The Florida Legislature, under the leadership of President Bill Galvano (R-Bradenton) and Speaker Jose Oliva (R-Hialeah), extended its 2020 Session by one week to complete negotiations and pass the budget. The FY 2020-21 General Appropriations Act was placed on members’ desks at 6:55pm on Sunday, March 15th, initiating the 72-hour review period required by the Read more about From the Capitol[…]
The Joint Legislative Budget Commission met in September to hear a budget presentation by Florida’s chief economist Amy Baker. Ms. Baker reported that the upcoming Fiscal Year 2020-2021 should see a budget surplus of $289.3 million. However, she cautioned that storm clouds may be on the horizon as the threat of a recession increases. A Read more about From the Capitol[…]
The following bills have been signed by Governor DeSantis: FIREFIGHTERS Sixteen years after initial introduction of a version of this bill, legislation passed which requires employers to provide cancer insurance to firefighters and death benefits to the surviving families. SERVICE ANIMALS This bill strengthens penalties for people who willfully injure or kill dogs or horses that work Read more about Bills Signed by the Governor[…]
The Florida Legislature completed its only constitutional duty when it passed the Fiscal Year 2019-2020 budget at 2:03pm on Saturday, May 4th, after extending session one extra day to meet the 72-hour review period. The funding proposal was unanimously approved by the Senate and a 106-2 House vote. The budget, as passed, is for a Read more about From the Capitol[…]
We are just beyond the halfway point of the 2019 Legislative Session. This year 3,442 bills were filed by both the House and the Senate. Under the leadership of Senate President Bill Galvano (R-Bradenton) and House Speaker Jose Oliva (R-Hialeah), the appropriations bills and various policy bills have been moving through committees these past few Read more about From the Capitol[…]