Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Phil AmmannDecember 6, 2015

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Four Florida sports teams have come to Tallahassee with the hope of leaving with state money to renovate and improve facilities, a process where the first step is scheduled to begin at month’s end. Each applicant – Daytona International Speedway, the Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars – is jostling for a slice […]

Associated PressNovember 3, 2015

Several of Florida’s professional sports teams are trying again to win state money from the Florida Legislature. State officials said Monday that they had received requests to spend money on the stadiums used by the Miami Dolphins, the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The state has also received a funding request from Daytona […]

Phil AmmannJuly 3, 2015

July 4 may mean a day off for most Americans, but not so for National Republicans. In a campaign memo, the Republican National Committee announced it is using the holiday as the “next phase in its ground game strategy” – with a series of events happening at the earliest time in several election cycles. On […]

Associated PressMay 19, 2015

Residents of the Sunshine State are finding that harnessing Florida’s abundant solar power is no simple task. With its bounty of sunny days, Florida ranks third in the nation in rooftop solar energy potential but 13th in the amount of solar energy generated, according to industry estimates. The industry views Florida as a sleeping giant […]

Mitch PerryMarch 9, 2015

Florida lawmakers last year approved a plan to set aside $7 million in sales-tax revenue to help pay for building or renovating sports stadiums. Last month, though, the Joint Legislative Budget Commission punted on the decision on whether or not to fund the four stadium projects before them: EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Daytona International Speedway, Sun […]

Phil AmmannFebruary 21, 2015

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Although the action on the track will still run on gas, much of the Daytona 500 next year could be solar powered. Florida Power & Light Company and Daytona International Speedway announced today the plan to install a large solar power array at the “World Center of Racing.” More than 5,000 commercial-scale distributed solar panels, part […]

Christine Jordan SextonFebruary 19, 2015

A high-stakes multimillion dollar tug-of-war over funding for professional sports is now in overtime. A 14-member joint legislative budget panel on Thursday voted to delay a decision on whether to approve the ranking of four applications for state subsidies. Joint Legislative Budget Commission Chairman Rep. Richard Corcoran said he was opposed to awarding any incentive […]

Mitch PerryFebruary 19, 2015

At 2:30 p.m. today, the state’s Legislative Budget Committee will consider granting millions of dollars in tax breaks to four entities for sports stadiums: The Daytona International Speedway, the city of Orlando for Orlando City Soccer, the city of Jacksonville for the NFL Jaguars, and South Florida Stadium LLC, the home of the Miami Dolphins. […]

Christine Jordan SextonJanuary 30, 2015

Legislative leadership on Friday asked the state’s chief economist to analyze and rank four applicants seeking sports incentives from the state. House Speaker Steve Crisafulli said in a statement that the Florida Legislature expected the Department of Economic Opportunity to review and rank the four applicants who are vying for $7 million in competitive grants. […]

Associated PressJanuary 26, 2015

Florida appears ready to approve multi-million dollar deals to help several of the state’s high profile professional sports teams, but state officials now say they will not decide which team deserves the money. After years of high-profile defeats for teams such as the Miami Dolphins that are seeking taxpayer help, state legislators promised last year […]

Tag: Daytona International Speedway
Reps. Steve Womack and Jason Crow. Image via AP.

Miami Dolphins ask state for stadium funding; short on ROI, long on wishful thinking

Florida pro sports teams make another push for state money

GOP using July 4 events as national “day of action” for ground game

“Sunshine State” or not, Florida badly behind on solar power

Obama budget would bar tax-exempt bonds to finance stadiums

Daytona Speedway to be FPL solar powered by next year

Joint Legislative Budget Commission punts on sports tax incentives

AFP warns LBC to skip support of stadium incentive proposal

House Speaker wants sports subsidy applications ranked

State won't say which sports team should get taxpayer money