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WFSU State News

English, Local-Regional News, 1 season, 20 episodes, 54 minutes
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A Florida House panel okays a bill making it easier to sue journalists

A Florida House committee has advanced a bill that would make it easier for journalists and their media outlets to be sued.
3/14/20230
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Florida Republicans are prepping changes to local election laws and school board races

Florida Republicans have been trying for years to make local school board races partisan, but it may finally happen this time, if Florida voters agree. The move comes after a contentious election where Gov. Ron DeSantis targeted several local school board members as part of his ongoing effort to counter so-called “wokeness” in public schools.
3/9/20233 minutes, 49 seconds
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Florida senators await estimates from state economists on a voucher expansion as cost concerns grow

The proposal lets all K-12 students in Florida become eligible for either a private school scholarship or an education savings account but hesitation about the cost is growing as other states with similar programs face big problems.
3/8/20233 minutes, 18 seconds
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Florida Republicans are taking on the media. Reporters and bloggers, alike

Florida lawmakers will consider a proposal to re-write rules around who is considered a public figure, and what circumstances would constitute a defamation claim against media outlets. The proposals are raising concerns about their constitutionality and whether they violate free speech rights.
3/3/20230
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State economists say a school choice expansion will cost $210 million. Not everyone buys it

The state puts the cost of a planned "universal choice" program at $210 million. That’s far below the number put out by an independent group. Why the difference?
2/24/20235 minutes, 6 seconds
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A state letter to College Board shows Florida expressed concerns about an AP Black studies course months before it became public

The College Board and the Florida Department of Education are accusing each other of misleading the public over a disputed Advanced Placement African American Studies course.
2/9/20231 minute, 29 seconds
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DeSantis' office confirms a plan is brewing to shield local taxpayers from Disney fight fallout

Governor Ron DeSantis’ administration says he doesn’t make “U-Turns." The administration released a statement Friday after the Financial Times reported a plan is in the works to reverse a law that eliminated Disney’s special tax district status.
12/2/20221 minute, 23 seconds
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Some observers say Gov. DeSantis is being smart by staying quiet on a 2024 presidential bid

Former President Donald Trump wants his old job, back. But the path to the GOP presidential nomination runs through Gov. Ron DeSantis who is being encouraged to pursue his bid for the job.
11/24/20225 minutes, 30 seconds
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A plan to use the state-backed property insurer to save Florida's industry from meltdown gets its first taker

A day after getting hit with a financial-rating downgrade, on Tuesday United Property & Casualty Insurance Co. became the first Florida property insurer to take part in a stopgap state program aimed at maintaining coverage for homeowners.
8/3/202255 seconds
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Takeaways from the Democratic gubernatorial debate between Charlie Crist and Nikki Fried

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and Congressman Charlie Crist held their first, and possibly only, debate in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. Tom Flanigan speaks with Sun Sentinel editorial head Steve Bousquet on whether the debate moved the needle with Democratic primary voters.
7/23/20224 minutes, 32 seconds
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A hearing on banning Florida Medicaid payments for gender-affirming care pits religion against science

More than a hundred people attended an Agency for Healthcare Administration hearing in Tallahassee on a proposed rule prohibiting the state’s Medicaid program from covering gender-affirming treatments.
7/11/20220
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Florida's new laws on property insurance and condo safety may not give homeowners relief and calm troubled markets

Gov. Ron DeSantis has approved new laws the state hopes will calm a chaotic property insurance market, and eventually lead to rate decreases for homeowners. But some lawmakers and industry analysts say they worry the packages don’t deliver relief fast enough and don’t go far enough for property owners to see a difference.
5/28/20223 minutes, 48 seconds
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Mass shootings in a Buffalo supermarket and Texas school lead Florida Democratic lawmakers to blame Republicans

Florida Democrats want the state’s Republican leaders to do more to address gun violence. The most recent mass shooting at a Texas elementary school coupled with a racially-motivated killing at a Buffalo supermarket is reigniting a long-simmering battle over how ad whether to limit gun possession.
5/25/20222 minutes, 14 seconds
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If Roe v. Wade is overturned abortion decisions go to the state. Advocates say they're ready to fight

Advocates for abortion access rallied outside the Florida Supreme Court in Tallahassee Tuesday. The crowd gathered in response to a leaked draft ruling that shows the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to overturn Roe V. Wade. Advocates say that doesn’t mean access to abortion would immediately end. Instead, the move would return abortion decisions to the states. In Florida, that could pit a new state law against a state supreme court finding.
5/4/20220
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Diaz says he wants to change the tone around what it means to be a teacher amid statewide shortages

Soon-to-be Education Commissioner Manny Diaz has worn many hats in his career, starting with teaching geography, history, social studies and psychology at public high schools in Miami. Today, he’s a Republican state Senator from Hialeah and works as the Vice President of Finance for Doral College. Diaz is also a staunch supporter of school choice which he says is falsely equated as being against public schools.
4/26/20224 minutes, 51 seconds
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With a flick of a pen, DeSantis ups the stakes in fight over new LGBTQ, parents rights law

LGBTQ students, parents and teachers say they’re already feeling the chill from legislation they call the “Don’t Say Gay” bill and civil rights groups filed a lawsuit against the new law this week.
4/1/20223 minutes, 43 seconds
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Cabinet meets over Florida's dysfunctional insurance market and lingering Russian investments

Roofing claims, property insurance, and Russian disinvestment: On Tuesday, for the first time in more than six months, the Florida Cabinet actually met in Tallahassee to tackle business on a variety of fronts.
3/30/20222 minutes, 57 seconds
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Florida's involuntary commitment laws get some long-needed updates

For years, mental health advocates have been trying to get the state to re-examine its laws around involuntary psychiatric commitment—and while the legislature has, in the past—taken some incremental steps—this year marks the biggest change yet.
3/11/20223 minutes, 42 seconds
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Senate Democrats are under fire for failing to block some controversial Republican bills

Tensions are flaring again between Democrats in the Florida Senate, as some of them vote to support highly controversial Republican bills. This trend outrages an outspoken Republican senator, too.
3/9/20224 minutes, 23 seconds
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DeSantis' spokeswoman takes heat over LGBTQ comments as protestors rally at the Capitol

Gov. Ron DeSantis' press secretary is facing fierce backlash after she made comments linking LBGTQ people to pedophiles. Spokeswoman Christina Pushaw’s statements on Twitter came as the Florida Senate prepared to take up legislation banning certain discussions about gender identity and sexual orientation in schools.
3/8/20222 minutes, 51 seconds