Gabrielle RussonSeptember 5, 2024
11min0
One ethics watchdog said the free tickets raise red flags.
Tag: Integrity Florida
Gabrielle RussonSeptember 5, 2024
Sarah MuellerJanuary 13, 2020
4min558
Lawmakers will consider a proposal this week that would block local bans of sunscreen.
Sarah MuellerJanuary 7, 2020
7min541
Integrity Florida likens local government preemption bills to using a sledgehammer to kill a fly.
Jim RosicaAugust 2, 2018
2min331
Donald Trump‘s nominations for judgeships are ensuring a federal bench that looks like the president, according to Integrity Florida: Older, white and male. The Tallahassee-based ethics-in-government watchdog’s latest report, released Thursday, also questions Trump’s assertion that he would prioritize “qualifications” over diversity. The group says that in fact the 72-year-old president is focusing on neither. “Trump has already nominated more […]
Jim RosicaDecember 13, 2017
6min281
A proposal to repeal Florida’s system of public financing for statewide campaigns won’t make it into the state constitution, at least for now. Frank Kruppenbacher, the proposed amendment’s sponsor, withdrew it from consideration at Wednesday’s meeting of the Florida Constitution Revision Commission’s Ethics and Election committee. That was after representatives of progressive groups, including the […]
Staff ReportsMarch 21, 2017
2min411
The Florida Senate Tuesday passed a bill aimed at streamlining the handling of political redistricting court cases. The legislation (SB 352) was approved without debate 24-14, sending it to the House. Bill sponsor Travis Hutson, an Elkton Republican, has said the plan “locks the maps in place on qualification day,” giving clarity to candidates. It also […]
Jim RosicaMarch 9, 2017
4min576
A bill aimed at streamlining the handling of political redistricting court cases cleared its last committee Thursday. The legislation (SB 352) was OK’d by the Senate Rules Committee on a 7-3 party-line vote. It’s now ready for the full Senate. It also “encourages” courts “to follow certain procedures to maintain public oversight when drafting a […]
Jim RosicaJanuary 4, 2017
3min538
A House bill would require judges to make specific findings before they can award attorney fees in public records lawsuits. State Rep. Danny Burgess, a Zephyrhills Republican and lawyer, filed the measure (HB 163) on Wednesday. It would require a judge to determine that a public agency “unlawfully refused to permit a public record to be […]
Staff ReportsNovember 30, 2016
2min447
A bill that would give judges the discretion to award attorney fees in public records lawsuits was refiled Wednesday in the Florida Legislature. New state Sen. Greg Steube, a Sarasota Republican and lawyer, is again behind the legislation (SB 80). He backed a version of the bill last session as a state representative. It passed the […]
Jim RosicaAugust 11, 2016
4min291
Lingering judicial vacancies aren’t causing a crisis in Florida’s federal courts — yet. That’s the upshot of a new study out Thursday from Integrity Florida, a government watchdog group. The state has four* unfilled U.S. district judgeships out of 37. That’s only an 11 percent vacancy here, which tracks with 10 percent of the nation’s 677 district […]