The time of dying bills.
It’s that time of year when proposed legislation goes to die in Tallahassee. The Florida Senate overwhelmingly approved the DeSantis-backed “AI Bill of Rights” last week — but it won’t matter because the Florida House won’t consider it. Other doomed legislation includes an overhaul of the school voucher program, and the Rural Renaissance bill. DeSantis’ proposed Medical Freedom program, which would make it easier for parents to not vaccinate their kids, is also DOA. Even key GOP priorities like finding a way to cut property taxes, haven’t cleared both chambers.
New anti-LGTQ legislation is moving through the state legislature. On Thursday, the Florida Senate passed a bill to ban local governments from supporting "D-E-I,” or diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The House takes up - and is likely to pass - the bill tomorrow. If it becomes law, it could stop gay pride events across Florida. Another bill focused on the LGBTQ community would block state employers from requiring workers to refer to a colleague with pronouns other than those aligned with their birth sex.
With five days left in its regular session, the Florida Legislature has yet to do the one thing required by the state constitution — pass a balanced budget. Missing the deadline will mean the Legislature will go into overtime as it did last year.
Floridians worry about affordability.
A new poll finds Floridians have widespread worries about affordability. And most voters are ready to cut property taxes. Support for cutting non-school property taxes is 56% of respondents - but that’s still short of the 60% needed for a constitutional amendment. Local governments warn that eliminating property taxes would erode vital services, including public safety, parks, libraries and roads. The University of North Florida poll of likely midterm voters also found that fully 50% think the cost of living is the most important problem facing Florida today. The poll also found that Floridians disapprove of the way ICE is handling its job.
Stokes Space aims for full reusability.
There’s a new rocket company in town - Stokes Space. The company, formed by two former Blue Origin engineers, aims to launch the first fully-reusable rocket. No company has achieved full reusability yet, not even SpaceX. The Stokes Nova rocket could take off on a test flight from Launch Complex 14 in Cape Canaveral later this year. That’s the same site that launched John Glenn, and has not been used since 1966.
SpaceX is scheduled to launch a Falcon 9 from Cape Canaveral tonight. The launch window opens at 11:14PM. The mission is to place a direct broadcast satellite for DISH networks into geostationary orbit. This launch will follow a rare due-east trajectory over the Atlantic Ocean.
In other space news, a Senate committee in Washington wants to extend the life of the International Space Station. The ISS is currently set to deorbit sometime after 2030, but the revised NASA authorization act would extend that date by a couple years.
February weather takes toll on manatees.
Frigid weather in January and February killed 35 manatees in Florida. That’s almost triple the five-year average. Brevard led the state with 7 manatee deaths. But it's uncertain what long-term impact the February cold snap will have on Florida's manatee population, which has increased dramatically over the past few decades.
Florida gas prices surge.
Gas prices in Florida jumped 61 cents in the past week. Some predict prices will climb to $5 a gallon by the end of the month. According to GasBuddy.com, in Brevard, gas is more expensive Beachside and less expensive at 7Eleven’s on the mainland today.
