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Staff ReportsApril 28, 2018

When the Leon County School Board — situated in the backyard of a school-choice friendly Capitol — voted unanimously this week to block two charters from setting up shop, it was framed as “sending a message to the state.” Following the rejection of proposed charters Plato Academy and Tallahassee Classical School, Superintendent Rocky Hanna said, “Today is the […]

Peter SchorschApril 14, 2018

The Tallahassee Police Department’s Special Investigations Section closed a case this past week that exudes “Florida man.” The unit got a tip that local jeweler Jose P. Cancel, 59, was doing some shady stuff out of the backroom of his Thomasville Road storefront. When officers arrived with search warrants in hand, those suspicions were confirmed. […]

Peter SchorschApril 7, 2018

Predictions of bad weather are befouling plans for the annual Springtime Tallahassee festivities in the capital. Organizers on Friday canceled the Jubilee in the Park, which usually features arts and crafts booths from hundreds of vendors, and rescheduled the parade for 10 a.m., the Tallahassee Democrat reported late Friday. The National Weather Service was forecasting “showers and […]

Phil AmmannMarch 31, 2018

Gov. Rick Scott signed a bill this week aimed at eradicating invasive species, such as the rightly maligned Burmese python, from wreaking havoc in Sunshine State ecosystems. SB 168 creates a pilot program within the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) allowing them to hire private contractors to capture or kill any of a […]

Staff ReportsMarch 24, 2018

One of the state’s premier breweries just got a lot closer to the Capitol. Proof Brewing Company announced this week it would move its operations to an old Coca-Cola Bottling Company building on South Monroe Street, within walking distance of downtown Tallahassee and Cascades Park. The brewery is now housed in a former warehouse in […]

Staff ReportsMarch 10, 2018

The 2018 Legislative Session came and went, and Brian Pitts of the advocacy group Justice 2 Jesus was nowhere to be found. One of the last times he was spotted was November at the Oversight, Transparency & Administration Subcommittee. It was the last meeting for former state Rep. Neil Combee and after he said farewell, […]

Peter SchorschMarch 3, 2018

There is “zero tolerance” for sexual harassment in the Legislature, leaders say, but an ethics reform package that would create new rules and penalties for sexual harassment may not become law this year. The Florida House unanimously passed the proposal this week, but Republican Sen. Dennis Baxley is blocking the bill in the Senate because […]

Phil AmmannFebruary 24, 2018

As House Speaker Richard Corcoran’s priority education bill is pushed through the Senate committee process, some watching this week were perplexed by the vote of one sometimes perplexing Republican lawmaker. Sen. Tom Lee, who has helped carry Corcoran’s policy in a sometimes-hostile Senate, voted with Democrats to gut language from the omnibus bill that would […]

Peter SchorschFebruary 17, 2018

With only three weeks left in the 2018 Legislative Session, the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is dominating the conversation in Tallahassee. Democrats have started making noise about Republicans obstructing their long-stalled gun control bills, while GOP-leaders have focused on the need for changes to mental health laws, and needed funding boosts. Gov. Rick […]

Peter SchorschFebruary 10, 2018

A list of 10 amendment proposals, dubbed “the terrible ten,” is making the rounds as the Constitution Revision Commission nears a May deadline to submit its final report. The left-leaning advocacy group, League of Women Voters of Florida, has come up with its “worst of the worst” list compiled of what they say are proposed […]

Tag: Takeaways from Tallahassee

Takeaways from Tallahassee — Charter school chatter

Takeaways from Tallahassee — Taking a ‘bite’ out of crime

Takeaways from Tallahassee — Weather affects ‘Springtime’

Takeaways from Tallahassee — Python purge

Takeaways from Tallahassee — A brewer gets bigger

Takeaways from Tallahassee — Where is Justice 2 Jesus?

Takeaways from Tallahassee — Ethics reform in peril

Takeaways from Tallahassee — A puzzling vote

Takeaways from Tallahassee — A tragic dialogue

Takeaways from Tallahassee — ‘Terrible ten’