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The Florida House is pushing forward with legislation that would make it harder to amend the state constitution through the citizen initiative process.

Members of grassroots organizations held a press conference Tuesday urging lawmakers to reject the proposal that would raise the cost of counting petitions and dramatically increase the signature threshold for the state Supreme Court to review proposed amendments.

“We are taking this precious right, this precious governing document, we’re taking it away from the people and we’re making the right of people to change their constitution history,” said Jodi James with the Florida Cannabis Action Network.

The bill was temporarily postponed in its final Senate committee Monday, but opponents fear it could return.

Last year a similar legislation was amended onto a bill on the Senate floor in the final hours of session.

Efforts to pass legislation requiring employers to verify the immigration status of employees passed both a House and Senate committee Monday.

The on again, off again legislation is getting a final push by the Governor’s Office, and a family that knows first hand what it’s like to lose a loved one as the result of illegal immigrants.

Kiyan and Bobby Michael are the face of what can go wrong with an open border.

“This is our son, Brandon Randolph Michael. He was 21 years old,” said Kiyan.

Their son Brandon was hit and killed in 2007 by a truck driven by an immigrant here illegally.

“He was lured her, the illegal who killed him, by a job. He was working illegally,” said Kiyan.

Hiring someone known to be in the US illegally is already against state and federal law.

This legislation allows the Department of Law Enforcement and others to investigate.

“The state law enforcement agencies identified in the statute have the ability to then go and request those documents,” said House sponsor Representative Rep. Cord Byrd.

Beginning in July, contractors seeking state incentives would have to prove they did an E-verify check.

Private employers must be on board before January first 2021.

“This bill doesn’t carve out certain industries. It doesn’t carve out certain sized businesses. And I appreciate that,” said Rep. Nick DiCeglie.

One of the key reasons the legislation is starting move is the Governor’s involvement.

Senate Sponsor Tom Lee once threatened to vote against his own bill.

That was after a dubious amendment weakening the immigration checks.

Now he’s optimistic.

“There’ll be some ups and downs along the way in the next couple of weeks,, but aI feel really good that we are going to get something resolved here,” said Lee.

The Michaels said they are in the fight until the end.

“It’s not easy. It’s not easy, because we know that when we go home and unpack, our son’s snot coming home,” said Kiyan.

Employers would not be required to run immigration checks on any employees already working before January 1st, 2021.

On Thursday, the Governor and Surgeon General learned two people tested positive for the Corona virus.

Not until Saturday was the confirmation made public.

Also on Thursday, citing state law, they declined to even say how many people had been tested.

Now Democrats and Republican legislators are arguing the Department of Health got it wrong.

They want to change state law to make it clear the executive branch has the duty to report cases to the public

“Their position, going forward, is untenable. We have to make sure that the decision is about public health and based on medicine, and not on a faulty interpretation of statute,” said Sen. Jose Javier Rodriguez.

“The Executive Branch has an obligation to inform the public, absence a determination about public health. That’s a matter of opinion, and I can tell you if you’re talking to the mothers who are taking kids to school where, my daughter goes to school, they all think it’s a public health necessity to know if there is an active case in Leon County,” said Sen. Tom Lee.

An effort to amend a sweeping Department of Health bill to require the disclosure failed Monday afternoon.

All public school students would be required to participate in a one to two minute moment of silence at the start of each school day if a bill passed by its final Senate committee Monday becomes law.

The bill was opposed by groups like the ACLU, the National Organization for Women and atheists who argued the bill would isolate students who don’t follow a religion or belong to a different religion than the majority of their peers.

Bill sponsor Dennis Baxley countered that while the bill doesn’t prohibit students from praying during the moment of silence, it also doesn’t prohibit them from using the time in any other way either.

“Sometimes I think we need to start meetings with that here, but I do think it’s a good idea. I think it can set a different tone and without crossing the line with advocating what people do during that moment of silence. That would be between them and their parents,” said Senator Baxley.

Under the bill teachers would not be allowed to direct students how to use the moment of silence and would require them to speak with students parents so the parents could help their child decide how to best use the time.

To combat suicide and mental health issues lawmakers want first responders, including 9-11 operators to be able to confide work related stresses confidentially with their peers.

Legislation that would protect those conversations passed its final Senate committee Monday, but with some opposition.

Some lawmakers expressed concerns that putting a blanket of confidentiality on the peer to peer conversations could be abused in situations of alleged misconduct, allowing first responder to be shielded from testifying.

“I understand if we were to have some prevision where a peer was designated by the department as someone somebody could go talk to about this and have a conversation about that, but the ability to designate after the fact seems to me to create a huge problem,” said Senator Jeff Brandes.

Th bill is now ready for votes on both chamber floors, though Senate sponsor Keith Perry said more work may need to be done on the bill before final passage.

For the second year in a row lawmakers are looking to put caps on THC in medical marijuana.

An proposed amendment to a sweeping Department of Health bill would cap THC levels at 10 percent for medical marijuana prescribed to patients under 21 years old unless they are terminally ill or their doctor receives special approval from the department.

“I am very concerned about what is happening to our young people. The studies that are coming out on brain development show that large amounts of THC have a very deleterious effect on brain development, especially in young adults,” said Senate sponsor Gayle Harrell.

The amendment was met with skepticism from Democrats and even some Republicans during questioning.

The bill was temporarily postponed in the middle of the debate and the amendment was ultimately withdrawn.

People who were adopted as a child would have one less hurdle to jump to obtain a copy of their original birth certificate under a bill passed through its final Senate committee Monday.

Currently adoptees need permission from their birth parents and their adoptive parents, but the bill would only require the authorization of the birth parent.

Senator Gary Farmer, who has adopted a child, worried it could deter some people from adopting.

“There’s an understanding that the identities are going to be preserved only if all parties agree to the disclosure and I understand that there are some medical issues that cause some people some concerns, but I know that for my family it was something that caused a lot of fear and a lot of trepidation,” said Farmer.

The bill is now ready to be heard on both chamber floors.

The Florida Senate is poised to vote on a resolution acknowledging the risks posed by climate change and the need to pass legislation focused on expanding use of renewable energy and infrastructure to combat sea level rise.

The resolution cleared its final committee stop Monday.

While a resolution doesn’t carry the power of law and is symbolic in nature, Jonathan Webber with the Florida Conservation Voters applauded the move.

“Please allow this bill to act as a building block for future legislation that will reduce our reliance on dirty fossil fuels and foster a just and equitable transition to clean renewable energy. I am hopeful this bill is just the beginning of chapter one in Florida’s response to the challenge of our generation,” said Webber.

The resolution specifically speaks to the need for creating electric vehicle charging station infrastructure throughout the state.