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Jeff Brandes - page 45

Jeff Brandes bucks Senate, votes ‘No’ on revamped FHIX healthcare plan

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

The Senate’s FHIX 2.0 health care insurance plan carried the day in the upper chamber by a vote of 33-3 Wednesday afternoon after an hours-long session of back-patting and exhortations to the House to join them on their quest for a healthcare “revolution,” as one senator called it. Warm feelings and high-minded speeches rang out across the chamber from a chorus of pro-expansion senators. State Sen. Jeff Brandes was not among them. The Transportation Committee chairman’s fiscal politics always did have affinities…

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Uber requests that ride-sharing be part of special session in Tallahassee

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Among the many casualties in the aborted legislative session last month was legislation regulating ride-sharing apps Uber and Lyft. On the eve of the Special Session, though, Uber’s Florida General Manager Matthew Gore and other Florida business leaders have asked House Speaker Steve Crisafulli and Senate President Andy Gardiner to include transportation network companies in the call that starts Monday. “When you gather for this important June session, we hope you consider the more than 60,000 Floridians who have asked you…

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Unpermitted Florida gun owners get exemption for hurricanes

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Florida gun owners who don’t have a concealed weapons permit can now take their firearms with them while fleeing a hurricane. Not that it’s been a big problem in Florida in the past. No one can cite an example of a gun owner being arrested while evacuating ahead of a hurricane, but lawmakers didn’t want what happened in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina 10 years ago happening here. New Orleans Police confiscated hundreds of guns from people’s homes and from…

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Pinellas legislators re-state the obvious: Biggest budget hurdle is LIP and Medicaid expansion

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

As lawmakers prepare to head back to Tallahassee next week to kick off a three-week special session to pass a budget, three St. Pete-area representatives and a senator fielded questions from the St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce about the business group’s priorities. The crew consisted of two Republicans – state Sen. Jeff Brandes and state Rep. Kathleen Peters – and two Democrats – state Reps. Darryl Rouson and Dwight Dudley. Among the Chamber’s top priorities are passing a budget that…

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Ed Montanari to host May 28 funder at St. Pete’s Green Bench Brewing

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

St. Petersburg City Council hopeful Ed Montanari is calling on friends and supporters to join him Thursday, May 28, for a fundraiser in his District 3 campaign. The event begins 5:30 p.m. at the Green Bench Brewing Company, 1133 Baum Avenue, in St. Petersburg. Currently, the event’s host committee has a handful of Pinellas County’s top political and business leaders: state Sen. Jeff Brandes; lobbyist Alan Suskey; Riley Hansen and Lacy Maguire of Poli Solutions Consulting, area business executives Nick…

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Guns during states of emergency bill signed into law by Rick Scott

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Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday signed into law a bill that allows evacuees to carry concealed weapons or firearms on their body or in the car during states of emergency without a permit to do so. SB 290 would allow concealed weapons “while in the act of complying” with a mandatory evacuation order issued during a state of emergency declared by the governor or by local authorities. State Sen. Jeff Brandes‘  bill defines “in the act of complying” as the…

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Rick Scott signs flood insurance flexibility bill into law

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday afternoon granted final approval to a measure sponsored by state Sen. Jeff Brandes aimed at increasing flexibility and lowering premiums on insurance premiums. SB 1094 was co-sponsored by Brandes’ fellow Pinellas County Republican state Rep. Larry Ahern. Brandes and Ahern both represent moderate coastal districts where flood insurance is among voters’ highest priorities. Brandes has passed legislation before in the Senate related to the federal Biggert-Waters Act. The measure would allow insurance companies and those seeking coverage by…

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