FEATURED STORIES
Dawdling Senate lets Scott's appointments stay in limbo
By Steve Bousquet
Tampa Bay Times
Little is left to chance in the Florida Legislature.
Court decision on Florida voting law unlikely before August primary
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
The court panel currently reviewing Florida’s contentious new voting law says a decision will likely not come before the state holds its primary elections in August.
Bill damages Florida's efforts to promote public health
By E. Charlton Prather and Charles Mahan
Tampa Bay Times
Florida's public health leadership urges Gov. Rick Scott to veto legislation that would seriously weaken the protection and promotion of public health by the Department of Health.
Women Are Running Away From Republicans
The Progress Report
Think Progress
A new poll of battleground states out yesterday underscores the political consequences of the GOP’s all-out war on women and their health care.
FLORIDA POLITICS
Top Florida GOP bundler sues new Florida GOP finance chair
By Adam C. Smith
Tampa Bay Times
It's a legal battle between two titans in Florida Republican fundraising circles, and tens of millions of dollars are at stake.
Legislature seeks federal redistricting review even without a final map
By Mary Ellen Klas
Miami Herald
The Florida Legislature’s legal team has asked the U.S. Department of Justice to begin the process of reviewing its legislative maps for compliance with the federal Voting Rights Act, even before the Florida Supreme Court signs off on a final product.
POLITICAL RACES
In this 2012 presidential campaign, where is George W. Bush?
By Maggie Haberman and Alexander Burns
Politico
George W. Bush is everywhere and nowhere in the 2012 presidential race.
Permitted handguns will be allowed in RNC's 'clean zone'
By Kevin Wiatrowski
Tampa Tribune
Hoping to head off violent protesters during the Republican National Convention, Mayor Bob Buckhorn has proposed a litany of items that will be considered security threats during the week-long event.
Rick Scott plans fundraiser in Sarasota on Thursday
By Jeremy Wallace
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Florida Gov. Rick Scott does not stand for re-election until 2014, but that is not stopping the first-term governor from getting a jump start on fundraising in Sarasota.
Osceola's John Quiñones announces run for Congress
By David Breen
Orlando Sentinel
Osceola County Commission Chairman John Quiñones said Monday that he intends to run for Congress in a newly drawn district.
Orlando voters go to the polls today
By Mark Schlueb
Orlando Sentinel
Orlando voters will go to the polls Tuesday to decide whether Mayor Buddy Dyer will keep his job for another four years.
ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY
Environmental group claims win in ongoing challenge to state 'impaired' waters rule
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Current
A decade-long legal dispute over Florida's process of listing waterways that require cleanups has taken another yet another turn.
Environmentalists want Scott to veto exotic wildlife bill
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
Florida’s so-called “Conservation of Wildlife” bill is set to be signed or vetoed by Gov. Rick Scott at some point in the near future, and despite the fact that the bill received overwhelming bipartisan support in the Florida Legislature, environmentalists have urged Scott to veto the measure.
EDUCATION
Big tuition increases at UF, FSU may get delayed
By Scott Travis
South Florida Sun Sentinel
The state's top two public universities will likely remain a bargain for at least one more year.
New testing for college readiness under way
By Marc Freeman
South Florida Sun Sentinel
There's a new test under way in Palm Beach and Broward county high schools designed to ensure graduates are ready for success in Florida's colleges and universities.
Report: Arts classes at elementary schools reduced
By Christine Armario
Associated Press
Elementary schools without drama classes. High schools with large numbers of poor students that do not offer music.
Grad Nation?
Editorial
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
If our nation is to answer the challenges of a technology-driven century and maintain its leadership role in the world, it must have an educated populace trained to be lifelong learners.
JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
Scott promotes jobs bills on the road
By James Call
WFSU Tallahassee
Monday Florida Governor Rick Scott held ceremonial bill signings for a jobs package he promoted during this year’s legislative session.
Rising insurance costs likely to bump new home prices
By Zac Anderson
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Fewer homes may be built near the coast and prices are likely to increase for projects that do go forward after Citizens Property Insurance stopped covering in-progress construction in March, a move that could stunt the building industry's fledgling recovery.
Miami businesspeople to meet with White House officials
By Jane Woolridge
Miami Herald
Thirty local businesspeople are slated to meet with senior White House officials Tuesday to exchange thoughts on economic competitiveness, job creation, and innovation.
HEALTH AND SENIORS
Poll: 70 percent like Medicaid expansion in health care reform law
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
One of the most contentious parts of the 2010 health care reform law — a requirement that states expand their Medicaid programs — is supported by a strong majority of Americans, according to a recent poll.
Turnover at health department continues
By Christine Jordan Sexton
Florida Current
Administrative turnover continues at the Florida Department of Health as two of the agency’s highest ranking financial staff abruptly left the agency last week as well as a senior attorney in the state’s medial quality assurance department.
Doctors fight over Universal HMO
By Carol Gentry
Health News Florida
Two doctors who are among Florida’s most aggressive fund-raisers for the Republican Party have had a nasty falling-out over control of an HMO.
CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES
Law can't be a license to kill
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
It is an inconvenient truth for former Gov. Jeb Bush and the state lawmakers who brought Florida the "stand your ground" law in 2005 that it applies even when the person using deadly force pursues the victim or causes the confrontation.
Legislator blames ‘drug abuse, teen pregnancy, rape and assault’ on absence of school prayer
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
In an op-ed defending Florida’s new school prayer bill, which was signed into law by Gov. Rick Scott a week ago, state Rep. Charles Van Zant, R-Palatka, blamed the absence of prayer in schools for numerous social ills, after insisting his bill was not actually about school prayer.
DCF investigators get new ID cards with bar codes verifiable by smart phones
By Ana M. Valdes
Palm Beach Post
Investigators for the Florida Department of Children and Families this week traded in their traditional identification badges for new, high tech cards that agency officials said will help deter fraud and provide more safeguards for residents statewide.
ICE hauls in 3,100 illegal immigrants; 139 in South Florida
By Mike Clary
South Florida Sun Sentinel
More than 3,100 illegal immigrants living in the U.S., including 139 in South Florida, were arrested and are scheduled for criminal trial or deportation after a weeklong roundup that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement touted as the largest in years.
JUSTICE AND THE COURTS
Court clerks seek reprieve from state budget cutsBy Mike Salinero
Tampa Tribune
Clerks of court from seven of Florida's largest counties are looking for help from Gov. Rick Scott and a legislative committee in restoring $31 million cut from the clerks' budget earlier this year.
Miccosukee Indian Tribe alleges ‘fraud’ in legal malpractice suit against former Miami U.S. attorney and law partner
By Jay Weaver
Miami Herald
The Miccosukee Indians are accusing two Miami defense attorneys of operating a “secret and sophisticated scheme” to fleece them as they raked in millions of dollars in legal fees representing the tribe and several members during the past decade, according to a lawsuit filed Monday.
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