State News

Gambling, state budget on Florida Legislature's agenda

Special — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:09:37 -0500

TALLAHASSEE -- Gambling talks continue in the Legislature today, as the House committee charged with drafting a gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida considers the impact of Vegas-style casinos on the state's tourism industry and economy.

88 ways to leave the Florida budget gap behind

Special — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 19:16:25 -0500

TALLAHASSEE (AP) -- With lawmakers performing daily triage on the ailing Florida budget, a taxpayers' think tank Thursday offered what it said was $3.25 billion worth of bedside advice.

Whaling opponents huddle in Florida

Special — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 09:39:15 -0500

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Key players on whaling huddled behind closed doors in Florida in an uncertain bid to find common ground on an issue that has bitterly divided Australia and Japan.

Negotiators opened talks at a resort hotel in St. Pete Beach, near St. Petersburg, participants said. Media were not allowed into the talks in the hopes of encouraging a more open dialogue.

Atwater, Cretul open Florida's 2010 legislature with pro-business promise

Special — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 12:01:47 -0500

TALLAHASSEE — Senate President Jeff Atwater opened the 2010 session of the Florida Legislature this morning with a call for fiscal restraint from both state and federal leaders.

Forest service offering reward for offenders

Special — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 11:26:59 -0500

TALLAHASSEE – The U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement and Investigations is offering a cash reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the individual, or individuals, responsible for threats and vandalism to government property in the Ocala National Forest.

Killer whale kills trainer at SeaWorld

Special — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:34:11 -0500

MIAMI (Reuters) – A killer whale at the SeaWorld amusement park in central Florida killed a trainer on Wednesday, a sheriff's spokesman said.

"She apparently slipped and fell into the tank and was fatally injured by one of the whales," Orange County Sheriff's spokesman Jim Solomons said.

The 40-year-old trainer was dead when rescue officials arrived, he said.

FHP names drivers in fatal tour bus crash

Special — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 09:18:07 -0500

LAKE PLACID, FLA. - Authorities have released the names of the two drivers involved in a fatal tour bus crash in central Florida.

Tour bus crash kills 2 in Central Florida

Special — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 17:35:28 -0500

LAKE PLACID, FLA. - A tour bus carrying senior citizens on an education trip rolled over Monday on a rural stretch of road in central Florida, killing two people and injuring more than a dozen others, authorities said.

He's the Bernie Madoff of South Florida

Special — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 21:35:18 -0500

Fort Lauderdale (CNN) -- The photographs on the walls of Scott Rothstein's office at his law firm in Fort Lauderdale were a who's who of Washington.

Medicaid revamp faces obstacles in Florida

Robby Douglas — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 15:00:04 -0500

FORT LAUDERDALE (AP) -- With Medicaid costs now consuming 26 percent of Florida's budget, the upcoming session seems primed for a program overhaul. But legislators will tackle the issue amid a foundering pilot program, a class-action Medicaid lawsuit that could cost the state millions, all while waiting to see if and how a federal health bill will affect the state.