State News – Page 28 – Capital Outlook

Court backs insurer in wrongful incarceration case

June 11, 2021

Anthony Caravella By Jim SaundersNews Service of Florida An appeals court ruled that an insurer does not have to cover a multimillion-dollar verdict against two former South Florida police officers who were found liable for sending a man to prison for a murder and rape he did not commit. Last

Death sentence upheld in Wakulla prison murder

June 11, 2021

Inmate Scottie D. Allen was convicted in the October 2017 murder of Ryan Mason.Photo special to the Outlook NSF Staff Report The Florida Supreme Court upheld the conviction and death sentence of a former inmate at Wakulla Correctional Institution who strangled his cellmate in 2017. Justices unanimously rejected arguments raised

Education projects get hit with vetoes

June 11, 2021

A $600,000 proposal to create a “Music Education For All” program was among the education funding cuts by Gov. Ron DeSantis. NSF Staff Report Programs aimed at bolstering music, math and technology education were among the items Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed as he signed a $100 billion budget for next

Education board to wade into history debate

June 11, 2021

Richard Corcoran By Ryan DaileyNews Service of Florida The State Board of Education is set to vote this week on a proposal that would place strict guidelines on the way U.S. history is taught in public schools, but opponents argue the measure threatens to obscure the realities of historical events

Justices reject challenge to medical marijuana law

June 4, 2021

Medical marijuana has exploded in the few short years since its legalization in Florida.Photo special to the Outlook By Dara KamNews Service of Florida Siding with the state in a closely watched case that has kept the cannabis industry in limbo, the Florida Supreme Court upheld a 2017 law designed

Valenstein stepping down as environmental secretary

June 4, 2021

Noah Valenstein By Jim TurnerNews Service of Florida Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Noah Valenstein is exiting this week after running the agency for four years under two governors. Shawn Hamilton, currently the state agency’s deputy secretary for land and recreation, will become Florida’s interim environmental secretary on Friday,

TaxWatch takes aim at 116 budget ‘turkeys’

June 4, 2021

TaxWatch President Dominic Calabro (right) says state lawmakers have done a “good” job with billions in federal relief.Photo special to the Outlook By Jim TurnerNews Service of Florida In a sign of how Florida’s economic outlook has changed over the past year, Florida TaxWatch isn’t emphatically calling for Gov. Ron

Drug importation program a priority for DeSantis

June 4, 2021

Gov. Ron DeSantis contends that Florida could save between $80 and $150 million by participating in a prescription drug plan.Photo special to the Outlook NSF Staff Report Gov. Ron DeSantis said that the state is ready to begin importing drugs from Canada and pushed President Joe Biden’s administration to give

Deal could open doors to new casinos

June 4, 2021

Marcellus Osceola Jr. By Dara KamNews Service of Florida For more than a decade, the glitziest casinos in the state have operated on lands owned by the Seminole Tribe of Florida. The tribe’s facilities have been a go-to place for Florida bettors to play popular Las Vegas-style card games such

Visit Florida looks to boost international tourism

June 4, 2021

Dana Young By Jim TurnerNews Service of Florida Florida’s tourism-marketing agency is planning international trips as officials work to offset the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the travel industry. Visit Florida President and CEO Dana Young said last Tuesday the agency is planning a trip to Mexico in June,