Mar 17, 2021 By Jim Ash Senior Editor Top Stories
Rep. Jackie Toledo
Measures to combat human trafficking, and ease the path to recovery for survivors, are beginning to move in the Florida Legislature.
The House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Subcommittee voted 16-0 on March 16 to approve HB 523 by Rep. Jackie Toledo, R-Tampa.
“It’s important that we send a message that human trafficking will not be tolerated in the state of Florida,” Toledo said.
The committee also voted 16-0 to approve Toledo’s HB 525, a linked public records exemption.
The measures would further crack down on traffickers, requiring them to register, under certain circumstances, as sex-offenders, and requiring state attorneys to adopt a pro-prosecution policy.
Lack of oral arguments prompt proposed changes to certification process
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[caption id="attachment 367183" align="alignleft" width="150"] Sen. Jeff Brandes[/caption] The Senate Rules Committee has approved a universal COVID-19 liability shield — after combining a measure to protect businesses, schools, and religious institutions with another for doctors, hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care providers. The committee voted 10-5 on March 11 to approve SB72 by Judiciary Chair Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg. Brandes told the committee that combining the measures would give the Senate a stronger bargaining position with the House, which has already approved a business-protection bill, HB-7, by Rep. Lawrence McClure, R-Plant City. “I think it’s best to have the business community and the health-care community rowing together,” Brandes said. “In this process, it’s easier to defend one fortress than it is to defend two.” SB 72 would establish, among other things, a pre-suit process that
Mar 11, 2021 By Jim Ash Senior Editor Top Stories
Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez
The Senate Ethics and Elections Committee has approved a proposed ballot measure that would further increase Florida’s supermajority requirement for amending the Constitution.
The committee voted 5-3 on March 9 to approve SB 1238 by Rep. Ana Maria Rodriguez, R-Doral.
Rodriguez said the measure is necessary, among other things, to make it harder for corporate interests to circumvent the Legislature by backing multimillion-dollar initiative campaigns.
“The Constitution of the state is a sacred document, it should not be something that could be altered in an easy fashion,” Rodriguez said. “They tend to come in with large sums of money to influence an election to have the outcome go in their favor.”
Mar 09, 2021 By Jim Ash Senior Editor Top Stories
Dori-Foster-Morales
At a March 5 virtual meeting, the Board of Governors, among other things, tentatively approved a $44.09 million budget for 2021-2022, recommended a rule change that could increase access to justice funding, and learned “The Florida Bar Recommended Best Practices Guide for Remote Court Proceedings” is ready for distribution.
And in a sign that the COVID-19 pandemic is waning, President Dori Foster-Morales announced that the board intends to meet in person in May, the first time it has done so in more than year.
“It will be safe and secure,” Foster-Morales said, adding that the meeting, scheduled for Duck Key, will feature outdoor activities, and also be streamed live via videoconference. The format for the Jun
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