The Aftermath of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting has flipped Florida’s Legislature, changing its focus to debates on firearms and school safety. Supporters of gun reform rallied outside the Capitol Monday with one clear message: action. Andrew Quintana reports.
Several gun safety proposals passed their first Florida Senate committee. As Sascha Cordner reports, while top GOP lawmakers are calling the effort bipartisan, some of the Democrats who are pushing for more gun reforms don’t quite see things that way.
On Friday, Governor Rick Scott announced his plan for responding to the mass shooting at Douglas Stoneman High. It includes $50 million in additional funding to expand mental health services for children and youth. The move comes as lawmakers consider the recommendations of a panel they created last year to study the statewide rise in minors being involuntarily examined under the Baker Act. Margie Menzel prepared this report.
Florida lawmakers really only have one job, and it’s not to make laws; it’s to pass a budget. But as Lynn Hatter reports, the recent shooting at a South Florida high school and its resulting debate over gun control, has pushed the budgetary task to the back-burner, and could throw the legislature into overtime.
Lawmakers are pushing a pair of gambling overhaul bills forward. But Regan McCarthy reports with just weeks left in the legislative session, leaders admit their priorities may lie elsewhere.