Florida's Latest News

Florida's social media law for teens heads to appeals court

A federal appeals court will hear arguments on a Florida law limiting teenagers' access to social media, which the group challenging the law says limits users' access to content lawfully protected by the First Amendment.

Specifically, the three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will determine whether a federal judge in Tallahassee was correct in blocking enforcement of the law in a June order. They convene March 10 in Jacksonville.

Gov. Ron DeSantis approved the law in question (HB 3) in 2024, barring anybody under 16 from using some social media platforms, except for 14- and 15-year-olds who obtained parental permission. It also requires websites that publish adult content to verify that visitors are 18 or older using a reasonable age-verification method.

Soon after the governor's signature, the associations representing platforms like Google, YouTube, Meta and Snapchat filed a federal lawsuit.

The Computer & Communications Industry Association's president Matt Schruers said in a statement that the group supports protections for younger users online, but that's a decision for families to make themselves.

Daniel Perez says Session won’t end early, budget allocations to be announced soon

House Speaker Daniel Perez is confirming that the House and Senate won’t wrap the budget before Friday’s planned Session end date, but he says that doesn’t mean Session is ending early.

“Despite wild rumors to the contrary, of which I have heard, I intend for us to continue working until both the House and Senate agree that we have disposed of all pending matters before the Legislature,” Perez said.

He added that Thursday and Friday will deal with returning messages, in which the two legislative branches attempt to resolve differences in bills that both have passed, but with some key differences in the language.

“Returning messages appear on message lists published by my office and Thursday and Friday, we’ll have many more stops and starts than a typical legislative day,” Perez said.

Perez noted that 53 bills have passed both chambers so far, while 253 bills have passed the House and 149 the Senate.

How Charlie Ward, after White House summit, would fix college sports

Invited to a White House roundtable led by President Trump on the future of college athletics, Charlie Ward said he approached the opportunity not as a personal honor, but as a responsibility.

Although the Florida A&M men’s basketball coach and former Heisman Trophy–winning quarterback on Florida State’s 1993 national championship team did not speak publicly during the two-hour session Friday, March 6, Ward used the visit to raise concerns in one-on-one conversations about how current and proposed legislation could affect institutions outside the power conferences, including FAMU.

Featuring some of the most prominent political and college sports leaders in the country — including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — the roundtable reflected a growing consensus that college athletics’ current financial model is broken and unsustainable.

As name, image and likeness (NIL) spending, revenue sharing and collective-driven funding continue to expand without limits, many schools face the real possibility of cutting athletic programs altogether.

Senate passes Clay Yarborough’s ‘medical freedom’ bill despite House declaring it dead

The Senate is making a statement with legislation that makes it easier to dodge vaccine mandates and increases access to ivermectin.

That’s despite House Speaker Daniel Perez saying the House won’t bring up the bill.

“Florida has been a national leader in parental rights because we believe parents have a God-given right and responsibility to direct the upbringing of their children. The default decision-maker in a child’s life is the parent — not the government. This legislation not only ensures government is respecting the rights of parents to decide timing for vaccinations, but also makes certain whether they choose to vaccinate, or not, or in part, parents have detailed information available to make these important decisions,” said Senate President Ben Albritton.

“Ivermectin has been widely utilized in many communities across our state for years. Making this medication available behind-the-counter without a prescription is long overdue.”

Sen. Clay Yarborough’s bill (SB 1756) would require informed consent from parents about vaccines before administering, immunizing doctors from penalties and liability if they give out ivermectin and allowing pharmacists to do the same upon request, and allows the “conscience-based objection” to childhood inoculations.