News - February 2017 RSS Feed

On Tuesday, March 7 lawmakers will gather to formally start the 2017 Regular Session of the Florida Legislature. During a joint meeting of the House and Senate, Governor Rick Scott is expected to give the traditional "State of the State" address. The annual legislative session is scheduled to run 60 days, ending May 5.

SB 192 (Powell) passed its first committee of reference, the Senate Criminal Justice Committee (4-3). The bill revises the circumstances under which juveniles may be treated as an adult in the court system. Florida has three ways in which juveniles may be prosecuted as adults: as a result of a judicial waiver, by a grand jury indictment, or through the direct file process.

On February 16, the House Children, Families & Seniors Subcommittee passed HB 427 by Representative David Santiago (R-Deltona). The measure requires the state to withdraw from the federally-funded refugee program by December 31, 2017.

On February 16, 2017, the Florida Supreme Court blocked a 2015 law that would have provided women 24-hours to reflect before having abortions. Justices, in a 4-2 decision, overturned an appellate decision and agreed with a Leon County circuit judge who issued a temporary injunction against the law. The majority opinion was written by Justice Pariente and joined by Chief Justice Labarga and Justices Lewis and Quince. Justices Polston and Canady dissented. Justice Lawson, who joined the court at the end of December 2016, did not participate in the ruling.

Presidential Executive Actions: Within his first week in office, President Trump signed three separate executive orders aimed at immigrants and/or refugees. These actions begin the process of implementing the Administration's plans to:

Sen. Anitere Flores (R-Miami) and Rep. Larry Ahern (R-Seminole) are sponsoring bills SB 196 and HB 205 to ensure that all children in Florida receive equal access to civil citations, rather than arrest, when committing first-time, nonviolent misdemeanors.