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Speaking to the Tiger Bay Club in the State Capitol today, Ag Commissioner Nikki Fried said farmers in the panhandle need more help than they have gotten so far from the state and Federal governments especially when it comes to a one point three billion dollar loss in timber. 

“There is no crop insurance because timber is not considered a crop. So they have no backup besides what’s in their own bank accounts. What would have been fifteen hundred dollars an acre is now fifteen hundred to get off, so its a three thousand dollar deficit. So how do you figure our how to get, not only this timber off the ground  but to encourage people to not leave the community” says Fried.

Fried is suggesting that hemp, if legislation legalizing it is signed by the Governor, could be a crop in the ground by the end of the year and at least offer some opportunity for Panhandle farmers.

More than $1 million meant to enhance election security for the 2018 election cycle in the Florida went unspent and had to be returned to the state.

Supervisors of Elections said tight deadlines are to blame.

In 2018, Florida received $19.2 million from the Federal Government to help improve election security.

Leon County Supervisor of Elections Mark Earley said the money was able to be spent on a wide range of security enhancements.

“Software that could better protect our systems and track problems, but also we had a new building here so physical security of the building,” said Earley.

But the turnaround to spend the money was tight, less than four months

All the while, supervisors were preparing for the upcoming midterm elections.

“Having to have it all spent before November 1st was a bit of a challenge,” said Earley.

The end result was that all but nine counties were unable to spend all the money they received.

The remaining $1.4 million had to be returned to the state.

“The concern was that it was either a use it or lose it,” said Earley. “There was no guarantees that anybody would see that money again.”

The 2019-2020 budget has a total of $2.8 million to improve election security.

It becomes available July 1st, the start of the fiscal year.

The Secretary of State’s Office said it’s currently evaluating how the $1.4 million left over from 2018 can be returned to election officials.

Earley said the more money the better, especially with the revelation that two Florida counties election systems were breached in 2016.

Another general election is also just a over a year away.

“Every improvement that we can make is another way to combat any kind of distrust or uncertainty that the voting public might have,” Earley

Supervisors expect the funds will go to counties with the greatest needs.

Possibly the counties that had to return the most money to the state last year.

Election Supervisors said they’re optimistic based on their discussions with the new administration that if and when the leftover money becomes available, they won’t face the same tight time constraints seen last year.

Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation allowing autonomous vehicles to drive on Florida roadways on Thursday.

In signing the legislation, the Governor said it will make Florida the most friendly state in the nation when it comes to driverless cars.

While there are some driverless vehicles, most are still in testing mode.

Sponsor State Senator Jeff Brandes of St. Petersburg said he believes they will be commonplace by 2025.

“Well if you go to the villages, voyages in the villages, you got companies called Starsky Robotics that’s operating trucks in Plantation Florida. You got Ford and Argo AI down in Miami, so you’re starting to see more and more of this discussion,” said Brandes. “I think over the next few years up until 2025 you’ll see more and more of this discussion shifting into automation. And people are seeing more and more automation in their cars today. You already have adaptive cruise control, you already have lane assist. Those will only get more robust over time and so people will begin to see us moving up the levels of automation and that to me is really exciting and Florida is really on the leading edge of this.”

The legislation was signed in Polk County at the grand opening of SunTrax, the country’s newest autonomous vehicle test track.

On the third anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub shooting a coalition of religious groups, LGBTQ activists and gun control supporters held a vigil at the State Capitol.

Many of the 49 who were killed in the shooting were members of the LGBTQ community.

Activist highlighted the ongoing need for more protections for LGBTQ individuals, especially since the group is a common target for hate crimes.

In 2018 there were 26 transgender people murdered in the United States, five of those cases were in Florida.

Gina Duncan Director of Transgender Equality at Transaction Florida said in the years since Pulse, the transgender community has suffered a number of defeats at the federal level, from military service, to healthcare protections.

“We honor the 49 with action. Together let us commit that we will not go back, we will not retreat into the closet and we will not live in the shadows. We commit that we will fight. We will fight with every breath in our bodies for the right to choose, for the right to exist without fear of violence,” said Duncan.

Since the start of 2019 there have been at least six documented murders of transgender people in the US.

Three years ago Wednesday, a man who pledged himself to the Islamic State took the lives of 49 people at the Pulse Night Club in Orlando using an assault style rifle.

As members of the LGBT community mourned those lost, a citizen initiative aimed at banning assault weapons in the state crossed a major hurdle.

First hand accounts from survivors of mass shootings in a new ad are part of a campaign to ban assault weapons in the state, called Ban Assault Weapons NOW.

“Everyone around me was either dead or shot,” one survivor of the Parkland shooting recalled in the ad.

Just days before the third anniversary of the Pulse Night Club Shooting, the campaign announced it had collected 100,000 signatures for an initiative that would put the question of banning assault weapons before voters in 2020.

The proposed constitutional amendment will now be revised by the Florida Supreme Court.

“They have no place whatsoever in civilian hands,” said League of Women Voters of Florida President Patricia Brigham.

Brigham was in Orlando for the anniversary of the shooting.

“The best way to never forget is to honor those who were lost by getting these weapons of war off the streets,” said Brigham.

Beth DuMond with Mom’s Demand Action Against Gun Violence said the citizen initiative is the result of a Legislature that has repeatedly refused to consider a ban.

“If they’re not going to be heard by their legislators they’re going to have to go around them,” said DuMond.

New restrictions on how petition gathers can be paid will likely make it more difficult for Ban Assault Weapons NOW to collect the remaining signatures needed to make it on the 2020 ballot.

Lakey Love, an LGBTQ activist, said the restrictions won’t deter those pushing for the initiative.

“The Executive level leadership and the political arena is really pushing us to that place where the people just have to stand up and fight back,” said Love.

However, with more than 600,000 signatures needed and less than a year remaining to collect them, it’s guaranteed to be an uphill battle.

A vigil was held at the State Capitol Wednesday evening in remembrance of the 49 who lost their lives at Pulse.

For many the shooting was the spark that triggered the outcry for a ban on assault weapons.

The state’s first ever Chief Science Officer Dr. Thomas Frazier convened the state’s first ever Blue Green Algae Task Force Wednesday.

The panel is on a mission to solve a problem decades in the making.

The Blue Green Algae Task Force has a charge to examine state regulations and not be afraid to challenge the status quo.

“The goal is simply to ask what can we do to achieve more now, and how do we get better,” said Secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection Noah Valenstein.

The task force is made up of five PHD scientist, all distinguished in their field.

Presentations were heavy on jargon.

Dr. Michael Parsons of Gulf Coast University said solving the problem may come down to more monitoring and more boots on the ground.

“I think its more or looking at what’s in place and doing a better job of monitoring and making sure there is compliance. And make sure we can help people get into compliance is that’s not the case,” said Parsons.

More money will help.

The Governor asked for $2.4 billion over four years to protect Florida’s environment.

In the 2019 budget he got more than a quarter of it.

While reviewing a map of septic tanks in Lee County, state officials noted their potential threat.

“They can provide, or can propose a problem, and a significant problem to water bodies,” said DEP Deputy Secretary for Water Restoration Tom Frick.

The new Chief Science officer seemed surprised when he was told the agency doesn’t regulate septic tanks.

“And we have to be able to figure out how to convert septic tanks in some cases to waste water treatment systems,” said Frazier.

But Frazier made a promise to make a difference.

“What we come up with here is not going to sit on a shelf,” said Frazier.

The Florida Audubon Society expressed optimism the task force would find a way to insert scientific solutions into solving what they called a crisis of well know cases when it comes to blue green algae.

The future of charter schools is on the line in a case heard by the First District Court of Appeal Tuesday morning.

The 2017 legislation allows charter schools to set up in counties with failing schools without local input.

Traditional public school advocates started fighting against the omnibus education package almost immediately after it passed.

Initially, 13 school boards filed suit, but in 2018 Circuit Judge John Cooper ruled against the school boards, leading to three districts withdrawing.

The remaining 10 districts argued their case before the First District Court of Appeal.

Collier County, which filed a separate appeal, also made its case before the panel of judges.

The districts alleged the law is unconstitutional, because it requires districts to share property tax revenue with charter schools.

“They don’t have the money to build that new gym or that air conditioning system because the money is being directed elsewhere,” said Steve Brannock, an attorney representing the school boards.

But the state said the amount of money in dispute is insignificant.

“They would have to spend a very small portion, less than one percent, on their charter schools,” said Testani,an attorney representing the state.

In addition to money, the school boards said the law dilutes their authority by allowing charters, known as “schools of hope”, to open in chronically low performing areas without local approval.

“The statue clearly allows the schools of hope to apply directly to the state and bypass the school board,” said Brannock.

The state argued it has the right to intervene when a school district has consistently failed.

“The state surely is able to step in when school districts are not getting the job done,” said Testani.

The decision in this case could impact other cases challenging similar charter school expansions that were passed in 2018 and 2019.

“It’ll all depend on how the court comes out and what it says where the line is but it’ll certainly be important in looking at 7055 and any other future omnibus education bill and stopping this incremental creep of moving powers from the local officials to the state,” said Brannock.

A decision from the appellate court isn’t expected for months.

Regardless of the outcome, the State Supreme Court will likely have the final say.

Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation Tuesday morning that could eventually lead to cheaper prescription medications, but don’t count on any savings just yet.

A statement from The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, or PhRMA, said in part, “Today is a sad day for Floridians. Make no mistake…bad actors around the world are undoubtedly already busy plotting ways to get dangerous counterfeit medicines into the state of Florida.”

With the stroke of his pen, DeSantis likely dealt a blow to the profit margins of big drug companies.

“You have the same exact drug here and in Canada, and its half the price in Canada, you should be able to buy it there,” said DeSantis.

Big Pharma threw what they had at this legislation in an attempt to stop it and still they failed.

“They spent $6.3 million on television ads in Florida in two weeks,” said Dave Bruns with AARP.

Senate Sponsor Aaron Bean still got a 27-13 vote, by arguing the US pays 30 to 190 percent more for drugs than other countries.

“Don’t tell me there won’t be savings because I got the file to show you,” said Bean.

AARP held a town hall meeting and pushed seniors to call lawmakers.

Now it’s celebrating a victory it never expected.

“This was in a lot of ways, a long shot. The Pharmacutical drug manufacturers had won every fight like this they had ever undertaken, in every other state but one,” said Bruns.

Federal approval is required before any drugs can cross the border.

Initially, only the state will be able to bring low cost drugs for inmates and other state facilities, but a second prong of the bill allows does pharmacies to apply for a waiver so they can import cheaper drugs as well.

While the Federal Government has never given a state a waiver to import foreign drugs in 16 years, the Governor has spoken personally to the President about the approval, and it is expected late this year.

Florida utility regulators voted to allow Duke Energy keep its $223.5 million tax savings that the company saw as a result of last years Federal tax package Tuesday.

The money will be used to offset Hurricane Michael costs incurred by the company said Deputy Public Counsel Charles Rehwinkel.

“This is a good opportunity to use the tax savings to pay for a catastrophic event. It’s very important that customers recognize that the company has a legal right to recover the storm costs,” said Rehwinkel.

While on the hook for storm costs, ratepayers were also entitled to share in the tax savings.

Other utility companies, such as Florida Power and Light have opted for the same settlement.

Two proposed constitutional amendments, have collected enough signatures to be reviewed by the State Supreme Court.

One would ban assault weapons, the other would let you choose where you buy your electricity.

But a new law signed by the Governor could make it harder for those and other amendments to make it on the ballot.

Medical marijuana, Florida Forever, automatic restoration of voting rights for felons are just a few major initiatives put in the state constitution through citizens initiatives.

“The people of Florida use the initiative process to get what they want done when the Florida Legislature is standing in their way,” said Scott McCoy with Southern Poverty Law Center.

The new law creates restrictions for campaigns that pay petition gatherers.

All paid petition gatherers must now register with the state and it’s now illegal to pay petition gatherers by the signature.

“It seems that the Legislature, and the Governor for that matter, really don’t like it when the voters tell them what to do,” said Jonathan Webber with the Florida Conservation Voters.

Webber worked on the Florida Forever campaign.

“There’s no question that [if] HB 5 were in law when we were doing our amendment, [it] would have been next to impossible, or extremely extremely difficult to get this on the ballot,” said Webber.

When asked about the legislation in May, Governor Ron DeSantis told reporters he wasn’t confident the new restrictions went far enough.

“We’ve let too much policy go into the constitution,” said DeSantis. “If you want to do policy through an initiative it should be a statutory initiative.”

However, Florida law doesn’t allow that.

Supervisors of Elections also have a number of questions about the new law.

It requires supervisors to print, distribute and track petitions.

“The main concern is how we’re going to get these petitions developed, how we’re going to have them numbered, how we’re going to keep track of that process and the cost associated with it,” said Ron Labasky with the Florida State Association of Supervisor of Elections.

Petitions gathered before the new law officially takes effect on July 7th will be exempt from the new requirements, but it will still affect initiatives for the 2020 election.

Some of the ongoing campaigns include open primaries, a $15 minimum wage and legalizing recreational marijuana.

Attorneys representing former Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel have asked for a delay in his suspension hearing.

Israel was removed from office by Governor Ron DeSantis, who accused the sheriff of negligence and incompetence in his response to the Parkland shooting.

Israel’s attorneys have requested the final hearing be delayed, so they can obtain documents related to the arrest of former Marjory Stoneman Douglas SRO Scot Peterson.

The Governor’s attorney Nicholas Primrose objected to the request, arguing no new information would come to light.

“To say that in anyway the Scot Peterson arrest should impact this final hearing and the Senate’s vote on whether to remove Scott Israel I don’t think should be granted,” said Primrose.

The decision to delay will be made sometime this week, but for now the final hearing is still scheduled to start next Tuesday.

Farmers in the panhandle were devastated by Hurricane Michael and have been undercut by cheaper Mexican crops.

A coalition of Florida lawmakers and state officials met with the head of the US Department of Agriculture Friday morning, to talk about what can be done to help.

The meeting came just one day after the $19.1 billion dollar disaster-relief package signed into law by the President.

The news came as a relief to many in the Florida panhandle, farmers in particular, who suffered an estimated $1.5 billion loss of crops in Hurricane Michael.

US Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue met with a panel of Florida officials to hear what needs are still unmet.

“We want to help people survive, to farm and go another day,” said US Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue.

The disaster-relief package included $4.5 billion specifically to help with agricultural losses.

Director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, Jared Moskwitz said there is now a sense of urgency to get boots on the ground.

“Cause this is a piece that is literally gonna put money into people’s hands that have been dramatically affected and whose lives have been up-ended by Hurricane Michael,” said Moskowitz.

Perdue said help will be coming quickly.

“If you know the speed of the Federal Government I can assure you we’ll beat that by multiples. We expect this to be weeks not months,” said Perdue.

Florida farmers have also been facing stiff competition from cheaper Mexican crops.

Concerns have been raised that there are not enough protections for farmers in the proposed US Mexican Canada Trade Agreement.

The lack of seasonal protections in the agreement was disappointing to Purdue, but he notes even in the old NAFA agreement, no such protections existed.

“We were not able and successful in getting in there, but we didn’t go backwards,” said Perdue.

Still, the secretary said he’s working with the US Department of Commerce to find solutions to prevent some of the unfair trade practices used by Mexican farmers to undercut US farmers.

The Florida Commission of Ethics approved a deal struck in the case against former Democrat Gubernatorial nominee Andrew Gillum with a five to two vote.

Four of five charges were dropped.Probable cause was found that Gillum accepted a boat ride from an FBI agent on a trip to New York City that may have violated a one hundred dollar limit on gifts.

Gillum will pay a $5,000 fine.