Florida's Latest News

Ron DeSantis appoints Tom Morgan to Northwest Florida Water Management District

Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed longtime Panhandle business leader Tom Morgan to the Northwest Florida Water Management District, adding a new member to the Board that oversees water resources across a broad section of the state.

The appointment, announced Friday, places Morgan on the panel responsible for shaping water policy and managing conservation efforts across a region that stretches from the Big Bend to the Alabama state line.

Morgan is well known in the Franklin County area, where he owns Apalach Outfitters, an outdoor apparel and supply store located in downtown Apalachicola. The shop, which he operates with his wife, Sharon Morgan, has become a fixture in the coastal community.

Before entering the retail sector, Morgan served as president of Residential Development for the St. Joe Co., one of Florida’s largest and most influential real estate developers. His background in both private-sector development and small business management provides state officials with experience that they say can be useful in guiding water policy in a region experiencing both growth and environmental pressures.

Morgan holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Mississippi.

Florida gaming officials join forces with Port Orange police for illegal gambling crackdown

Three businesses were busted on allegations of running illegal gambling operations on Florida’s east coast.

The Florida Gaming Control Commission (FGCC) teamed up with the Port Orange Police Department for the crackdown. In the end, some 20 slot machines and two coin pusher machines were confiscated during the investigation, which also seized $25,659 in cash. Three operators of the businesses, which were bars, were charged with possession of slot machines and keeping a gambling house. Each suspect was issued an order to appear in court.

“The Florida Gaming Control Commission is joining with other law enforcement agencies to stop illegal gambling in our state,” said FGCC Executive Director Alana Zimmer. “If businesses are unclear on the legality of their machines, they can contact the FGCC anytime for direction and clarification. This information can also protect their other state-issued licenses, which are often in use at the same establishment.”

Florida prohibits slot machines, except at eight pari-mutuel licensed gaming locations in Miami-Dade and Broward counties and at another seven in Seminole Tribe facilities in the state.

The FGCC operation that netted the most recent charges happened on Nov. 12 and included:

Bill seeks to improve transparency and efficiency in Florida's school voucher system

Two days after lawmakers received findings of a state audit, Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, on Friday filed a proposal aimed at improved “transparency and efficiency” in Florida’s school voucher system.

The bill (SB 318), which is filed for the legislative session that will start Jan. 13, includes steps such as separating funding for what is known as the Family Empowerment Scholarship voucher program from money that goes to public schools.

Among other things, it calls for changing voucher payments from quarterly to monthly and requiring verification of student eligibility before each payment, according to a Senate summary of the bill.

The Senate Pre-K-12 Appropriations Committee, which includes Gaetz, on Wednesday received findings of an auditor general’s report.

In part, Gaetz pointed to the state not being able to track many students who receive vouchers and said $100 million that should have gone to public schools last year was paid for scholarships, according to the Senate summary.

The House Pre-K-12 Budget Subcommittee also has been looking at the issues.

Judge allows lawsuit on Florida districts to proceed

A panel of federal judges Friday said a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of three Florida House districts and one congressional district can move forward — while rejecting challenges to four other House districts.

The 20-page ruling came in a request by the House for summary judgment to end the lawsuit, which alleged seven Miami-Dade County state House districts and one congressional district that crosses South Florida were gerrymandered based on race.

The three-judge panel granted the request for summary judgment on House Districts 112, 113, 114 and 116 but denied it on House Districts 115, 118 and 119 and Congressional District 26. That effectively could lead to a trial on the constitutionality of the remaining disputed districts.

“In sum, plaintiffs have offered district-specific statements of key actors and district-specific circumstantial evidence that is sufficient to create a genuine dispute of material fact as to whether race predominated in the drawing of House Districts 115, 118 and 119 and Congressional District 26,” said the ruling, written by U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Becerra and joined by 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Britt Grant and U.S. District Judge Rodolfo Ruiz. “Accordingly, summary judgment is not appropriate with respect to these districts.”

But the ruling also said, “The House argues that plaintiffs fail to provide either direct or circumstantial evidence that the Legislature was motivated predominantly by racial considerations when drawing House Districts 112, 113, 114 and 116. As to these districts, the court agrees.