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As AI takes off, Florida rolls out specific and significant boundaries

Florida lawmakers took the first steps to put regulations on artificial intelligence this week, kicking off a battle between tech companies spearheading the new technology and those who fear the downsides of the AI revolution will wreak havoc on consumers and the workforce.

“AI, while holding a great deal of promise, also poses novel and unique threats. Generative AI in particular can be particularly insidious in some contexts when used by children or unsuspecting or vulnerable adults,” said Sen. Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach, sponsor of SB 482, the “AI Bill of Rights” measure.

The bill requires AI platforms with chatbots to give parents access to the accounts of their children, to delete the accounts upon a parent’s request, bars the dissemination of personal information and gives the Attorney General’s office the power to sue to enforce the law.

It passed unanimously through the Senate Commerce and Tourism Committee on Jan. 21, but there was a clear difference between business groups who urged caution in overregulating AI and consumer groups who wanted the bill to give more teeth to the enforcement measures if AI platforms violate the law.

Amy Keith, executive director of Common Cause of Florida, urged the panel to add regular audits and disclosure requirements for AI platforms to ensure compliance so consumers aren’t victimized.

Teachers union backs Florida Senate bill targeting teacher shortages

A bill moving through Florida’s legislative session is drawing strong support from the state’s largest teachers union, which says it could help public schools hire and retain more educators.

The Florida Education Association is backing Senate Bill 320, known as Administrative Efficiency in Public Schools. The proposal would allow school districts to offer teachers multi-year contracts and require higher pay for educators who hold advanced degrees.

Supporters say the bill is designed to address persistent teacher shortages across the state. Under SB 320, districts would have greater flexibility to sign teachers to contracts lasting multiple years, which would offer them more stability.

The legislation also sets pay requirements for teachers with advanced degrees, addressing a long-standing concern that many educators receive no additional compensation despite earning higher credentials.

The bill also revises eligibility requirements for Florida’s teacher apprentice program, potentially expanding the pathway into the profession.

Florida Education Association President Andrew Spar said the legislation is a positive step, but emphasized that additional funding is needed to make a meaningful impact.

FSU Day at the Capitol: President says university is 'on a roll'

The Florida Capitol was decked in garnet and gold for Florida State University's annual 'Day at the Capitol' event Jan. 21, which comes as the university is requesting over $260 million of operational funding in this year’s legislative session. 

And as the university’s students, faculty, administrators and alumni spent the day lobbying and meeting with legislators, one of the biggest efforts the university is seeking funding for is FSU Health – an initiative in which $50 million of recurring and non-recurring funds are being requested.

Meanwhile, moves are still being made for FSU to acquire the Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare campus. 

“In research, we are setting a new pace,” FSU President Richard McCullough said. “We’ve launched FSU Health and we have partnered with Tallahassee Memorial hospital and, more recently, with the city.” 

“Yesterday, we signed the historic agreement for us to move forward in a memorandum of understanding to transfer the city assets of the hospital to Florida State University,” he added, “creating a new partnership to bring even better healthcare to Leon County and the surrounding area.”

Study: Florida reefs offer multi-million-dollar flood protection - if they survive

It’s no secret that Florida’s iconic coral reefs are in trouble.

Repeated body blows from hurricanes, pollution, disease, climate change — and a near-knockout punch from a 2023 marine heat wave — has effectively wiped several species off the map and shrunk the reefs that stretch from the Keys throughout South Florida.

Scientists, nonprofits, the state of Florida and the federal government are all scrambling to rescue and rebuild the reef tract. But a new study found that if Florida doesn’t preserve what we have now, residents could see hundreds of millions of dollars of extra flooding damage in the future — much of it concentrated in Miami-Dade.

“We’d love to restore and enhance and make the reefs even better, but this is just saying ‘my gosh, let’s protect what we have’,” said Curt Storlazzi, a research geologist for the U.S. Geological Survey and lead author of the study, which published in the journal Earth’s Future last week.

As coral reefs break down they get shorter and flatter, leaving less friction to slow incoming waves. Bigger waves can reach further inland, swamping more homes and businesses. A 2017 study by one of the co-authors of the paper, Kimberly Yates, found that reefs in the Florida Keys had already lost nearly three feet of height in the last few decades alone.