DeSantis

State police are showing up at Florida voters’ homes to question them about signing a petition to get an abortion rights amendment on the ballot in November, and a state health care agency has launched a website targeting the ballot initiative with politically charged language.Critics say they’re the latest efforts by Florida’s Republican elected officials to leverage state resources to try to block the abortion rights measure, moves which some Democratic officials argue could violate state laws against voter intimidation.

Among the budget spending vetoed by DeSantis was $11.6 million for renovations to Florida Gulf Coast University’s Reed Hall classroom building.Also among the vetoes was $80 million for the Florida College System to participate in the state group insurance program, which provides health insurance to state workers.Among big-ticket items approved by the governor, the budget includes $14.5 billion for the state transportation work program and $232 million for cancer-research funding, including $127.5 million for the Casey DeSantis Cancer Research Program.Also included in the state budget is $15.547 million for Fort Myers Beach for a new Town Hall site and revenue replacement.

A federal judge on Tuesday struck down a 2023 Florida law that blocked gender-affirming care for transgender minors and severely restricted such treatment for adults, calling the statute unconstitutional.Senior Judge Robert Hinkle said the state went too far when it barred transgender minors from being prescribed puberty blockers and hormonal treatments with their parents’ permission. He also stopped the state from requiring that transgender adults only receive treatment from a doctor and not from a registered nurse or other qualified medical practitioner. And he barred a ban on online treatment for transgender adults.

Governor DeSantis has directed $750 million a year to the state’s environmental needs; critics say his is misspending — but supporters say it's money well spent

At least five people in the United States have applied to Florida universities through Gov. Ron DeSantis’ emergency order to encourage transfer students across the country who feel they experienced religious persecution on campus after the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks.The governor’s order announced last month waives application fees and, in some instances, grants in-state tuition to transfer applicants.

The Biden administration wants a federal judge to reject a lawsuit filed by Florida in a dispute about transit funding and a new state law that placed additional restrictions on public-employee unions.Attorneys for the U.S. Department of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Labor and other defendants Friday filed court documents disputing Florida’s arguments that federal officials were improperly threatening to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars for local transit programs in the state.

A fund set up for the governor to quickly dispense money during emergencies would be nearly $59 million in the hole if all obligations for hurricane clean-up, immigration enforcement and Israel relief and rescue efforts came due today.

A business plan outlining sweeping changes at New College of Florida is “not financially viable” in its current state, a University of Florida business-school faculty member said in an analysis that critiqued New College’s “strategic vision.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis' security costs increased in the fiscal year that ended June 30.

The governor urged Disney to drop a suit thaT alleges changes the governor supported in the board that governs Disney's property are retaliation for its opposition to a 2022 law that restricts instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in Florida schools.