News - March 2018 RSS Feed

After holding numerous committee meetings and public hearings, the full Constitution Revision Commission met this week to consider proposed amendments to the Florida Constitution. The CRC convenes every 20 years and has the authority to put issues directly on the ballot. The 37-member commission faces a May 10 deadline for finishing its work. Proposals that receive final approval from the full commission will appear on the general election ballot in November 2018.

On March 19, Governor Scott signed HB 41, codifying the Florida Pregnancy Support Services Program (FPSSP) in statute. Through a network of 106 pregnancy support centers across the state, FPSSP provides resources and services to pregnant mothers as they prepare to parent or place their babies for adoption.

On March 19, Governor Rick Scott signed SB 920 into law. The measure allows a new product for payday loans up to $1000 that will cost consumers more in fees and interest payments than the current payday products. It also allows loans to be made at triple-digit annual percentage rates. Most comparable loans are capped at 30 percent.

The Regular Session of the Florida Legislature came to a close (sine die) at 4:16 p.m. on Sunday, March 11. The motion to adjourn sine die, Latin for 'without day,' is the last action of a session of the Florida legislature. The session was extended two days beyond its March 9 scheduled end to resolve an impasse over hospital spending between the House and the Senate.

The Florida legislature has acted quickly to address gun policy and school safety in the wake of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. HB 7101 and SB 7026 both contain key changes that improve state law and help to ensure that a tragedy such as the one that occurred in Parkland on February 14 never occurs again. Key provisions of the bills include:

The House and Senate have begun the process of resolving differences between the two chambers' spending plans. On Tuesday evening, House and Senate leaders announced agreement on allocations - specific amounts to be allocated for the major budget areas - and lawmakers are now negotiating how funds will be spent.

Dismemberment Abortion On Thursday, March 1, HB 1429 (Grall) passed the House (72-42). This FCCB-supported measure would prohibit physicians from knowingly performing a dismemberment abortion, a procedure conducted in the second-trimester that removes the body parts of an unborn child while the child is still alive. The companion bill in the Senate, SB 1890 (Mayfield), has not been heard in its committees of reference.

On Monday, February 26, more than 45,000 calls were made to members of Congress from Catholics around the country urging them to find a legislative solution to save the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops asked all Catholics to contact their members of Congress and urge them to protect Dreamers from deportation, provide them a path to citizenship and avoid any damage to existing protections for families and unaccompanied minors in the process.