Florida's Latest News

Florida House, Senate panels move identical bills banning vaccine mandates

House and Senate legislative panels Monday moved identical bills that ban businesses from firing staff for refusing to get vaccinated without offering them an opportunity to opt out and that bar local governments from mandating COVID-19 vaccines.

The move hands Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis what appears will be an easy and victorious Special Session.

The House Commerce Committee spent four hours debating amendments and taking public testimony, mostly from people who oppose the mandates, before agreeing to pass HB 1B along a mostly partisan vote.

Rep. Dotie Joseph, a Democrat, voted for the bill in the committee but said she won’t support the measure for final vote. The other Democrats on the panel opposed the bill.

DeSantis proposes a $25M restoration of Miami's Freedom Tower amid Cuba protests

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is proposing a $25 million investment to repair Miami's Freedom Tower.

The aging building is also known as the “Ellis Island of the South” because it housed the Cuban Assistance Center where refugees received government help after leaving the communist island following the 1959 revolution.

The announcement came on the day of a planned opposition protest march Monday in Cuba.

DeSantis called out the Biden administration to step up its support for activists in Cuba.

The Republican governor said the tower needs urgent structural repairs, but the money also will be used to redesign the exhibits to welcome more visitors.

Florida cities sue state over ‘anti-riot’ law

Seven South Florida cities, as well as Tallahassee and Gainesville, are filing a lawsuit in state court on Tuesday challenging what they say is the executive branch’s “commandeering” of local budget authority in the so-called “anti-riot” law that passed earlier this year.

The law, HB 1, was a priority of the Republican-led Legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis after demonstrators across Florida and the nation protested the death of George Floyd, a Black man killed by a Minneapolis police officer in 2020.

As a hammer against local governments that attempt to rein in law enforcement, lawmakers included a new provision in state law that gives the governor and Cabinet veto power over city and county budgets.

Florida retailers expecting a very merry Christmas

The 2021 holiday spending season should bring record joy to Florida stores, the Florida Retail Federation says.

Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Gleeful Kwanzaa. Jolly Festivus. Indeed.

Florida’s statewide trade association for retail stores said Monday that nationally retailers are expecting an increase in sales of between 8.5% and 10.5% compared with 2020. That should work out to $843 to $859 billion in holiday retail sales, smashing the record $777 billion that holiday shoppers spent the year before, according to the National Retail Federation.

The spending increase also looks to be a record one-year jump.

The National Retail Federation says its national survey indicates that 90 percent of shoppers enthusiastically plan to participate in winter holiday celebrations this year.