Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Mitch PerryApril 26, 2017

Legislation limiting placement of local sales tax referendum to primary or general election ballots and requiring passage with 60 percent support was approved Wednesday by the Florida House. The same bill by Spring Hill Republican Blaise Ingoglia (HB 139) passed in that chamber a year ago, but died in the Senate. Legislation sponsored by Sarasota Republican Greg Steube […]

Mitch PerryApril 17, 2017

A bill limiting the placement of local sales tax referendum to primary or general election ballots advanced Monday through the Florida Senate Community Affairs Committee. The intent of the bill (SB 278), sponsored by Sarasota Republican Greg Steube, is to maximize participation in elections. Last year, a similar bill from Blaise Ingoglia passed the House but died in […]

William PatrickMarch 23, 2017

Braiding hair without a license could get you in trouble in Florida. So could cutting and wrapping hair, manicuring fingernails, auctioneering property, landscaping, interior design and timekeeping at a boxing match. If you want to earn money or start a business in dozens of job categories, Florida requires a state-approved license – and they don’t […]

Joe HendersonMarch 22, 2017

Depending on your point of view, red-light cameras in Florida are either: A) Of great benefit to public safety by making drivers think twice when approaching a changing traffic light; or B) a cash grab by communities that amounts to a backdoor tax. Just we’re clear, I’m on the side of Option B. While several […]

Staff ReportsMarch 8, 2017

Voters across the state will be getting robo-calls blasting their representative for voting for a bill to kill Enterprise Florida. POLITICO Florida reported that Let’s Get to Work, the political committee backing Gov. Rick Scott, has funded another round of robocalls hitting Republicans who voted for a bill (HB 7005) that would eliminate Enterprise Florida […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 22, 2017

On Wednesday, a Florida House panel took the baton from a Senate committee, addressing a problem-riddled Auditor General’s IT audit of the Agency for State Technology. The House Government Operations & Technology Appropriations Subcommittee discussed a January Auditor General report about the Agency for State Technology and State Data Center operations. Despite the findings of that […]

Mitch PerryFebruary 20, 2017

A bipartisan bill that would prevent animals from being sold to or adopted by people who have been convicted of animal abuse has been filed in the Florida House of Representatives. The bill (HB 871) is sponsored by South Florida Democrat Jared Moskowitz and David Richardson and Spring Hill Republican Blaise Ingoglia. It would create a publicly accessible […]

Mitch PerryFebruary 12, 2017

Pasco County Republican Executive Committee Secretary Bill Akins is under fire after a story about his history of pushing out racist jokes and conspiracy theories on social media was published Sunday by the Washington Post. The reason that the previously little-known local Republican even earned the interest of the Post was because of what happened on Saturday at Congressman Gus Bilirakis raucous town hall meeting in […]

Mitch PerryFebruary 9, 2017

During your average election cycle in Florida (and around the country), there are always some egregious examples of dirty campaigning. Sometimes, they can decide an election. Examples abound, but generally, there is little recourse for an injured candidate, other than to try to rebut the negative message via advertising or comments to the media. Brad Drake thinks […]

Larry GriffinJanuary 14, 2017

With big wins in the November elections and now about to control the House, Senate and the presidency, the Republican Party of Florida didn’t feel the need to shake up party leadership much — re-electing Blaise Ingoglia by a sizable margin at the 2017 annual leadership conference Saturday morning. The RPOF spent much of the rest of the […]

Tag: Blaise Ingoglia

Taxing question: House OKs bill forcing county tax votes only in primary, general elections

Taxing questions: Bill would allow ballot questions on taxes only in November

Lawmakers aim to create jobs by cutting occupational licensing red-tape

Joe Henderson: Time to get rid of red-light cameras, but turn up heat on texting

Report: Rick Scott committee releases robocall targeting Republicans who support killing Enterprise Florida

Agency for State Technology audit scrutinized by Florida House panel

Lawmakers push to create registry of those convicted of animal cruelty

Pasco County GOP official in trouble after social media posts go national

Brad Drake, Blaise Ingoglia want lying candidates pay some type of price

At annual meeting, Republicans contemplate their place at the top after election wins