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Ryan Ray - page 14

Ryan Ray has 632 articles published.

Ryan Ray writes about campaigns and public policy in Tampa Bay and across the state. A contributor to FloridaPolitics.com and before that, The Florida Squeeze, he covers the Legislature as a member of the Florida Capitol Press Corps and has worked as a staffer on several campaigns. He can be reached at [email protected].

Senate tees up civil asset forfeiture bill for floor vote

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A proposal to stop law enforcement officials from wantonly confiscating Floridians’ property was amended and discussed in the Florida Senate on Thursday. The proposal – SB 1044 by Sen. Jeff Brandes – got a final tune up before heading to the Senate floor for a full vote, which is scheduled for Friday. The St. Petersburg Republican introduced four tweaks to his bill, all of which were adopted. Though he faced queries from Republican Sens. Charlie Dean and Greg Evers as well as Democratic Leader Arthenia Joyner about whether the changes were…

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Florida Black caucus leaders, scores of African-American officials endorse Hillary Clinton

in 2017 by

A day after Hillary Clinton won a majority of Democratic delegates up for grabs in last night’s Super Tuesday primaries – partly on the strength of her support in minority communities – about 100 African-American Florida elected officials came out in support the former Secretary of State’s bid for the White House. Among them were the Florida Legislative Black Caucus, and its new chair Tampa Rep. Ed Narain. “Hillary Clinton is the leader who will always stand and fight for communities of color across…

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It’s time for #CateSineDie – Place your bets on when the Sine Die hankies will drop

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The 2016 Session is quickly coming to its conclusion, and you know what that means. Well, yes, Solo cups on the chamber floor and green bottles emerging from bottom drawers in legislative offices up and down the Capitol tower but also: #CateSineDie. Here’s how the annual parlor game’s eponym put it Wednesday morning: “Before tomorrow at 4PM, use hashtag #CateSineDie and tweet the exact date and time you believe the hanky will drop following adjournment of the Florida House and…

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Marco Rubio: Sorry for the “silly stuff,” but Donald Trump is no joke

in 2017/Top Headlines by

In an email fundraising appeal to supporters on Super Tuesday, Sen. Marco Rubio apologized for his recent antics attacking GOP front runner Donald Trump, but remained firm in his stance that Trump is not serious and unfit for the nation’s highest office. “The media being what it is, most of my back-and-forth with Donald Trump that’s gotten attention this week is the light-hearted stuff. Believe me — I really never expected to be talking about spray tans while running for president,” said…

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Ag & Natural Resources budget panel wraps up talks

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The Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations/General Government Appropriations conference committee held their final meeting of the 2016 Session on Monday, but the late-evening meeting did not bring final closure on several unresolved line items. The House and Senate proposals remained just $6 million apart in terms of bottom-line figures – out of a mammoth $2.7 billion proposed budget silo –  but the ways the chambers wanted to spend the money were more widely divergent still. Conference Vice Chair Sen. Alan Hays began the…

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Justice budget writers wrap up conference talks, agree on “99%” of priorities

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The conference committee charged with writing the state’s budget for courts and law enforcement met the final time Monday for budget year 2016-17 on Monday. House and Senate leaders said they worked to compromise on “99 percent” of the budget, leaving aside just a handful unresolved of line items and proviso language. Conference Committee on Justice/Criminal and Civil Justice Chairman Rep. Larry Metz and the House accepted the Senate position on dozens of items while Vice Chairman Sen. Joe Negron did the same.…

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Government ops budgets inch closer but law enforcement radios dispute remains

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The Committee on Government Operations Appropriations/General Government Appropriation held its fourth and final meeting of the budget conferencing period Monday morning. Chairwoman Rep. Jeanette Nunez and Vice Chairman Sen. Alan Hays closed out “back of the bill” differences, but couldn’t agree on about a dozen line items. They will be “bumped up” for consideration by chief budget writers Rep. Richard Corcoran and Sen. Tom Lee. Among the outstanding issues were $1 million for “dependent eligibility benefit verification services,” capital depreciation funding for the Department of Management…

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