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What happens when Florida’s governor is your substitute teacher

Gary Fineout is a reporter for POLITICO based in Tallahassee, Florida. He has covered state and local government in Florida for 35 years.

The 30 or so kids who showed up at their 9th grade civics class had been told ahead of time was that there would be a special guest teaching the class that day. They weren’t expecting the television cameras. Or the crowd gathered outside the door to greet their substitute teacher. Or the man wearing a professorial-looking cardigan sweater.

I was in that class nearly 45 years ago. And at the time, I didn’t really understand why Florida Gov. Bob Graham had chosen to spend several hours at Dowdell Junior High School just outside Tampa. 

But after the doors were closed and the cameras were shooed away, he launched straight into a discussion — complete with turns at the chalkboard — about the ins and outs of how things worked in Tallahassee, an early lesson in what has wound up being an integral part of my career in journalism.

What you need to know about the six constitutional amendments on Florida’s 2024 ballot

This year, Florida voters aren’t just deciding who they want to be president. They’re also choosing whether to amend the state constitution to protect their own property tax bills from inflation, stop candidates from receiving public money for political campaigns and legalize marijuana.

In all, six ballot initiatives will be presented to voters, each needing 60% support to pass. Here’s a closer look at all of the amendments:

SCHOOL BOARD ELECTIONS

Amendment 1 proposes that the state bring back partisan school board elections on or after November 2026.

Florida school board races have been non-partisan since voters passed an amendment in 1998 that required candidates to run without party labels. But lately, schools have been a political battleground in Florida, and lawmakers decided this winter to ask voters to once again identify school board candidates by their party affiliation.

Avelo Airlines to test Miami-to-Orlando route for $46 one-way — faster and mostly cheaper than Brightline

This is only a test. But could it be long before airlines start competing with Brightline’s high-speed rail service with high-volume discount flights between Central and South Florida?

Up-and-coming discounter Avelo Airlines announced Wednesday it is taking a flier on the high-volume Miami-Orlando travel market with “seasonal” Boeing 737-800 flights on Fridays and Sundays, between June 7 and Aug. 18.

Avelo’s first-day one-way fares: $46 for a one-hour, five-minute flight. The Brightline SMART fares posted for June 7: $39 to $89 for its three-hour, 30-minute train rides, depending on the time of day during the course of the railroad’s 16-train schedule.

Based in Houston, Avelo previously operated charters before becoming a regularly scheduled carrier in 2021. It serves 52 U.S. destinations in 23 states and Puerto Rico. The airline operates at 10 Florida airports, including South Florida’s three international airports in Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Miami.

Failed insurance execs are taking new jobs. Florida says it’s illegal.

When Orlando-based St. Johns Insurance Co. went insolvent in 2022, it spelled the end of one of Florida’s largest insurers. Its 147,000 policyholders found a landing spot when they were moved to Slide Insurance Co., a Tampa startup.

Three of St. Johns’ top executives found a landing spot, too — at Slide. State regulators say that was illegal. Florida law forbids officers and directors of insolvent insurers from taking on equivalent roles at other companies without first proving they weren’t responsible for the prior failure.

The law, on the books since 2002, is well-known in the industry. Some insiders call it the “no-fly list.” But the wave of recent insurance company insolvencies — which has contributed to Floridians’ turmoil and sky-high premiums — is testing the law like never before.

State regulators have found at least 19 executives in top-level jobs at other companies, in violation of Florida law. “As we began investigating, we found more and more,” Office of Insurance Regulation Commissioner Mike Yaworsky said. “We’re serious about enforcing the law.”