A construction company out of Hillsborough County, Gale Force Roofing and Restoration, LLC, challenged the new property-insurance law in Florida that took effect on July 1st.
The case, filed in June and reviewed by Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker on Friday, argues that a section of the new law (SB 76) violates the company’s first amendment rights by prohibiting them from certain advertisements that encourage homeowners to file roof-damage insurance claims.
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U.S. Representative Val Demings of Florida’s 10th Congressional District has raised $4.6 million in the first quarter of her campaign to unseat Marco Rubio as Senator in 2022.
Neither Demings or Rubio have officially submitted their campaign finances to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for quarter two, but both parties have released information regarding what those numbers should look like when they do.
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The Florida Bar announced the creation of the Condominium Law and Policy on Life Safety Task Force, in response to the recent events in Surfside.
The Task Force will aid the Florida Legislature and Governor DeSantis by reviewing “all aspects of Florida condominium law, development, association operations, and maintenance,” to determine if changes are needed to “minimize the likelihood of a similar tragedy,” the news release stated.
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Governor Ron DeSantis announced property-tax relief for the families of victims and survivors of the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside in the early morning of June 24.
The announcement was made during a news conference that included statements from Governor DeSantis, South Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett, and Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
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Florida’s Agricultural Commissioner Nikki Fried has failed to publicly disclose her 2020 financial interests to the Florida Commission on Ethics (FCOE) by last week’s July 1st deadline.
Disclosure of financial interest is required by all constitutional officers as well as candidates for constitutional offices, and is submitted through what is known as Form 6.
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As a result of an increase in threats to members of Congress since January’s Capitol riot, the United States Capitol Police (USCP) announced its plan to establish field offices in Florida and California to investigate said threats.
As clarified in an email sent to the News Service of Florida, the specific locations within the two states will be the Tampa and San Francisco areas.
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A motion proposing a temporary injunction against a Palm Beach County Emergency Order (EO-12) involving a mask mandate, was denied for review by the Florida Supreme Court Friday.
The proposal was initially rejected by Florida’s 4th District Court of Appeals in January and sent for the “discretionary jurisdiction” of the Supreme Court in February.
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Democratic gubernatorial candidate and Florida’s current Agricultural Commissioner Nikki Fried released the amount of funds she was able to raise in the first month of her campaign.
Compared to other candidates like fellow Democrat Charlie Crist, and current Governor Ron DeSantis, Fried significantly trails both in total cash on hand towards campaigning.
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A former Florida Senator and Democrat, José Javier Rodriguez, was nominated by President Joe Biden for Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training Administration (ETA) for the U.S. Department of Labor.
Rodriquez served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 2012 to 2016, and served on the Florida Senate from 2016 to 2020, representing Districts 112 and 37 respectively.
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Th U.S. Department of Education (USDOE) has questioned Governor Desantis’ announcement to give Florida teachers a $1,000 bonus for returning to the classroom for the upcoming school year.
On Wednesday, the USDOE sent a letter to Florida Education Commissioner, Richard Corcoran, that claimed the approved bonuses do not fit the eligible guidelines set by federal agency, as reported by the Associated Press (AP).
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The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) reported a decrease in unemployment claims in Florida for the week that ended June 26th, the last day jobless Floridians were able to receive federal unemployment assistance.
Data released Thursday by the DOL shows 6,086 new claims for that week, a decrease of 7,667 claims from the week that ended on June 19th.
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After a unanimous vote from the Florida Senate and House of Representatives in April, HB 7051 (otherwise known as the Police Reform Bill), was signed into law Tuesday by Governor DeSantis.
As the bill title states, the law will create better protocols regarding law enforcement applicants, as well as amend others such as the use-of-force protocol.
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In response to a motion to drop criminal charges against former Florida Department of Health (FDOH) employee Rebekah Jones, Leon County circuit judge Francis Allman denied dismissal of the charges.
Jones is being charged for illegally accessing a FDOH computer system and sending a group message encouraging other employees to accuse DeSantis and the FDOH of covering up COVID-19 data regarding cases and deaths.
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A political committee focused on voting registration, established by Florida Democratic Representative Anna Eskamani, will add nine paid staff members for the upcoming 2022 election.
The goal of the committee, known as People Power of Florida, is to register 25,000 new voters before November 2022, in accordance to Eskamani’s voter registration training program she announced last week.
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Governor DeSantis announced the deployment of Florida law enforcement officials and equipment to provide assistance to the border crisis presented in a joint letter by Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Arizona Governor Doug Ducey.
Over 50 Officials from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), Florida Highway Patrol (FHP), and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have already made their way to Texas.
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A bill signed into law by Governor DeSantis will establish a new workforce program in Florida that will focus on creating a network of employment resources for students while they are in school.
The bill, HB 1507, aims to create an easier transition for students who do not plan on taking the college route to gain successful careers.
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Tuesday was the deadline for candidates seeking an appointment to the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) to submit applications to the Florida Public Service Commission Nominating Council.
The Council will interview all the candidates and determine a select few for Governor Ron DeSantis to choose from in his decision to fill positions of two current members of the PSC, whose terms expire in January 2022.
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Third grade students who were able to attend in-person teaching had “more consistent learning outcomes” in English Language Arts (ELA), according to the Florida Department of Education (FDOE).
The FDOE made an announcement Tuesday based off ELA results in the Grade 3 Florida Standards Assessment (FSA) between Spring 2019 and Spring 2021.
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A $50 million medical marijuana treatment center (MMTC) license will soon be reserved for an African American farmer after Florida’s Supreme Court upheld a 2017 law that included a provision designating such application to litigants in the Pigford vs. Glickman lawsuit from 1999.
The class action lawsuit accused the U.S. Department of Agriculture of discrimination against African American farmers when allocating farm loans and other financial assistance from 1981-1996, which was settled in favor of the farmers.
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Governor Ron DeSantis announced $51 million in funding for Alzheimer’s and dementia research, according to a press release from the Governor’s Office Monday.
The release highlights a $12 million increase for the 2021-2022 Fiscal Year and how Florida is the only state in the nation that Alzheimer’s and related dementias are a specific priority in its State Health Improvement Plan.
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One of the 24 bills officially submitted to Governor Ron DeSantis Friday was the parental rights bill (HB 241). If it is approved by DeSantis, the bill would establish and expand parents rights related to the health care and education of their minor child or children.
One of the major changes the bill brings to the current law is the expansion in parents rights over their child’s school records that currently sits primarily in the hands of schools and their districts. Two of these rights – in Section 5, Section 1014.04 (a) and (d) Florida Statutes – include the right to direct the education and care of his or her minor child and the right to access and review all school records relating to his or her minor child.
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In the most recent data released by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) on Friday, the May unemployment rate in Florida was 4.9%, up .1% from the unemployment rate in April.
Although the the number of individuals who qualified for unemployment rose from 488,000 in April to 503,000 in May, the labor force increased by 72,000 people during the same time.
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A law (SB 1890) signed in May by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis that places a $3,000 limit on contributions to political committees collecting petition signatures for ballot initiatives recently faced legal opposition from state officials.
A preliminary injunction was requested by the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida (ACLU) and three political committees who argue SB 1890 violates First Amendment rights and makes it harder to acquire petition signatures and funds needed to amend the Florida Constitution.
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The U.S. Supreme Court decided Thursday to uphold a 2017 provision part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, that was challenged by Florida’s Attorney General Ashley Moody, and 17 other states.
The provision nullified an “individual mandate” or “minimum essential coverage” established in a 2012 court decision that was intended to put a tax penalty on Americans who did not purchase health insurance or enroll in Medicaid.
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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis proposed two executive orders to the Florida Executive Board of Clemency Wednesday that continues his pursuit to stop local governments from establishing overreaching COVID-19 restrictions.
The two orders, EO 21-132 and EO 21-133, would grant full pardon for individuals or businesses who are charged with non-violent civil and criminal offenses related to breaking local COVID-19 restrictions; and waive fees or fines associated with breaking COVID-19 restrictions, respectively.
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During a Florida Cabinet meeting Tuesday, Governor Ron DeSantis insinuated the possibility of appointing a new secretary for the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) without the Cabinet’s approval.
Controversy regarding the appointment comes after Former DEP Secretary Noah Valenstein, who had held the position for four years and was approved by the Cabinet in 2017 and 2019, officially resigned on June 4th.
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A discrepancy between Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried’s English and Spanish websites has been recently criticized as a deliberate attempt to withhold progressive ideas from Hispanic and Latino voters.
Newsweek noticed the discrepancy and quickly questioned Fried’s campaign team who, without responding, changed the Spanish website to match the English website.
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State Representative Michele Rayner of District 70 officially announced her campaign for U.S. Congress in 2022 to replace the seat left vacant by Charlie Crist and his bid for Governor.
Rayner, a Democrat and the first openly gay woman of color elected to the Florida Legislature, will join a list of candidates in the upcoming primary looking to represent the Democratic party in the 13th Congressional District of Florida.
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Beginning July 1st, a new law will allow student athletes in Florida who play for a college or university the ability to profit from third-party organizations using their name, image, and likeness or NIL.
While NIL was set to be discussed on June 22nd by the Florida Board of Governors who oversee state universities, the proposal by the Board of Education Thursday established NIL rules to include state colleges within the new law.
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The month of April became the ninth consecutive month that the state of Florida exceeded its expected revenue calculations, with 56% of the total revenue gain coming from sales-tax collections.
Sales-tax revenue accounted for $2.7993 billion, which is 19% or $447.6 million more than the estimated projection of approximately $2.3516 billion that was established by the Florida Office of Economic and Demographic Research (EDR) at the General Revenue Estimating Conference.
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The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) reported the lowest number of initial unemployment claims in Florida since the week that ended March 14th, 2020.
According to the DOL, the week that ended June 5th recorded an estimated 5,800 initial unemployment claims, which is down from a revised number of 8,257 claims from the week before.
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The Board of Directors for Visit Florida, the state’s official tourism marketing corporation, approved over $130,000 in raises for CEO of Visit Florida Dana Young and her staff members.
Visit Florida is a non-profit corporation established in 1996 as a public and private partnership by the Florida Legislature that appropriates public funds or taxpayer money to tourism marketing. In 2021, the Florida tourism marketing budget consists of $75 million in state and federal funds.
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Gubernatorial candidate and current U.S. Representative Charlie Crist created a Voting Rights Tour of the state of Florida to advocate against GOP leadership in Florida and their efforts to establish stricter voting provisions for Floridians.
Crist began his tour on Tuesday and will visit seven cities in Florida before wrapping it up on Friday. The selected cities include: Tallahassee, Tampa, West Palm Beach, Broward County, Miami, Orlando, and Gainesville.
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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed three bills (HB 429, HB 435,SB 922) in Ponte Vedra Beach Friday, focusing on military and veteran related issues regarding education and employment.
The new laws will establish a “Purple Star Campus Program,” help transitioning servicemembers gain workforce training, and enhance veterans’ preference in hiring, as stated in the Governor’s office press release.
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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis vetoed $2 million dollars Wednesday that would have been included within the budget established during the last Legislative session for the upcoming fiscal year.
The money was intended to help low-income girls and young women have more access to long-acting reversible contraception or LARCs, and was backed by Senate President Wilton Simpson (R).
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A provision of the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act that was signed into law Tuesday by Governor Ron DeSantis, involves public-school parents being able to request that their children be held-back for the 2021-2022 school year.
The provision will only affect students in kindergarten through fifth grade and is available due to what is known as the “Covid slide,” referring to the drop in learning progression in many students during the pandemic.
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A multi-state lawsuit against President Joe Biden that was filed in March 2021 had an amended complaint filed on Tuesday that was joined in support by Florida Attorney General, Ashley Moody.
The multi-state lawsuit is in regard to President Biden’s decision to revoke the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline that was initially permitted by former President Donald Trump in 2019.
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It is officially the beginning of hurricane season and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts an above-average number of named storms in 2021.
As stated on the NOAA’s website, forecasters predict a 60% chance of an above-average season, a 30% chance of an average season, while predicting only a 10% chance of a below-average season. An average hurricane season produces 14 named storms, 7 of which being hurricanes, and only 3 that are considered ‘major’ hurricanes.
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Florida’s prepaid toll program, SunPass, announced the addition of the SunPass PRO on Friday that will allow Floridians to travel through other states’ tolls with only one toll account.
The announcement comes after the Florida Turnpike Enterprise partnered with 35 toll agencies across 19 states who utilize E-ZPass for prepaid tolls which will now accept SunPass PRO.
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Noah Valenstein, Secretary for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), recently announced his resignation after serving in the position for almost four years.
Valenstein has worked for the Department under former Governor Rick Scott and current Governor, Ron DeSantis, who was updated on Valenstein’s decision on May 8th. On June 4th, Valenstein’s spot will be filled by Shawn Hamilton as interim DEP secretary.
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Gainesville city officials are challenging a future state law, SB 2006, that prohibits local governments, schools, and businesses from requiring individuals to show proof of the COVID-19 vaccination to receive services or allowed entry.
For Gainesville city employees, the city has issued voluntary proof of vaccination, or vaccine passports, so that individuals who show proof can abide by looser CDC guidelines which involve not wearing a mask nor socially distancing for people who are fully vaccinated.
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Jobless claims in Florida continue to decline week-to-week as the U.S. Department of Labor recorded the lowest number of claims in a week since the week that ended on March 14th, 2020.
The number of unemployment claims for the week that ended May 22nd was 8,864, which is down from the previous week that has a revised count of 14,561 claims.
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Less than a week from the start of hurricane season, an estimated 53,205 homeowners insurance policyholders in Florida will have their policies cancelled or nonrenewed after approval by the Florida Office of Financial Regulation.
The Florida regulator approved Office of Insurance Regulation consent orders for three Florida-based insurance companies: Universal Insurance Co. of North America (UICNA), Southern Fidelity Insurance Co., and Gulfstream Property and Casualty.
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Heading into Memorial Day weekend, Floridians can expect for gas prices to decrease for the first time in over three weeks after the attack on the Colonial Pipeline.
While the majority of the state receives gas from the multiple ports on Florida’s coast, the disruption of the pipeline caused widespread panic-buying among the parts of the state that do use it, which in turn caused gas prices to increase as demand was high and there was limited supply.
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Democrat and Florida House Representative Stephanie Murphy announced Monday that she will not challenge current U.S. Senator Marco Rubio for his seat in the 2022 election.
Murphy made her decision after House Representative Val Demings declared her run for U.S. Senate as opposed to initial claims of her running for Governor against Ron DeSantis.
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Surrounded by lawmakers at a Home Depot in Pensacola, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill (HB 7061) into law Friday that establishes three “sales-tax holidays” throughout the summer that aims to give tax relief to Floridians.
The sales-tax holidays include: the “Disaster Preparedness” holiday from May 28th, 2021, through June 3rd, 2021, the “Freedom Week” holiday from July 1st, 2021, through July 7th, 2021, and the “Back-to-School” holiday from August 6th, 2021, through August 12th, 2021.
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A federal lawsuit was filed Monday in Tampa by statewide real-estate group Florida Realtors, and Pinellas County based real-estate firm, R.W. Caldwell Inc. that challenges the federal moratorium implemented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The moratorium established by the CDC was originally issued in September 2020 and was meant to expire by December 31st , 2020. The expiration date has since been extended three times, with the new expiration date on June 3oth, 2021. Florida Realtors called the moratorium “an unprecedented and unlawful federal administrative order.”
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The Florida State Board of Education will soon make a decision on an anti-indoctrination rule that will change the way U.S. History is taught in public schools.
The rule aims to establish strict guidelines for U.S. History that will try to eliminate students being indoctrinated by teachers by taking subjectivity out of the curriculum and focusing on facts that do not distort significant historical events.
Under the proposed rule, discussions held within the classroom must be considered appropriate for the different age and maturity levels of students that aligns with their specific grade level. During classroom discussion, teachers are prohibited from sharing their personal opinions and will be encouraged to let students develop their own perspective without influence or persuasion from the teacher’s point of view.
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More than $800 million in federal funds have been accepted by the Florida Legislature to provide Floridians rental assistance through the website, OURFlorida.com. The site began accepting applications last week.
The ‘OUR,’ standing for Opportunities for Utilities and Rental Assistance, is available to all Floridians. Both tenants and landlords may apply for the federal assistance to cover losses taken in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
With federal funding available statewide, Floridians in counties with populations under 200,000 people, who were unable to receive previous rental assistance provided by the federal government, will now be eligible to apply for and receive assistance.
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After negotiations between Governor DeSantis and the Seminole Tribe of Florida, the Florida House and Florida Senate passed a bill on Wednesday that ratifies the Seminole Gaming Compact.
Under the compact, the Seminole Tribe of Florida will act as the state’s centralized location for sports betting. The deal requires the tribe to work with a minimum of three pari-mutuels within three months after sports betting goes live on Oct. 15.
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