Today’s (Thursday’s) session of the Florida Senate was dominated by discussion of a controversial overhaul of state election laws that has received plenty of national attention. Steve Bousquet reports on where the bill stands in the final days of the session. Despite the impassioned debate, no Senate vote came today. That’s expected sometime next week.
The Florida House has approved the latest and larges expansion of school choice programs and the state Senate is poised to follow. The proposal would consolidate the state’s choice programs and expand eligibility to families making up to 100-thousand dollars a year. More on the story from Lynn Hatter.
A bill that would crack down on social media companies that block the accounts of government officials or political candidates is moving closer to final passage in the Florida Legislature. Governor Ron DeSantis introduced the proposal following Twitter’s decision to remove former President Donald Trump’s account after Trump’s supporters stormed the U-S Capitol. Valerie Crowder reports the bill has the support of Republicans in the legislature, but Democrats aren’t fully on board.
LGBTQ advocates are speaking out against proposals in the legislature they say could harm LGBTQ youth. One involves the ability of transgender women and girls to compete on female scholastic sports teams. The other clarifies the rights parents have over their children in schools. But opponents worry it could force school officials to reveal private conversations with students. More from Robbie Gaffney.
Florida lawmakers are working to make good on a promise this year to protect small businesses and crack down on frivolous lawsuits. Kevin Del Orbe has more.
A measure to expand telehealth has passed in the Florida House and is headed to the Senate. Regan McCarthy reports the proposal would keep many of the state’s pandemic-era telephealth practices in place.
Typically at this point in the Florida Legislative Session, we are all about Tallahassee. But Broward County was rocked yesterday (Wednesday) as two of the school district’s top officials were placed under arrest. There’s team coverage on that story from WLRN’s Jessica Bakeman and Caitie Switalski Munoz.