A request is on the desk of Gov. Rick Scott to replenish the state’s most prominent land-preservation fund. The Department of Environmental Protection‘s wish list for the 2018-2019 fiscal year—presented to Scott last week as the governor’s office crafts budget recommendations for the Legislature—includes $50 million for the Florida Forever program.
As Earth Day approaches this weekend, Darden Rice is rolling out endorsements from two environmental organizations for her re-election bid in St. Petersburg City Council District 4 — Florida Conservation Voters and (unsurprisingly) the Sierra Club, where she had previously worked. “We’re proud to endorse one of our own,” said David Harbeitner, President of the Suncoast Chapter of the Sierra Club. “Darden has a long history of environmental activism and a strong commitment to standing up for what is right.…
House members now say the possibility of a fracking ban is dead for the 2017 Legislative Session. Sen. Dana Young thinks it’s premature to administer last rites, at least just yet. “You never say never, but now we’re saying it looks like that will be next year,” Rep. Mike Miller, an Orlando Republican, told the Naples Daily News about his bill (HB 451) as the first month of Session ended this week. The reason for the impasse is the desire by some…
Citing unresolved health concerns, Florida lawmakers are weighing the fate of a measure that would ban fracking across the state. Legislators are pushing the bill to safeguard Florida’s clean water supply, which is the drinking water source for 90 percent of Floridians and a major player in the state’s economy, from agriculture to tourism. If passed, the bill would effectively ban any type of well stimulation technique statewide. That includes fracking — a practice that requires pumping huge volumes of…
At Tuesday’s Organization Session in Tallahassee, all 40 state senators elected earlier this month will take their oath in office. Both senators representing Hillsborough County, Darryl Rouson and Dana Young, are new to the job, though not to the Legislature. Young returns to Tallahassee having fulfilled her goal of advancing into the Senate after six years in the Florida House. The newly created state Senate District 18 she now represents includes more than half of the same boundaries of her House District 60 seat, and she…
I just watched about the billionth TV ad for the Senate District 18 race with Dana Young and Bob Buesing. I thought the one she ran in the primary with all the adorable puppies couldn’t be topped, but she outdid herself this time. This one features her two daughters defending their mom against all the nasty things the pro-Buesing forces supposedly have said. That was sweet. I mean, who doesn’t love a tight-knit family? But something wasn’t adding up. Dana…
With just a few weeks until the election, organizations across the state are rolling out endorsements for state and federal candidates. Several organizations — the Florida Retail Federation, Florida Conservation Voters, and the NRA Political Victory Fund — issued endorsements. — Neal Dunn has received the backing of the NRA Political Victory Fund. “As a staunch supporter and defender of the Second Amendment and the right to bear arms, I am proud to have been endorsed by, and received an AQ…
