Florida House and Senate members will convene in Tallahassee tomorrow for the state’s annual legislative session, which runs through May 6th. With our state under the leadership of a new Governor and several contentious matters already being discussed, it will be interesting to see how the session plays out. Among the numerous issues up for consideration over the next 60 days are proposals to reform Florida’s Medicaid system, View full article »
“Oh What a Night”
Election 2010 will go down in the history books! For the first time in 100 years, Florida elected new people in each of its four cabinet positions, and the Republican leadership grew its majority in the Florida House and Senate by enough seats to secure a veto-proof Legislature. Half of the Florida cabinet has never held elected office before, as Governor-elect Scott and Attorney General-elect Bondi are both political newcomers. View full article »
Last week state lawmakers wrapped up what turned out to be a contentious and difficult legislative session. The House and Senate adjourned Sine Die late Friday evening, officially bringing the 2010 session to a close. While there were many important topics on the table this year including education reform, legislative redistricting and key health care proposals, the session was really dominated by two key issues: the state’s continued economic woes and the political strife between the Governor and the Legislature. View full article »
April 2010
This week state lawmakers kicked off the second half of the 2010 Florida legislative session and it has already been a busy one, with House and Senate members addressing a number of important matters over the last several weeks. View full article »
March 2010
State House and Senate members convene in Tallahassee today for Florida’s annual legislative session, which runs through April 30th. The list of priority issues to be addressed is extensive, with topics ranging from health care reform to economic development incentives for Florida businesses. As in recent years, the 2010 session will be dominated by one major issue: the economy. Lawmakers will be faced with some difficult decisions with regard to Florida’s budget, which is the only bill members are required to pass. While recent reports indicate some growth in Florida for the first time in four years, it will not be enough to make any significant difference for the coming budget year. With record unemployment at nearly 12 percent and a continued decline in tax receipts, Florida essentially remains a “zero growth” state. View full article »
May 2009
The 2009 legislative session kicked off on March 3 with Florida lawmakers facing a very bleak economic forecast. House and Senate members would have 60 days to debate and vote on legislation, as well as the budget for Fiscal Year 2009-10. Legislators spent much of January and February in committee meetings discussing what would become the main issues for debate during session and bracing for the difficult task of balancing the state budget in a time of severe economic downturn. View full article »
March 2009
Lawmakers kicked off the 2009 legislative session this week in Tallahassee. During the 60-day session, House and Senate members will be faced with the difficult task of balancing the 2009-10 state budget in a time of severe economic downturn. View full article »
January 2009
2009 is already proving to be another challenging year for Florida government. The state has been greatly affected by the economic downturn plaguing the nation and as a result, retail sales have slowed and unemployment continues to climb as many Florida businesses are downsizing and laying off workers. The collapse of the housing market was particularly disastrous for Florida. In fact, a report released earlier this month showed Florida having the second highest foreclosure rate in the nation in 2008. By the end of last year, revenue estimates were reporting a $2.4 billion shortfall in the state budget for Fiscal Year 2008-09. This drastic change in the state’s economic situation led Governor Crist to call a special legislative session to address these issues. View full article »
