Gray Rohrer
When the House passed HB 939 on Monday, Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis touted the move, lauding the chamber for passing one of his priorities, to crack down on local governments using NewsGuard to evaluate news outlets.
“The House delivered a major victory for consumers today,” Patronis said in a released statement. “I don’t think government should be paying media-rating companies to blacklist certain outlets.”
But two days later that provision and the underlying bill are in trouble, and could fall victim to haggling between the House and Senate in the final days of the Regular Session.
The Senate on Tuesday removed the portion of the bill that banned cities and counties from contracting with NewsGuard or any similar news rating agency. Sen. Colleen Burton, a Lakeland Republican sponsoring the bill, said the provision was part of a different House bill and wasn’t part of the Senate version of the measure (SB 1066).
Patronis has championed the move as a way to prevent governments from using NewsGuard to shut out conservative or alternative news outlets.
“The day that government dollars are used to blacklist media outlets will be a dark day for our country – and while the bureaucrats would love nothing more than to send cash to their allies while punishing their enemies – Florida’s got too much respect for taxpayers and the Constitution to allow that to happen,” Patronis said Monday.
The Senate’s move sent the bill back to the House. But the House sponsor, Rep. Griff Griffitts, a Panama City Beach Republican, has filed an amendment to the Senate change that would still keep the NewsGuard provision out of the bill.
With the Session slated to end Friday, time is running out for the chambers to reach a consensus on the measure. Another piece of the bill would allow homeowners in a state of emergency due to a hurricane or storm to cancel a roofing contract within 10 days of signing a contract.
4 comments
You’re a bunch of Deadbeats
March 7, 2024 at 5:22 am
MAGA Christians are deadbeats, even the wealthy few-
For two years, Steve Bannon has refused to pay the half-million dollars he owes his former lawyer. Now, his refusal to settle his debts has exposed him and his current attorney to potential sanctions.
“Bannon, with the aid of his counsel, has, for months, done nothing but intentionally stall and delay plaintiff’s enforcement of its valid money judgment,” the law firm that previously represented him wrote to a New York state judge last month, employing an underline to show their heightened frustration.
You’re a bunch of Deadbeats
March 7, 2024 at 5:22 am
MAGA Christians are deadbeats, even the wealthy few-
For two years, Steve Bannon has refused to pay the half-million dollars he owes his former lawyer. Now, his refusal to settle his debts has exposed him and his current attorney to potential sanctions.
“Bannon, with the aid of his counsel, has, for months, done nothing but intentionally stall and delay plaintiff’s enforcement of its valid money judgment,” the law firm that previously represented him wrote to a New York state judge last month, employing an underline to show their heightened frustration.
Dont Say FLA
March 7, 2024 at 7:17 am
Grift Griftit can relax. There’s another way: Conservative media outlets can cut back on all their lying and get a good score from entities that assess the trustfulness of media outlets
And every please note Grift’s name for HB 939 that would ban the use of media ratings was named “Consumer Protection”
If only Grift had name it “Consumer Protection For The Kids” maybe it would have worked.
And Griff Griftit of PCB. Really? I have to assume that’s a stage name he took to help himself climb the pole within today GOP.
Nick Penniman
March 8, 2024 at 8:35 am
NewsGuard doesn’t “shut out” conservative or alternative outlets. It’s like Consumer Reports. It only rates outlets and then people can decide what they want to read.
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