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Florida Republican insists prioritizing border security over foreign aid ‘nonnegotiable.’

Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) said she and her House Republican colleagues see border security as “nonnegotiable,” and it should be prioritized over foreign aid as lawmakers debate a supplemental spending package. The fight over the border has become intertwined with requests for additional aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.

“It has to be a border security package first and foremost before we look abroad, or overseas, because if we do not secure this border, we’re staring down the barrel of the worst humanitarian, public health and national security crisis in modern history,” she added.

“This is unsustainable, and every town in America today is a border town as a result of the open border policies. So that is going to be the number one leverage point that we have in the House, no border package means no package for anything else.” 

The Senate adjourned last month without a deal on funding for Ukraine or border security, ending a historically unproductive legislative session. Its members are not scheduled to come back until early January.

More than 1,000 bills filed as Florida's legislative session begins next week.

Florida’s legislative session begins on Jan. 9, with more than 1,000 bills filed and ready for review. Three central bills address property insurance, ballot boxes and abortion.

House Bill 1017 would create a new property insurance commission with six appointed members. The bill would make it harder for insurance companies to leave the state by claiming insolvency, and it would prohibit insurance companies from using certain defenses to deny claims.

Another bill, SB 190, would provide additional security to ballot boxes across Florida. A law enforcement officer would need to be present at all times as a ballot box moves from a voting precinct, where ballots are cast, to the supervisor of elections office, where they are counted.

A third bill, SB 34, would better define penalties for providers that perform abortions in Florida. Any doctor, health care provider or person who performs or assists in an abortion outside of one allowed by Florida law would be guilty of a third-degree felony, carrying a fine of up to $5,000 and five years in prison.

Senate Republican proposes additional oversight measures on financial institutions in Florida

Republican Sen. Jonathan Martin filed Senate Bill 1132 on Tuesday, proposing stricter regulations and oversight measures for financial institutions in Florida.

The legislation, in close alignment with CS/HB 585, introduces amendments to Florida Statutes that would expand the grounds for suspending or disqualifying qualified public depositories, particularly targeting institutions that “unjustly” suspend, terminate, or restrict a customer’s access to their accounts.

The bill mandates that, if adopted, financial institutions must report any customer account termination or restriction of customer account access to the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (OFR). This requirement, mirroring CS/HB 585’s provisions, is exempted in cases of customer-initiated actions, account inactivity, or unclaimed accounts under certain conditions.

A secondary aspect of the measure, which builds on the foundation laid by CS/HB 585, is the granted authorization of the OFR to investigate these reports. If a financial institution is found to have acted in bad faith — which was left undefined in the bill draft — it will become subject to monetary sanctions and fines. The Capitolist has attempted to contact Sen. Martin for further clarification on bill terminology.

Florida may ban most businesses from going cashless.

Grabbing a latte, a bagel or an empanada at Circle House Coffee in Fort Lauderdale requires a credit or debit card or smartphone payment app. Cash isn’t accepted. The same is true, as of Jan. 1, for tickets, a drink or snack at the Arts Garage visual and performing arts venue in Delray Beach.

The county-owned arena in Sunrise, home to the Florida Panthers hockey team and venue for events ranging from a Drake concert to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus is a cashless building — even though naming rights are currently held by Amerant, “the largest community bank headquartered in Florida.

A growing number of businesses of all sizes are going cashless, requiring patrons to use credit or debit cards, or smartphone apps, to pay for their purchases. The trend is an inconvenience for people who prefer to use cash.

It’s a big problem for others, including lower-income people who don’t have access to non-cash payments and some older people who aren’t proficient with app-based payments.