PROGRESS
FLORIDA IN THE NEWS
Movement underway to overturn Florida's gay marriage ban
By Troy Kinsey
Tampa Bay News 9
Excerpt: Damien Filer with Progress Florida is in full support of legalizing gay marriage, but he said he doubts it will happen in 2014. "I don't think it's realistic to decide, basically about six to eight months before you'd have to qualify for the ballot, to start this whole process," he said. "It's really a multi-year process to do this."
FEATURED
STORIES
Scott's push for deregulation could have far-reaching effects
By Aaron Deslatte
Orlando Sentinel
Related editorial: Bonuses clash with DEP role to guard resources
Adena Springs Ranch is a battle of Old Florida proportions between environmentalists and the new push for deregulation fostered by Gov. Rick Scott's order to gut government "red tape."
As state GOP unleashes on Charlie Crist, his former Republican donors take a more affable approach
By Matt Dixon
Florida Times-Union
As the political tea leaves indicate that former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist will seek his old job as a Democrat, the state GOP has started to sharpen its attacks.
Gov. Scott hits campaign trail in rural, GOP-voting Panhandle
By Steve Bousquet
Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Gov. Rick Scott chose an unusual location to pitch his campaign theme that "everybody should be a Republican."
Committee supporting Rick Scott spent $112k buying governor's mansion ornaments
By Matt Dixon
Florida Times-Union
Of the $627,440 spent this year by Let’s Get to Work, a committee supporting Gov. Rick Scott’s re-election campaigns, nearly 20 percent was to purchase ornaments from the foundation setup to support the governor’s mansion.
FLORIDA
POLITICS
Gov. Scott says search for next LG will be 'internal'
By Steve Bousquet
Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Gov. Rick Scott said Monday that the search for his new lieuteuant governor will be headed by chief of staff Adam Hollingsworth, and he emphasized it will be "internal" with no vetting by outsiders.
Scott touts job creation at Republican party dinner
By Jeff Burlew
Tallahassee Democrat
Gov. Rick Scott capped off a long holiday weekend of North Florida campaign appearances with a stop Monday night in Wakulla County, where he was the featured guest of a barbecue dinner hosted by the local Republican Party.
DBPR deputy secretary quits abruptly a week after report
By Bill Cotterell
Tallahassee Democrat
A high-ranking executive of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation abruptly resigned without explanation Monday, a week after a blistering internal investigation report said he told six alcoholic-beverage agents that employees were expected to obey illegal or unethical orders, or find new jobs.
Weatherford to announce new committee assignments next month; few changes anticipated
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
House Speaker Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, sent a letter to all 120-members of the House on Monday, alerting them to changes in committee membership he will make next month, but also hinting there won’t be an overhaul of committee assignments.
Fla GOP beefing up staff
By Adam C. Smith
Tampa Bay Times
From the Republican Party of Florida today:
POLITICAL
RACES
Graham raises $375K in first three months of campaign
By Ledyard King
Tallahassee Democrat
Democrat Gwen Graham raked in an impressive $375,000 during her first three months of fundraising in her campaign to unseat GOP congressional incumbent Steve Southerland in 2014.
BALLOT
INITIATIVES
New push in Florida for medical marijuana
By Zac Anderson
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Kim Russell is not a hippie. A devout Christian, Russell homeschools her children and drives them to play dates in a minivan.
ENVIRONMENT
AND ENERGY
Warnings, watches in path of Tropical Storm Chantal; South Florida in early cone of probability
By Sonja Isger and Julius Whigham II
Palm Beach Post
Tropical Storm Chantal was moving toward the Lesser Antilles late tonight as several Caribbean islands were under storm warnings or watches.
DEP uses 2 figures now to report statewide increase in recycling in 2012
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Current
Florida's statewide recycling rate jumped from 30 percent in 2011 to either 35 or 48 percent in 2012, depending on which figure you choose to accept.
EDUCATION
Voucher program growing rapidly
News Service of Florida
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
The state's voucher-like system that allows students to attend private schools experienced record enrollment growth in the 2012-13 school year, according to a state report, and a spokesman said the program expects to add even more students for the upcoming year.
Lake County School Board focuses on final details of austere new budget
By Erica Rodriguez
Orlando Sentinel
Lake County schoolchildren next month will be greeted with a lot of changes, including major busing cutbacks, fewer guidance counselors to help with college plans and fewer staffers to help give state-mandated tests.
Band director moving to Connecticut says 'something terribly wrong with the system'
By Lauren Ritchie
Orlando Sentinel
This is the story of one teacher's journey of passion, and unfortunately for students in Lake County, the trail leads far from here.
Students hope Congress can reach deal on lower loan rates
Staff Report
Daytona Beach News Journal
Olivia Lisbon was ecstatic when she was accepted to start classes this fall at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach. Her only problem — how to pay for it — became an even bigger concern last week after Congress failed to reach an agreement on extending lower interest rates on student loans.
JOBS,
BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
GOP Gulf governors say federal furloughs hurt hurricane preparedness
By Dara Kam
Palm Beach Post
Gov. Rick Scott and two other Republican Gulf Coast governors have asked President Obama to immediately suspend National Guard furloughs, saying the cutbacks make their states vulnerable during hurricane season.
Scott touts expansion of waste disposal company in Ponte Vedra
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
Gov. Rick Scott announced the anticipated addition of 85 jobs on Monday during a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Ponte Vedra, part of the expansion of the corporate headquarters of Advanced Disposal, a waste management company.
Study: Florida is more entrepreneurial than nation as a whole
By Nancy Dahlberg
Miami Herald
We're about 30 percent more entrepreneurial than the nation as a whole.
Fla. Lottery sales top $5 billion for first time
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
The Florida Lottery topped $5 billion in sales for the first time during the fiscal year that ended June 30, the department announced Monday.
Don't make workers pay to get paid
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
Low-wage workers are often one broken-down car, one injury or one unexpected expense away from disaster.
HEALTH
AND SENIORS
Reaction to delay in health care act
Staff Report
Tampa Bay Times
Editor's note: Last week, the Obama administration abruptly postponed a key piece of the Affordable Care Act — the requirement that larger employers provide affordable health insurance or pay penalties.
Health reform will help businesses
Editorial
South Florida Sun Sentinel
"Help the poor" is not an appeal that goes very far in the Florida Legislature. But, "keep Florida business competitive" is more likely to galvanize Tallahassee.
Troubled Tampa nursing home loses funding, will close
By Carol Marbin Miller
Miami Herald
Federal health regulators are cutting off all Medicaid and Medicare payments to a Tampa nursing home that was accused earlier this year of failing to provide “meaningful” activities to the severely disabled children who live there — making Lakeshore Villas the second pediatric nursing home to close this year amid controversy over the warehousing of frail children.
20-week ban latest assault on abortion rights
Editorial
South Florida Sun Sentinel
Attempts by conservatives to chip away at abortion rights continue.
IMMIGRATION,
CIVIL RIGHTS AND SOCIAL ISSUES
ACLU urges limits on police use of Florida prescription drug database
By Dara Kam
Palm Beach Post
The state should limit law-enforcement agents’ ability to go on “fishing expeditions” with Florida’s prescription drug database, including requiring them to get a search warrant to access the database, an ACLU lobbyist told health officials Monday.
JUSTICE
AND THE COURTS
State aimed too high in Zimmerman prosecution
By Carl Hiaasen
Miami Herald
The prosecutors of George Zimmerman are taking a drubbing in the media, as well as in the courtroom.
Execution scheduled for Fla. man in 1988 slaying
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
A former escort service owner who was convicted of killing two women is scheduled to die by lethal injection at Florida State Prison on Wednesday.
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