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The clock is ticking on the state’s gambling deal with the Seminole Tribe. As Matt Galka tells us, state lawmakers say they won’t discuss a new deal during their special session at the end of the month, meaning time could run out on blackjack being offered at casinos around Florida.

The ongoing back and forth between state officials and the Seminole Tribe over gambling at the Indian casinos has a big hurdle coming up.  The Seminole Compact which allows the Tribe to  exclusively offer blackjack is officially expiring at the end of the month. Senator Rob Bradley chairs his chamber’s regulated industry committee and says that conversations about a new deal are going well.

“The state of Florida and the tribe are making significant progress, and I feel like we’re headed in the right direction but we’re not there yet,” said Sen. Bradley.

The legislature doesn’t exactly have an Ace up their sleeve. They won’t be discussing the compact during this month’s special session according to Bradley.

State lawmakers will convene for a special session on October 19^th. The Seminole Compact’s grace period for blackjack runs out on October 29^th.

“The expectation is that they’ve signed an agreement that if there’s not a path forward to extend than they cannot offer blackjack games anymore…Keep in mind that the tribe has rights to gaming, types of gaming that do not include blackjack. Nobody is closing any doors,” he said.

The Tribe said earlier this year that they believe the state has already violated the terms of the deal by allowing video blackjack to other casinos around the state.

In response to Bradley’s comments, a spokesman for the Tribe simply said “conversations are continuing.”

The original deal was worth $1 billion dollars to Florida. But because the Tribe believes the state already violated the compact, they believe they can still deal blackjack and not continue to pay.

As we reported last week, State Health officials don’t know when they will issue 5 licenses required by law to grow legal marijuana. When the licenses are issued, it will become an expensive investment, and as Mike Vasilinda tells us, those applying to grow legal pot are looking to the future for profits.

In British Columbia, Canada, investors spent 30 million setting up a marijuana growing and processing facility. Named Tilray, It serves the countries medical marijuana patients. On a tour, Tilray President Greg Engle pointed out heavy security that was evident at every turn.

“Intrusion sensors everywhere. We have to have a two foot gap beside it, so very high security” says Engle.

The company has partnered with two growers in Florida, one in the northeast and the other in the southeast regions of the state, to grow legal pot here. Their Canadian grow house offers a look at how a Florida operation could look.

Senator Audrey Gibson (D-Jacksonville) was one of two Florida lawmakers on the tour. She was impressed.

“I like the set up, and I like the security they have in place. I think it would be a good model for Florida to follow” says Gibson

Those who have applied for licenses are actually betting on the future. Not what the current law will mean for their profits.

Florida Growers can expect a seven to nine million dollar investment…far less than the Canadian facility, in part because of the weather.  Still, says Jeff Sharkey, the President of the Florida Marijuana Business Association says earning profits under the current law could be an uphill battle.

“I would guarantee you that everybody who has applied is anticipating an expanded regulatory framework of additional medical conditions for more patients” says Sharkey.

Right now only an estimated 9 thousand people would qualify under the current law. But if voters or lawmakers approve full blown medical marijuana…there could be half a million patients. Which is why investors are willing to take a risk.

Once the state selects 5 growers, they’ll have a week and a half to post a five million dollar performance bond.

81 Year old Tom Cawood left San Deigo California on his bicycle August 24th with his wife following in an RV. They are headed for Saint Augustine Florida, in part to see if he can make it and in part to do some good. Six weeks later, as Mike Vasilinda tells us, the couple’s destination is almost within sight.

When Tom Cawood was a preschooler with TB, he was told he’d be lucky to live to age 20. At 59 when he broke a hip, he was told he’d never ride a bike again, and seven years ago after a motorcycle accident, he was told to take it easy.

“Here I am 81” he told us upon arriving in Tallahassee.

Tom and Wife Pat pulled into the state Capitol on Friday, 250 miles short of finishing their three thousand mile trek from San Deigo to St. Augustine.

“There were times we thought this would never occur.”

Like when he was riding up an 8 thousand foot peak.
“it’s much more difficult than I thought it would be. But yet, its very gratifying.”

But there was one 13 mile stretch where he was able to coast downhill.

The bulk of his ride has been along busy US 90…

Q:”You got hit by a pickup truck, right?”

“At least part of a pickup truck. The side view mirror.”

Tom’s is quick to point out he couldn’t have gotten this far without Pat.

“Where there’s a will, there’s a way” says Pat, who encouraged him to make the trip in the first place.

The Cawood’s have already figured out what happens next.

The couple has two trips to Europe planned. And Christmas with family in Miami. After that…it’s anybody’s guess.

“Life is like waterskiing. If you slow down, you go down” says Tom.

And based on what we’ve seen, that’s not likely to happen.”

When asked what he wanted to do at the conclusion of the ride, Mr Cawood told us he’s like to just sit on his deck drinking a cup of coffee and doing nothing…which even he acknowledged wouldn’t last for long.

If you’ve watched even a little bit of a sporting event this year, you’ve probably seen a commercial for companies DraftKings and FanDuel. As Matt Galka tells us, the fantasy sports businesses could create plenty of real problems in the state.

The advertisements are almost unavoidable.

Daily fantasy sports companies Draft Kings and FanDuel hock the chance to win big bucks from a small deposit and depend on the outcomes of sporting events.

A contestant picks a fantasy sports team and wins based on player performance. But Florida State gambling law professor Marc Dunbar says the “games of skill” exemption – which separates the companies from traditional games of chance gambling – doesn’t apply in Florida.

“There’s pretty much no question, they’re illegal the way they operate under Florida law,” he said.

A 1991 opinion from former Attorney General Bob Butterworth specifically prohibits fantasy sports wagers. The opinion was released well before Daily Fantasy Sports were established.

The Florida Senate’s Regulated Industries Chairman Rob Bradley (R-Fleming Island) says the companies haven’t gone unnoticed

“The way that they are marketing those products, it certainly looks like what they’re advertising is something akin to traditional sports betting,” said Sen. Bradley.

Bradley says he only has preliminary thoughts and hasn’t focused much on what, if anything can be done. But both Draft Kings and Fan Duel are digging in for a potential battle. Both companies have hired the same team of heavy hitting Tallahassee lobbyists in preparation for 2016’s legislative session.

We reached out to both DraftKings and FanDuel but we have not received comment back yet.  The Attorney General’s office told us in a statement that they are “not currently investigating the companies.”

Nearly one point four million Floridians had their drivers license suspended last year. The vast majority of the suspensions were for failing to pay a fine, and as Mike Vasilinda tells us, lawmakers say the system creates a vicious cycle from which some people never recover.

Every day, on just about every police blotter in Florida, someone is charged with driving without a valid license.

Maureen Johnson works for the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles ans was asked to testify before the Senate Transportation Committee.  “A suspension fee would be sixty dollars to reinstate” she told Senators.

The licenses of more than one million Floridians were suspended last year simply for not paying a fine. More than three hundred thousand of those people still haven’t paid and they remain unable to legally drive. Leon County Judge Gus Aikens calls it a vicious cycle.

“You couldn’t pay the cost and fines. There is no business purpose only license or employment purpose only license for people who fail to pay.So they are just locked out in terms of their ability to drive” says Judge Aikens.

By the time someone caught driving on a suspended  license gets through the court process, they owe 300 dollars or more in court fees. Add that to a hundred or so that it will also cost them to get their drivers license back.

Federal law requires a license’s to be suspended for drug convictions and for failing to pay child support. Sen. Jeff Brandes (R-St. Petersburg) is the chair of the Senate Transportation Committee.

“How in the world are these people supposed to pay child support if they can’t get to work? And why are we tacking on more and more fees?” says Brandes.

The Senate Transportation Committee has made the fines and resulting suspensions its number one topic for the coming legislative session.

“It just makes it harder for them to pay off their child support and to make good on their obligations” Brandes told reporters.

One of the problems facing lawmakers is that the ticket fines go directly to court funding.

n some areas of the state, people who can’t pay their traffic tickets and fines are allowed to substitute community service hours, but policies vary from county to county.

The Confederate flag is still on display in a prominent place in Florida’s Capitol. As Matt Galka tells us, Florida state Senators could be removing it entirely soon.

It’s not the most noticeable symbol at the Capitol. But for State Senator Arthenia Joyner, the Confederate Flag on the Senate’s seal became plain as day over the summer.

“I’m wearing this seal on my lapel, and there it was. I don’t think many of us had really taken a real look and had seen what those flags were,” said Sen. Joyner (D-Tampa).

Joyner reached out to the Senate President following a racially motivated South Carolina shooting over the summer requesting a discussion about the possible removal of the Confederate flag from the Senate seal.

The Senate rules panel voted unanimously to remove the flag Thursday.

“It’s time for us to have the seal be consistent with our values. We can’t revise history and choose which moments in our history to forget, but we can choose what we highlight in our seal that’s just and right,” said Sen. Darren Soto (D-Kissimmee).

The seal is seen everywhere in the Capitol from doors to stationary and if a majority of the Senate votes to change it, an unknown cost will come with it.

A different Confederate symbol is located in the Capitol Rotunda, with a seal representing one of the five flags that have flown over the state.

Joyner’s rule change wouldn’t cover the rotunda symbol, but a bill filed for 2016 would.

“Senator Thompson’s bill probably includes every facet that deals with the public display of the Confederate flag in the Capitol, both on the grounds and within the building,” said Sen. Joyner.

It was recommended that the rebel flag on the Senate seal be replaced with Florida’s state flag.

The full Senate will vote on the rule change during 2016’s legislative session.  A two-thirds majority is needed for it to change.

The Supreme Court ruling earlier this year legalizing gay marriage across the country has sparked potential new legislation in Florida. As Matt Galka tells us, some in Florida’s Capitol believe clergy need new protections to preserve their faith.

St. Petersburg pastor Paul Gibson doesn’t have same sex couples knocking down his door for him to marry them. But he’s not opposed to doing it.

“My policy would be that I would insist on premarital counseling with them, and after that I would make the decision on whether I thought they should be married, the same way I would with a mixed gender couple,” he said.

Men and women of faith were out in full force Wednesday turning a House committee into a divided religious debate.

State Representative Scott Plakon’s (R-Longwood) “Pastor Protection Act” aims to protect clergy from being forced to marry couples that infringe on their beliefs.

“As everyone knows there’s been numerous changes in the law and the culture,” he said to the committee.

Central Florida Reverend Chris Walker says pastors refusing same sex marriages could be targeted.

“They have their right to be married and that’s fine, they have their license to play house, but we’re going to preach the bible, and we’re not going to be held accountable for preaching the truth, because truth is now the new terrorism,” said Walker.

Opponents of the bill say men and women of the cloth are already protected.

“Pastors cannot be forced to marry people, they have a right to decide who they want to marry,” said Rep. Dwight Dudley (D-St. Petersburg).

Pastor Brant Copeland, who’s church is down the street from the Capitol, said the law isn’t needed and took it a step further.

“I urge you not to adopt this unnecessary and, I think, basically homophobic bill,” he said.

Similar legislation has already passed in Texas and Oklahoma.

Back yard gun ranges and firing a gun into the air to celebrate…if it’s in an urban area, would be against the law under a bill that cleared its second legislative committee today. As Mike Vasilinda tells us, lawmakers say they are trying to balance public safety with the rights of gun owners.

Residents of this quite neighborhood just miles from the state Capitol have been startled more than once by the sound of a shotgun. A neighbor was shooting squirrels.

”It’s very surprising” said a neighbor that was willing to talk with us, but not appear on camera.

“It’s concerning a little bit.”

Q:”Concerning in what way?”

“Um, with animals in the yard. Kids in the yard. You know, what is he really shooting at? What is he doing?”

From St. Petersburg to Ponce Inlet and across Florida, more people are firing weapons on their property. When neighbors complain, they’re told to take it up with the legislature.

”This bill gives law enforcement a tool” Co-Sponsor Rep. Daryl Rouson of St. Petersburg told the committee.

Legislation being considered would ban shooting into the air in urban areas and limit weapons use to property bigger than an acre. Rep. Debbie Mayfield (R-Vero Beach) said common sense is an issue “Any reasonable person would know you should not be shooting a gun in the backyard of a neighborhood” said Mayfield.

The legislation has the backing of the NRA, local governments,  and police.

Frank Fabrizio is the Chief of Police in Ponce Inlet and spoke for the Florida Police Chiefs Association. “The barricades that I’ve seen would make any of us scared. And I certainly wouldn’t stand behind one of these barricades, and I certainly would not want my house behind one of these barricades, and I wouldn’t want to be a neighbor” said Fabrizio.

Our squirrel shooter wouldn’t talk with us on camera, but when we knocked on the door, he did tell us if the law is changed, he’ll obey it.”

If the legislation becomes law, breaking it would result in up to a year in jail and a thousand dollar fine.

The legislation has an exception for the accidental firing of a weapon, which some called a loophole in the bill. The legislation lets police decide if the gun use was reasonable.

Florida owns the record for concealed carry permits in the country. But as Matt Galka tells us, more than one million Floridians with those permits could soon be able to walk around with their guns on display.

45 states allow some type of open carry of firearms.  Florida is one of only five that outlaw it, but that could change soon.

State Representative Matt Gaetz (R-Shalimar) says his open carry proposal is restoring 2nd amendment rights and will lower crime.

“The crime rates in key categories like aggravated assault, murder, robbery, those crime rates are lower in states that allow open carry.  So the suggestion by some of the shrill voices who oppose the second amendment that this will lead to the wild, wild, west is not born out by any of the evidence maintained by the department of justice,” he said.

But not everyone is going in guns blazing on the idea. Retiree and parent Shawn Bartlet says she feels safe right now without open carry.

“There’s a reason Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson doesn’t walk around with his shirt off all the time. It’s scary, it’s intimidating…I don’t want to be on the beach in Siesta Key next to some person who feels that they have to have a handgun in their hand to feel safe,” she said.

The bill passed its first committee, but Democrats who opposed it are worried about just anyone walking down the street carrying a gun in their hands.

Rep. Dave Kerner/(D) Lake Worth

“What we’re talking about is allowing people to walk down the street, with a firearm in their hand, pointed down not pointed at anyone, they can lawfully walk past a bank, past a bar, past a school,” said Rep. Dave Kerner (D-Lake Worth).

Law enforcement groups have yet to take an official position on the bill.

Rep. Matt Gaetz’ father, State Senator Don Gaetz filed the Senate’s version of the bill, but that has yet to be scheduled for a hearing.

The state Department of Health was unable to provide lawmakers with a timeline today as to when low THC marijuana will be available to patients. As Mike Vasilinda tells us, the authorizing legislation was passed almost 18 months ago, and the failure to deliver the medicine is frustrating lawmakers.

Five licenses to grow medical marijuana were supposed to be issued by the Department of Health in January. Legal challenges delayed the licensing. 28 growers eventually applied, but Nicole Geary, the general Counsel for the Department of Health was unable to provide lawmakers with a clue as to when those 5 licensee’s would be chosen.

“The department is very mindful of the need to move forward as quickly as possible” said Geary.

Her answers did not sit well. Rep. Greg Stube (R-Sarasota) questioned why the process was taking so long. “I mean, it’s been almost two years since this bill was passed.  And we still don’t have any restitution for these children that are trying to get this drug that the legislature recognizes is something that is needed for the state of Florida” asked Stube.

Fewer than 50 doctors have taken a course and registered to prescribe low THC marijuana. Jeff Scott from the Florida Medical Assn.

“That act is still technically illegal under Federal law, so that’s s definite concern for physicians in the state. Absolutely.”

Greg Stube is also the sponsor of an expanded medical marijuana bill that did’t get a hearing last year. The delay may change that. “I think it shows there needs to be a very robust regulatory scheme in place in the statute to give very clear guidance to the department on how the process is supposed to take place” Stube told reporters afterward.

Frustration continues to build. So much so that the two original sponsors of the low thc marijuana bill plan to announce later this week that they are filing new legislation.”

The new legislation is likely to expand who qualifies for medical pot..It is also likely to allow increased dosages of THC.

Surgeon General John Armstrong, who heads the Department of Health, was originally an opponent of the low THC legislation, but no one is publicly accusing Armstrong of slow walking the issuance of licenses.

Saying they wanted to make a political statement without compromising the states retirement account, a state senate committee today approved legislation prohibiting the state from buying stock in a company that boycotts Israel. State Senator Joe Negron, the bills sponsor, says the legislation hopes to combat an international effort to hurt Israel’s economy.

“The bill provides that we will not purchase stock from your company going forward and we will not enter into contracts in excess of a million dollars with your company. So I think it sends a strong message that everyone’s entitled to their opinion, but if you are going to use the economy to try and discriminate against Israel, Florida is going to stand with Israel” says Negron.

Florida was one of the first states in the 1990’s to stop investing in the country of South Africa. The new legislation says the retirement system will have a year to divest itself of stock in companies that appear on a “Scrutinized Companies” list.

A pilot project to help find Alzheimer’s victims and Autistic individuals who wander (is expected to clear) a legislative committee at the State Capitol today. As Mike Vasilinda tells us, the idea is to set up a pilot tracking program through the University of Florida.

In this decade, Florida’s population is expected to grow 11 percent…but the number of residents over 65 is expected to jump a whopping 26 percent.. Legislation would set up a hundred thousand dollar pilot program in four NE Florida counties to electronically track Alzheimer’s patients and those with Autism who wander.

Jessica Duncan is with the Alzheimer’s Project. “34 thousand people who have Alzheimer’s or another type of dementia will wander away from their caregiver in the span of a year” says Duncan.

A number of counties already participate in the Project Lifesaver Program. In the State Capitol, the Sheriff’s office operates the tracking devices. Deputy Nancy Burns is in charge of the program. “If you don’t have this, you’re going to send as much manpower as you can to the area, looking on every street, every block, every house. Where with this, we just send two to three deputies.”

We decided to put the tracker to a test.

“So, I’ve got the tracking device, and I’m going to hide.”

I only traveled about 200 yards, which gave tracker Laurie Allie an instant signal…the closer she got, the louder the tracker beeped.

“You got me. In two minutes and six seconds. Pretty fast.”

A:”It is.”

“The average search time is between 22 and 30 minutes, internationally, for the entire program.The average”

Q:”To be successful?”

A:”For the successful location of a missing person” says Allie.

Car mounted devices are accurate to about a mile. But devices mounted in a helicopter can find someone five to seven miles away.

Columbia, Suwanee, Hamilton and Baker Counties are slated to be the pilot counties. All are located in NE Florida, but if the pilot is successful, the aim is to expand statewide sometime after 2017.

The Governor vetoed legislation earlier this year that lawmakers said would protect customers in the state run Citizens Property Insurance Corporation. As Matt Galka tells us, the Governor’s veto pen has not deterred state representatives from bringing the bill back.

Citizens property insurance shed more than a million policies in the past 4 years. Less than 600 thousand Floridians are enrolled in the state’s “insurer of last resort.” But lawmakers want to make sure the remaining policy holders are protected.

“They’ve run over consumers for way too long, and the time has come that they have rules that are made by the legislature,” said Rep. Dwight Dudley (D-St. Petersburg).

Two democrats are pushing a bill that would stop “takeout insurers” from soliciting customers more than once every six months and allow Floridians to return to citizens if a private insurer jacks up premiums after a switch.

“There’s a long history that we have with these takeout companies. They’re small, they’re of recent origin, and really the taxpayers are on the hook on the back end when a lot of these companies go belly up,” said Rep. Jose Rodriguez (D-Miami).

An identical bill passed last year unanimously out of both chambers but it was vetoed by the Governor.

Governor Rick Scott said at the time he was worried the bill would create more of a reliance on the state run insurer.

“Well we supported the bill last year, and now we’re going to be watching as we move forward here and we’ll be working with all stakeholders,” said Citizens spokesman Michael Peltier.

Part of the bill also includes Citizens providing uniform mailers to customers. The company says its overhauling mailers this month anyway. The letters have been mistaken for junk mail in the past.

The Republican sponsors of the bill that was vetoed earlier this year have yet to officially support the revived bill. The Democratic sponsors said they have reached out to the Governor’s office and are hoping he “flip-flops” on the issue.

Revenge porn, or the practice of sharing intimate pictures of someone without their permission, now has a penalty attached to it. As Matt Galka tells us, a former Florida State student who was instrumental in the bill’s passing says it’s about time.

Former Florida State student Carly Hellstrom had limited options two years ago. She was a victim of revenge porn, when an ex boyfriend posted intimate pictures of her online without her permission.

There was no law to punish the ex boyfriend until now.  Florida’s revenge porn law went on the books this week. Hellstrom was instrumental in the bill’s passing earlier this year, and says it’s about time the law went into effect.

“It’s a bittersweet feeling, it’s been a long process and ugh, a long time, and I just feel a feeling of relief and a sense of closure, that victims aren’t going to suffer what I suffered through,” she said.

Anybody caught participating in revenge porn will be hit with a first degree misdemeanor, but Hellstrom says the law could be stronger.

The bill’s sponsor said lawmakers could do more before it eventually passed.

“It doesn’t provide the protection it ought to for these crimes,” said Sen. David Simmons (R-Altamonte Springs).

One shortcoming of the bill: it doesn’t help a victim get pictures or videos removed the internet.

Carly Hellstrom moved to New York after graduating FSU earlier this year, and says now that Florida is one of only 16 states to criminalize revenge porn, maybe it’s New York’s turn.

A conservative group that had supported the Governor in the past is now on the verge of turning on him over Planned Parenthood.  As Matt Galka tells us, the group is demanding that the Governor defund the program.

A Governor ordered investigation into Planned Parenthood clinics in the state was not enough according to the Florida Family Policy Council.

“We’re asking him to lead, and we’re asking him to lead on an issue other than just jobs,” said FFPC President John Stemberger.

Stemberger says they’re demanding the Governor take action and defund the program in the state following allegations of fetal organ sales.  He says it’s part of Rick Scott’s promise to voters.

“In both his Gubenatorial campaigns, Governor Scott said that if he was elected he’d be a pro-life Governor. We believe this is what a pro-life Governor could do and should do,” he said.

While Planned Parenthood does receive taxpayer money, state funds aren’t used for abortion procedures.

The group acknowledged that the money isn’t used for abortions, but wants to see Planned Parenthood’s contract with Medicaid end.

“We are talking about funding a corrupt organization that does abortions. We’re not going to say “oh well look, we’re no longer fund the extermination of the jews, but think the third reich has some really good programs for women so we’re just going to keep their lights on,” said Stemberger.

Planned Parenthood spokesman Damien Filer called the continued attacks baseless.

“We haven’t broken any rules, we’ve been following the same rules that were put in place 9 years ago,” he said.

Investigations into Planned Parenthood clinics around the state found no evidence of fetal organ sales.

The Governor’s office responded in a statement saying, in part, “We took aggressive, immediate action to investigate Planned Parenthood offices in Florida when the horrific videos were released.  When we found that some of their facilities were not complying with state law, we held them accountable.”.