart noticed her cat, Luna-tick, acting strangely.

Protect Florida's wild places
By Bill Maxwell
St. Petersburg Times
One of the benefits of living in Florida is being within easy driving distance of beautiful, wild places.

LGBT

For some, equality is an offensive idea
By Gary Stein
South Florida Sun Sentinel
It is hardly unusual for a columnist to get accused of offending people.

EDUCATION

Miami-Dade school district makes midterms, finals optional for students
By Laura Isensee
Miami Herald
A long line of tests stand between students and summer — baseline exams, interim tests, FCAT and end-of-course state exams, to name a few.

Florida shortchanges its universities
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
At least credit former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux for being half-right: Tuition at Florida's public universities is too low.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Gov. Rick Scott's jobs czar defends Florida's economic incentive programs
By Michael C. Bender
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Gov. Rick Scott's jobs czar defended the state's economic incentive programs on Friday, saying Florida would go after companies that failed to perform.

Work-force oversight boards do little overseeing
By Jim Stratton
Orlando Sentinel
Elected officials overseeing Jacksonville's publicly funded jobs agency took just 20 minutes in June to approve the organization's $21.6 million budget.

Foreclosure prevention program struggles to help homeowners in Florida
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
Florida’s foreclosure epidemic continues to haunt the state, but federal programs designed to keep people in their homes are having a hard time trickling down to distressed homeowners.

When Voting Against Job Creation Just Isn’t Enough
The Progress Report
Think Progress
As we’ve been documenting, Republicans keep voting against millions of American jobs. But it doesn’t stop there!

HEALTH AND SENIORS

Finding more filth, abuse, state moves to shut ALFs
By Michael Sallah and Carol Marbin Miller
Miami Herald
At a Vero Beach assisted-living facility, a 300-pound caretaker was accused of yanking a frail, 89-year-old woman from a wheelchair, shaking her in the air and then throwing her on a bed, shattering the woman’s hip.

How much are you worth to HMOs?
By Carol Gentry
Health News Florida
Medicare health plan members are worth more than any other category of enrollee in a merger or acquisition deal, Wall Street analysts say.

Florida CHAIN asks feds to reject request by state to ‘phase in’ medical loss ratio
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
A patient advocacy group is asking the feds to not grant insurance companies in Florida exemption from profit caps mandated by federal law.

Pill mills prove tough to stop
By Andrew Knapp
Florida Today
In early August, a woman walked into Dr. John Gayden Jr.’s pain clinic and walked out 60 seconds later with prescriptions for painkillers and anxiety medication.

CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES

Sen. Marco Rubio: "I Got Mine, So Long Suckers"
By Gabe Gonzalez
Huffington Post
It is fascinating to see the Republican Party tie itself into knots over the issue of Florida Senator Marco Rubio's citizenship.

State Sen. Alan Hays misguided on remarks about Hispanics
By Lauren Ritchie
Orlando Sentinel
Leave it to Alan Hays to light up a firestorm.

In Lake County, Whizzing Bullets From New State Law
By Ralph De La Cruz
Florida Center for Investigative Reporting
About a month ago, Sandy Dziak and her husband were riding horses on their 20-acre property in Lake County when they were jolted by an explosion.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

Recommendations are in for fixing courts' finances
By Travis Pillow
Florida Current
A work group looking at ways to shore up state courts' finances amid dwindling revenue from foreclosure filings recommends creating a new stabilization fund and redirecting revenues from Florida's higher courts.

Lawmaker Promotes Early Release for Inmates
By Les Coleman
Public News Service Florida
Clearing Florida's bulging prison population is the topic of the state House Criminal Justice Subcommittee.

Daily Clips for October 28, 2011

AWAKE THE STATE IN THE NEWS

Awake the State will join Occupy Orlando Nov. 1
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
The progressive coalition Awake the State will join Occupy Orlando protesters on Nov. 1 in an event focusing on voting rights in the state.

FEATURED STORIES

Democrats open 3-day state convention with lots of issues
By Lloyd Dunkelberger
Ocala Star-Banner
Despite having a president in the White House and the largest share of the state's voters, Florida Democrats open their three-day state convention today facing some of the most serious challenges in the party's history.

Rick Scott's veiled threat to university professors
By Eric Ernst
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Parade magazine publishes an annual article looking at what people earn in a variety of jobs across the country.

Civics teacher tried to register kids to vote - and broke law
By Frank Cerabino
Palm Beach Post
Florida's new voter suppression laws have claimed their first victim.

Muslim Activist Challenges Fla. Republican's Views
By Greg Allen
NPR
There's no member of the Republican freshman class in Congress more outspoken than Florida Rep. Allen West.

Survey Says: The Public Supports the 99% Movement
The Progress Report
Think Progress
As the Occupy Wall Street protest and growing 99 Percent Movement enters its second month, poll after poll shows public support for the movement.

BEST OF THE BLOGS

Conservatives defend Sen. Marco Rubio, yet remain silent about state Sen. Alan Hays?
By Peter Schorsch
St. Petersblog 2.0
Putting aside the issues of when Marco Rubio’s parents actually arrived in this country from Cuba, the concern to be had with the conservatives and Republicans, including Jeb Bush and Mel Martinez, who are so vigorously defending Rubio is very simple.

Florida's Hispanic Mosaic
By Steve Schale
Steve Schale
Twenty years ago, when Florida and Hispanic were mentioned in the same sentence, one word came to mind: Cuban.

Federal judge blocks Florida's law concerning drug test for welfare
By Jack Cole
The Examiner
Florida Governor Rick Scott’s campaign promise of drug testing welfare recipients is currently on hold.

The difference between the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street, Occupy Miami and everywhere else? Fear
By Gimleteye
Eye on Miami
The Occupy Wall Street'ers around the nation and the world have presented an awkward situation for the Tea Party, now primarily institutionalized as a wing of the GOP.

Magical Thinking: To Marco Rubio, Facts Don't Matter
By Inkberries
Beach Peanuts
Marco Rubio came to Tampa today to speak about job creation during a lunch at the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce.

FLORIDA POLITICS

Rubio defends his stand against more Cuba flights
By Steve Huettel
St. Petersburg Times
Sen. Marco Rubio and Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce officials chose not to rekindle a fight over new flights to Cuba.

Three Occupy Tampa protesters arrested after scuffle with police
By Danny Valentine
St. Petersburg Times
Three more Occupy Tampa protesters were arrested at Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park after a scuffle with police early Friday.

Central Florida Republicans demand apology from Sen. Alan Hays for comment about Hispanics
By Jeannette Rivera-Lyles
Orlando Sentinel
A coalition of Republican officials from three Central Florida counties have demanded a public apology from state Sen. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla, for comments he recently made about Hispanics.

POLITICAL RACES

First lady Michelle Obama makes first campaign trip to Tampa Bay area
By Elisabeth Parker and Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
First lady Michelle Obama made her first campaign trip to Tampa Bay on Thursday, promoting healthy eating, raising campaign money and acknowledging to supporters that change doesn't happen overnight.

Mack has pluses, minuses as he enters GOP primary for Florida's U.S. Senate seat
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
Related: LeMieux calls Mack an earmarker; Hasner camp calls him ‘another Washington incumbent’
With the GOP's declared Senate candidates showing unimpressive polling and fundraising numbers so far, U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, R-Cape Coral, has decided to seek the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012.

Analysis: Why Connie Mack's Senate candidacy may be game-changer, not game-ender
By Adam C. Smith and Alex Leary
St. Petersburg Times
Related Politifact: U.S. Rep. Connie Mack said he wouldn't run for U.S. Senate: Full Flop
By suddenly and unexpectedly jumping into Florida's Republican U.S. Senate primary, Connie Mack has at least made a lackadaisical race more exciting.

As Cain Promotes His Management Skills, Ex-Aides Tell of Campaign in Chaos
By Susan Saulny
New York Times
If Herman Cain feels his management skills are up to any challenge, some of his former staff members think he should have started with the disorder in his own campaign.

BALLOT INITIATIVES

Court hears 'religious freedom' amendment arguments
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
The ballot title and summary of an amendment to the Florida Constitution that would alter the state’s definition of “religious freedom” is misleading and should be thrown out, a Florida Education Association attorney argued Thursday in Leon County Circuit Court.

The ‘Personhood’ Initiative
Editorial
New York Times
A ballot measure going before voters in Mississippi on Nov. 8 would define the term “person” in the State Constitution to include fertilized human eggs and grant to fertilized eggs the legal rights and protections that apply to people.

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

Feds announce plan to speed Everglades restoration
By Erika Bolstad
Miami Herald
A new fast-track planning effort could shave years off the next phase of Everglades restoration, putting more fresh and clean water into the central and southern portions of Florida's "River of Grass" more quickly.

Renewable industry: State going backward
By Beth Kassab
Orlando Sentinel
We've heard plenty of lip service when it comes to renewable energy in this state, and the talk at the Florida Energy Summit this week starring Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam wasn't any different.

Conservationists criticize changes to new Florida water regulations
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
The federally mandated “numeric nutrient criteria,” a set of standards to govern water pollution in the state of Florida, have been harshly criticized by industry, agriculture and even lawmakers — who argue the criteria are too stringent and would result in job losses and stymie business growth.

Researchers: BP oil spill may have contributed to Gulf of Mexico dolphin deaths
By Craig Pittman
St. Petersburg Times
Five of the more than 500 dolphins that have washed ashore dead along the Gulf Coast from Florida to Texas over the past two years died from a bacterial infection called Brucella, federal scientists announced Thursday.

LGBT

Gay and lesbian service members sue government
By Jay Lindsay
Associated Press
A group of gay active and retired military personnel who are married sued the federal government Thursday for the same benefits as straight military couples, arguing it's a matter of justice and national security.

EDUCATION

Florida union challenges amendment that would allow state funding of religious schools
By Kathleen Haughney
South Florida Sun Sentinel
The statewide teachers union, backed by other school and religious officials, challenged a proposed constitutional amendment Thursday that would pave the way for state lawmakers to direct tax dollars toward school vouchers or religious-affiliated institutions.

Machen offers governor his plan for assessing UF
By Nathan Crabbe
Gainesville Sun
As Gov. Rick Scott pushes for accountability from state universities, University of Florida President Bernie Machen is proposing his own ways to assess the institution.

State test changes = lower scores?
By Jeff Schmucker
Hernando Today
A recommended scoring system for the more rigorous FCAT introduced last year — called FCAT 2.0 — might result in fewer students assessed as performing at grade level in math and reading.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Haridopolos' tax pledge
Editorial
Orlando Sentinel
If schools lose more funding…If the needy lose key services…Blame Senate President Mike Haridopolos, who last week said, what's important is that there "not be an increase in taxes."

Florida Chamber of Commerce says it ‘will fight’ unemployment taxes
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
In its agenda for the 2012 session, The Florida Chamber of Commerce has said that it will “will fight to stabilize and ultimately lower the cost of the unemployment compensation tax increases for Florida employers.”

Critics say Disney wields too much influence in the Florida Chamber of Commerce
By Jason Garcia
Orlando Sentinel
When the Florida Chamber of Commerce unveiled its legislative agenda this month, it included some interesting additions.

Insurers float plan to whack attorneys fees and license health care clinics
By Christine Jordan Sexton
Florida Current
An insurance trade group -- building on information first released this year by state regulators -- came out on Thursday in favor of far-reaching and likely controversial changes to the state's no-fault auto insurance system.

Don't be suckered by casino bill
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
If the Legislature approves HB 487 in anything close to its initial draft, the state might as well put a sign at the border: Welcome to Las Vegas East.

HEALTH AND SENIORS

Court to take up Florida's health care case Nov. 10
Staff Report
Florida Current
Florida's challenge of the federal health care law remains on the fast track for a Supreme Court decision, with justices set to review the case Nov. 10, according to the legal resource SCOTUSblog.

40% of FL drug plans sub-par
By Brittany Davis
Health News Florida
Nearly 40 percent of Medicare drug plans currently on the market in Florida received federal quality ratings of below average.

Study finds Florida's Medicaid woes part of national trend
By Regan McCarthy
WFSU Public Radio Tallahassee
Kaiser Health released a nationwide Medicaid Budget Survey today.

CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES

Movement of the century
By James Harper
Florida Courier
Civil rights icon Andrew Young, speaking exclusively to the Florida Courier, says he sees similarities in ‘Occupy Wall Street’ protests and the 20th century’s civil rights movement.

Extremists must not hijack our political discourse
By Hassan Shibly, J.D.
Tampa Tribune
It is very concerning when mainstream politicians openly advocate for positions that are antithetical to our core values and constitutional principles.

Unreasonable drug testing
Editorial
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
A federal judge this week shot legal holes through Florida's requirement that all welfare applicants undergo drug testing.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

Red light cameras in Cocoa Beach spark challenge of 2010 state law
By Jim Saunders
News Service of Florida
As Florida lawmakers gear up for another debate about red-light cameras, a Brevard County citation has led to a class-action lawsuit about the constitutionality of the devices.

Daily Clips for October 27, 2011

AWAKE THE STATE IN THE NEWS

Awake The State to hold new rally in Tampa
By Mitch Perry
Creative Loafing Tampa
The activist group Awake The State, which has many offshoots, such as Awake Tampa, led a series of protest rallies against Governor Rick Scott and the GOP-led Florida Legislature last spring, and they were some of the most successful political rallies by liberal Democrats seen in Florida in a long time (Awake The State was named by Cl last month as the activist group of the year).

FEATURED STORIES

Shakeup alert: Rep. Connie Mack to enter Florida’s Senate race
By Marc Caputo
Miami Herald
Florida Congressman Connie Mack planns to enter the Republican race for U.S. Senate, adding a big name to a contest that has lacked drama for months.

Jim Greer contradicts George LeMieux's claim of doing minority outreach for Florida GOP
By Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
It had never been clear what George LeMieux did to earn $150,000 for consulting services with the state GOP in 2008 and 2009 after he left his job as Gov. Charlie Crist's chief of staff for private law practice.

Judge: Cuts to state employees violated contract
By Mary Ellen Klas
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau
The decision to cut state and local government workers pay 3 percent and shift the money to the state’s pension fund broke the state’s contract with employees, a Leon County circuit judge told lawyers for Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida Legislature on Wednesday.

Florida’s Jobs Shell Game
By Ralph De La Cruz
Florida Center for Investigative Reporting
“Jobs” is the political word of the day. In a nation and a state desperate to get back to work, politicians are given the leeway to do almost anything in the name of jobs.

'Destination casino' bill sets stage for gambling debate in Florida
By Kathleen Haughney and Nick Sortal
South Florida Sun Sentinel
A long-promised "destination casino" bill was filed Wednesday, allowing three Las Vegas-style operations in Miami-Dade and Broward counties and setting the stage for a full-throttle debate about gambling in Florida.

FLORIDA POLITICS

Marco Rubio faces Hispanic critics
By Scott Wong
Politico
In Miami’s Little Havana, the Cuban exile community has rallied to the defense of its favorite son, Sen. Marco Rubio, as he fights off allegations he embellished his family history to boost his meteoric political career.

Election reform adds challenge to voting
By Deirdre Macnab
Orlando Sentinel
Almost every Floridian wants to forget the embarrassment and confusion of our 2000 election process.

PIP workgroup to release its report on Tuesday
By Christine Jordan Sexton
Florida Current
Expect to see a report on Florida's personal injury protection (PIP) from the state's insurance consumer advocate next week.

Fresen cleared on ethics complaint
By Katie Sanders
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau
The state Commission on Ethics has announced it found no probable cause for a complaint accusing Rep. Erik Fresen, R-Miami, of violating state voting conflict law.

Occupy Orlando marches in protest through downtown
By Bianca Prieto
Orlando Sentinel
Occupy Orlando members marched through downtown Wednesday afternoon in response to police removing the group's supplies from Senator Beth Johnson Park.

Tampa should set workable rules for protests
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
Tampa police have worked hard to avoid confrontations with the local group, Occupy Tampa, that is taking part in the nationwide protests against this country's economic conditions.

POLITICAL RACES

Rick Perry, during St. Pete Beach visit: Barack Obama is an American citizen
By Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
Rick Perry recently told Parade magazine that "I don't have any idea" whether the birth certificate released by President Barack Obama is real. He told CNBC this week that Obama's citizenship "is a good issue to keep alive" and noted he had discussed the matter with Donald Trump.

Protesters criticize Rick Perry's Social Security proposal outside pricey St. Pete Beach fundraiser
By Kate Bradshaw
WMNF Community Radio Tampa
Top GOP contenders are trying to get attention from Republican voters in the Sunshine State ahead the primary.

CNN polls: Romney has big lead in Florida and New Hampshire; barely up in Iowa, South Carolina
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
Mitt Romney is ahead in Florida and three other early states on the Republican presidential selection calendar, according to polls released today by CNN.

BALLOT INITIATIVES

Judge hearing challenge to Fla. religion amendment
Associated Press
Palm Beach Post
A judge is hearing arguments over a ballot proposal to repeal Florida's ban on public financial aid to churches and other religious organizations.

Selling funding as freedom
By Howard Simon
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Watching the Florida Legislature stumble, maneuver and scheme, it's still surprising that lawmakers have crafted a massive government expansion and new funding entitlement they are trying to sell to us as a "freedom."

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

More clean water for Everglades possible under proposed plan
By Erika Bolstad
Miami Herald
An Everglades restoration task force that meets Thursday in West Palm Beach is expected to announce a fast-track planning effort, that if approved by Congress, will put more fresh and clean water into the central and southern portions of the River of Grass.

Hometown Democracy leader unveils site detailing ‘The Price of Sprawl’
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
Nearly a year after the so-called “Hometown Democracy” amendment was soundly defeated in the state of Florida, the group that backed it has unveiled a website detailing the negative effects of urban sprawl in various counties throughout the state.

Rooney's offshore drilling proposal is making waves
By Eve Samples
TC Palm
It's one of Martin County's greatest political strengths.

Key West hospital serves special clientele
By Trimmel Gomes
WFSU Public Radio Tallahassee
After months of rehabilitation, a loggerhead sea turtle was released back into the wild in the Florida Keys Tuesday.

LGBT

Miami LGBT rights group ‘tremendously negatively impacted’ by new voting laws
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
SAVE Dade, a Miami-based LGBT rights group, says it has been “tremendously negatively impacted” by the state’s new voting law, which created new restrictions on third party voter registration.

EDUCATION

Giving Florida's students a Third World education
By Mark Allen Peterson
Palm Beach Post
Gov. Scott has declared that Florida doesn't need any more anthropologists and needs to cut back on psychologists and other social scientists as well.

Rick Scott says no to anthropology; students say yes
By Scott Travis
South Florida Sun Sentinel
This debate is one for the anthropology books, but if Gov. Rick Scott has his way, there may not be many left.

Palmetto teacher disputes firing
By Angeline Taylor
Bradenton Herald
Lincoln Middle School teacher Stephanie Holtey was terminated this week under a new state law that allows teachers on a probationary contract to be fired for any reason, district officials said Tuesday.

Without funding, YouthBuild GED and job skills program in peril
By Justin George
St. Petersburg Times
In his early 20s with no high school diploma, Gino Voltere was languishing at North Boulevard Homes, a public housing complex south of downtown.

Senator steps in over voting law, teacher's plight
By Derek Catron
Daytona Beach News-Journal
Jill Cicciarelli's students got a real-life civics lesson Wednesday when U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson quizzed them on the state law their teacher violated in helping them register to vote.

Florida 45th most expensive, or 6th cheapest, for tuition
Staff Report
South Florida Sun Sentinel
If you want to move somewhere with cheaper in-state college tuition, you now have six choices.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Teachers union goes to court to challenge pension changes
By Kathleen Haughney
St. Petersburg Times
The 140,000-member statewide teachers union argued Wednesday that Gov. Rick Scott and the Legislature violated a contract with 572,000 teachers, prison guards, nurses and other public employees when it substantially changed the state's pension system this year.

At STEM summit, a call for Florida to raise its competitive bar
By Robert Trigaux
St. Petersburg Times
One nagging theme emerged at Wednesday's summit meeting dedicated to improving Florida's students and work force for 21st century technology jobs.

Ban debit fees? How grand
Editorial
Palm Beach Post
State Rep. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, has introduced House Bill 375, which would stop banks from imposing debit card fees such as Bank of America's planned $5-a-month charge.

HEALTH AND SENIORS

State proposes steep cuts to Medicaid coverage for hospital stays, doctor visits
By Christine Jordan Sexton
Florida Current
After being told by the House that its proposed budget reductions were unacceptable, Agency for Health Care Administration staff looked for additional ways to find "savings."

Miami-Dade grand jury probes troubled ALFs
By Michael Sallah and Carol Marbin Miller
Miami Herald
After years of rampant neglect at assisted living facilities, a Miami-Dade County grand jury has launched an investigation into conditions in the homes, including reports of frail elders dying from abuse and breakdowns in enforcement that allowed dozens of dangerous ALFs to stay open, The Miami Herald has learned.

Lawyer Opposing Health Law Is Familiar Face to the Justices
By Kevin Sack
Gainesville Sun
It would be hard for any lawyer to fathom a more riveting caseload than the one Paul D. Clement carried during his seven years in President George W. Bush’s Justice Department.

CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES

Judge makes right call in halting Florida welfare drug testing
By Michael Mayo
South Florida Sun Sentinel
When it came to drug testing welfare applicants, the state aimed for the cup first and asked questions later.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

How the Legal System Favors the 1 Percent
By Glenn Greenwald
Mother Jones
As intense protests spawned by Occupy Wall Street continue to grow, it is worth asking: Why now?