Category: Florida

Record Apprehensions Continue off Florida Coast

The Center Square

A record number of foreign nationals attempting to enter Florida illegally by sea continue to be apprehended by federal, state and local law enforcement agents who are breaking up violent altercations, rescuing people from overloaded and sinking boats, and arresting MS-13 gang members and child sex offenders – the majority of whom are single military age men.

U.S. Coast Guard crews have apprehended a record number of Cubans attempting to enter Florida illegally. Since Oct. 1, 2022, they’ve apprehended 5,740 Cubans. That’s nearly as many as they did in all of fiscal 2022 – 6,182.

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DeSantis Signs Bill Ending Disney’s Special Self-Governing Status

The Center Square

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday signed a bill ending the Walt Disney Company’s special self-governing status.

“Allowing a corporation to control its own government is bad policy, especially when the corporation makes decisions that impact an entire region,” DeSantis said in an announcement about the new law, which came largely in response to Disney’s advocacy against Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill, called the “Don’t say gay bill” by critics.

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Florida County GOP Passes Resolution to ‘Ban the Jab’ and Confiscate the Doses

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The Lee County Republican Party Executive Committee passed a  resolution Tuesday night, asking the Florida Legislature to outlaw the COVID injections and the Attorney General’s Office to confiscate all doses within the state.

The “Ban the Jab” resolution, which passed with the required two-thirds majority, will now head to Governor Ron DeSantis’ desk (where he can ignore it) and to the State Legislature.

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Hospital Costs for Foreign Nationals Illegally in Florida Total $340 Million in Fiscal ’21

The Center Square

Taxpayers spent nearly $340 million for foreign nationals illegally in the U.S. who were admitted to Florida hospitals during fiscal 2021, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office says. This is after taxpayers spent $312 million on illegal foreign nationals admitted to Florida hospitals in fiscal 2020.

According to the findings, donations from charities were used to help pay for illegal foreign nationals’ hospital bills.

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Florida Seeks to Replace SAT with CLT, Following Classical Education Trend

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ feud with the College Board is calling attention to alternatives in standardized testing methods, including the Classical Learning Test (CLT).

DeSantis began pushing back against the College Board, which administers the SAT entrance exam and Advanced Placement (AP) curricula, in January when his administration rejected the trial-run of the AP African American Studies course in the state of Florida.

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Florida’s DeSantis Announces New Initiative to Combat Illegal Immigration

The Center Square

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Thursday an extensive legislative plan to address the border crisis.

His proposal comes as record numbers of foreign nationals have illegally entered through the southern border and made their way to Florida or are continuing to be apprehended by state and federal law enforcement officers as they attempt to enter Florida illegally by sea.

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Florida Lawmakers Discuss Effects of Benefit Cliffs on Low Income Families

The Center Square

The Florida House Subcommittee on Children, Families and Seniors met in Tallahassee Wednesday and discussed the phenomena of benefit cliffs with several programs and how they can provide a disincentive for work.

The subcommittee was given a presentation on the barriers that are present for Florida families, with the main focus being benefit cliffs — which refers to the sudden and often unexpected decrease in public benefits due to a small increase in earnings.

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More Than 200 People Arrested in Human Sex Trafficking Ring in Florida

The Center Square

A multiagency operation led to the arrest of more than 200 people allegedly engaging in human trafficking in Polk County, Florida. More than half of the victims were smuggled into the U.S. illegally through the southern border, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said.

Of the 24 victims identified as being trafficked, “14 of these females are illegally in this country,” Judd said. “Did you hear that? Did you hear clearly what I said?

“Fourteen of them are here illegally in the country. To me the bombshell is 13 of them are Cuban, one is Mexican, all of them came to us through the southern border.”

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Florida Officials Find Escambia County Misused Tourism Tax Funds

The Center Square

A recent report from the Florida Auditor General has turned up three issues regarding the use of taxes retained by the Escambia County Board of County Commissioners and Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller.

Florida state law allows counties to levy and impose five separate local option taxes, referred to as the Tourist Development Tax, which allows rates of up to 6% of each dollar collected from short-term rentals of up to six months.

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Federal Judge Tosses Challenge to Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Law

Just the News

A federal judge on Wednesday dismissed a challenge to a Florida law that restricts the discussion of sexuality and gender identity with younger students, and that critics have maligned as an anti-LGBT “Don’t Say Gay” law.

U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor determined that the group of Florida students, parents and teachers who brought the challenge failed to prove that they had standing to bring the case to the federal bench.

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Florida’s Medical Marijuana Program Has Grown 71 Percent in the Past Two Years

The Center Square

According to the official in charge of Florida’s medical marijuana program, the number of active patients has increased 71% over the past two years.

Christopher Kimball, the Director of the Office of Medical Marijuana Use, provided statistics to the Florida House Healthcare Regulation Subcommittee Tallahassee Wednesday as they discussed the medical marijuana industry in the Sunshine State.

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Florida’s DeSantis, Legislative Leaders Push for Reforms Against Frivolous Lawsuits

The Center Square

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and legislative leaders want reforms to take on frivolous lawsuits and put a stop to what the governor calls “predatory” practices by trial lawyers.

DeSantis held a news conference in Jacksonville Tuesday with House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, and Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, R-Naples about the proposals which would eliminate one-way attorney fees and fee multipliers for all lines of insurance, modernize Florida’s “bad faith” law, and put caps on damage claims to protect small businesses.

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Florida’s DeSantis Wants to Restrict Politically Motivated Investment Policies

The Center Square

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis wants the Legislature to restrict politically motivated banking and investment policies with taxpayer funds and protect Floridians from discrimination from the banking industry in the upcoming session.

DeSantis held a news conference in Naples Monday to discuss legislative proposals to address environmental, social and governance investment policies. While ESG was prohibited in investment decisions for the state’s pension program through the State Board of Administration last year, DeSantis wants more restrictions.

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Southern Florida Continues to See Record Apprehensions, Gotaways of Illegal Immigrants

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In January, Border Patrol agents apprehended 1,402 foreign nationals illegally entering Florida, according to preliminary data obtained by The Center Square from a Border Patrol agent on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. 

They also reported 58 gotaways, those who were known and reported to have illegally entered and got evaded capture by law enforcement. Combined, these totaled 1,460.

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Florida Will No Longer Ask Students About Menstrual History on Medical Form Required to Play Sports

Just the News

Florida schools will no longer ask student-athletes to share their menstrual histories to play high school sports, after an effort to make the optional questions mandatory.

The state’s High School Athletic Association’s board of directors voted 14-2 Thursday in an emergency session to adopt a proposal to remove the questions from a pre-participation physical evaluation form, according to NBC News. 

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Florida Lawmakers Conclude Special Session, Strip Away Disney’s Special Status

The Center Square

The Florida Legislature concluded its special session on Friday, passing bills regarding Disney’s autonomy, transport of foreign nationals and election fraud.

Florida House Speaker Paul Renner said at a news conference before the House’s final meeting that the special session was successful and that lawmakers addressed “the complete abdication by the federal government in defending our border and stopping the flow of illegal immigrants so that the state can take action to protect our citizens.”

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DeSantis Administration Further Investigates AP African American Studies Revision After College Board Reveals CRT Authors ‘Going to Be Freely Available to Students and Teachers’

Susan Berry, PhD

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s administration has requested the College Board release all of its materials regarding its revised Advanced Placement African American Studies (APAAS) curriculum following an NPR interview in which the College Board president touted radical leftist material would still be very much available to high school students taking the course.

With Florida’s Stop WOKE Act banning the promotion of the tenets of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in grades K-12, the DeSantis administration rejected the initial APAAS course because it included writings such as those by radical Marxist and former Communist Party member Angela Davis, and others associated with portions of the course called the “Movement for Black Lives,” and “Black Queer Studies.”

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Florida Bill to Set Up Unauthorized Alien Transport Program Passes First Hurdle

The Center Square

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ proposal to transport foreign nationals out of Florida to sanctuary cities passed a key hurdle in the state Senate on Tuesday.

The Florida Senate Committee on Fiscal Policy approved Senate Bill 6-B by a 14-6 margin that will authorize the state to procure contractors to transport foreign nationals around the United States through a specialized program.

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$20 Million Raised for Florida Marijuana Legalization Initiative Targeting 2024 Ballot

The Center Square

In Florida, a campaign supporting a ballot initiative to legalize marijuana, Smart and Safe Florida, has raised $20 million. Funding is from Trulieve Cannabis Corp., a marijuana business that operates in several states, including Florida. The campaign is collecting signatures to place the initiative on the ballot for Nov. 5, 2024.

The initiative would legalize marijuana for adults 21 years old and older. Individuals would be allowed to possess up to three ounces of marijuana (about 85 grams), with up to five grams in the form of concentrate. Existing Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers would be authorized under the initiative to sell marijuana to adults for personal use. The Florida State Legislature could provide by state law for the licensure of entities other than existing Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers to cultivate and sell marijuana products.

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Florida Democrat Admits Taking Daughter to Drag Shows: ‘Just Folx Dancing in Cute Outfits’

Susan Berry, PhD

A Florida Democrat lawmaker who admitted in a Twitter post Saturday she takes her teenage daughter to drag shows condemned Governor Ron DeSantis’s (R) move to revoke the liquor license of an Orlando venue that allowed minors to attend drag show performances.

State Representative Angie Nixon (D-Jacksonville), who self-describes as a “community organizer,” denied the sexual nature of drag shows, claiming, instead, the issue is one of “parental rights,” whereby parents can decide to take their children to these performances.

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Public Education Hits $2.3 Billion Jackpot from Lottery Players

The Center Square

Scratch-off tickets accounted for 75 percent of sales, helping The Florida Lottery to an 11th consecutive year of breaking records and sending $2.3 billion into public education.

Total sales for the fiscal year ending June 30 were $9.32 billion, says the recently released annual comprehensive financial report. Second in sales is the Pick Family, which at 9 percent was down slightly from 10 percent the previous year. Third was Powerball with Power Play at 5 percent, up from 4 percent in 2021.

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Chinese Companies with Links to CCP Buying American Private Schools with ROTC Programs, Florida U.S. Rep. Mike Waltz Warns

Susan Berry, PhD

Companies with ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) are purchasing private schools with junior ROTC [Reserve Officers’ Training Corps] programs and military academies in the United States, warns Representative Mike Waltz (R-FL).

“It’s incredibly concerning that there are American private schools owned by companies with strong ties to the Chinese Communist Party,” said Waltz in a press statement. “From Florida to New York, there is clear evidence that the ownership of these schools are linked to our greatest adversary and it’s ridiculous that we are developing potential future military leaders through JROTC programs where the CCP could be shaping school curriculum and activities.”

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DeSantis Admin Moves to Revoke Liquor License of Venue Which Allowed Kids to See ‘Sexual’ Drag Show

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Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration moved to revoke an Orlando venue’s liquor license after it allowed minors to attend a “sexual” drag performance, according to a complaint filed by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco.

The department said Friday that the venue violated Florida statute and would move, therefore, to “enter a penalty revoking [its] license,” according to the complaint. The decision came after the DeSantis administration warned in December it would revoke the venue’s liquor license if it did not age-restrict its “A Drag Queen Christmas” show which featured “sexual” acts.

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Scores Victory Over College Board’s AP African American Studies Course

Susan Berry, PhD

The New York Times is lamenting the College Board’s revised curriculum for its course in Advanced Placement African American Studies (APAAS) – its abandonment of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and the move to make Black Lives Matter (BLM) merely an optional topic of study – both changes that suggest Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s (R) firm rejection of the radical content of the prior version significantly contributed to the new direction.

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Leon County Commissioner: The AP African American History Course Is ‘Trash’

Just the News

Leon County Commissioner Bill Proctor, a black Florida Democrat, said the AP African American Studies course is “trash,” siding with Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis in opposition to the class due to its focus on queer and feminist ideology.

Florida rejected the College Board AP course from the state’s curriculum last month because it was “filled with Critical Race Theory and other obvious violations of Florida law,” State Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz Jr. said.

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Florida’s DeSantis Seeks Tax Relief in Proposed $114 Billion Budget

The Center Square

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis held a news conference in Tallahassee Wednesday to discuss his “Framework for Freedom” budget.

DeSantis’ proposed $114.8 billion budget contains some tax relief measures as the economy in the Sunshine State has performed far better than other states. Last year the state surplus was over $20 billion, and DeSantis stated that this money needs to go back to the people.

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DeSantis Pledges to Defund Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Florida Public Universities

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Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis pledged to defund all diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs at public universities during a Tuesday press conference in Bradenton, Florida.

DeSantis outlined several higher education reforms for state public universities including defunding DEI programs, which he referred to as “ideological” and “political filters,” readdressing required courses to teach western civilization and restructure tenure review. Tuesday’s announcement expanded on the administration’s recent work to prevent taxpayer dollars from funding so-called woke initiatives on college campuses. 

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Florida Auditor General Wants Sworn Law Enforcement Officers Added to Her Office

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Florida Auditor General Sherrill Norman would support the addition of sworn law enforcement officers to her office by lawmakers. 

These officers can help state auditors by making arrests and maintaining transparency over the state and local governments and their stewardship of taxpayer funds. At present, Norman doesn’t have any in her office like Ohio State Auditor Keith Faber as one example.

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DeSantis Pledges Mandatory Life Sentence for Targeting Children with Fentanyl Resembling Candy

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Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis promised Thursday that his state would deem possessing fentanyl or other drugs made to resemble candy a first-degree felony, and send those targeting children with such fentanyl to prison for life.

DeSantis said during a “Preserving Law & Order in Florida” press conference that the state’s government would “make it a first-degree felony to possess, sell or manufacture fentanyl or other controlled substances to look like candy” and punish targeting that type of fentanyl to children with a mandatory life sentence and $1 million fine. He also pledged to add $20 million of local support funding for law enforcement to stop fentanyl’s illicit spread in his upcoming budget proposals.

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DeSantis Facing Lawsuit over Ban on African-American Studies

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) is facing a lawsuit from three high school students over his Education Department’s decision to ban an Advanced Placement (AP) course on African-American studies.

As reported by NPR, the lawsuit was announced on Wednesday by State Representative Fentrice Driskell (D-Fla.). Speaking at a press conference, Driskell said that “by rejecting the African American history pilot program, Ron DeSantis has clearly demonstrated that he wants to dictate whose history does — and doesn’t — belong.”

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DOJ Indicts Radical Activists for Attacking Florida Pro-Life Facilities

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Following attacks on over 78 pro-life groups across the nation, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has finally indicted two pro-abortion activists for attacking pro-life facilities in Florida.

Twenty-seven-year-old Caleb Freestone and 23-year-old Amber Smith-Stewart “targeted pregnancy resource facilities and vandalized those facilities with spray-painted threats,” according to the DOJ. The threatening language that the two used to vandalize the pro-life facilities mirrors that of the terrorist group Jane’s Revenge.

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Florida’s DeSantis Announces Sweeping Reforms That Include ‘Teacher Bill of Rights’

The Center Square

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis held a news conference in Jacksonville on Monday to propose sweeping changes to education, including a Teacher’s Bill of Rights which will empower educators to be leaders in their classrooms.

In the proposed legislation, teachers will have their paychecks protected, while $1 billion will go towards teacher pay increases. School board members will have a maximum term of eight years, instead of twelve.

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DeSantis-Appointed College Trustee Clashes with Officials Over Prayer

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A New College of Florida (NCF) Board of Trustees member recently appointed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis clashed with board officials by requesting to open every meeting in prayer.

DeSantis appointed six new members to the NCF board of trustees earlier this month, a decision anticipated to move the college’s mission in a more conservative direction. Eddie Speir, one of the new appointees, announced on Twitter that he requested to begin every board meeting with prayer; however the request was denied by board chair Mary Ruiz and legal counsel David Smolker.

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Florida Democrats Still in Disarray After DeSantis’ Massive Midterm Victory

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Florida Democrats still have no clear leader or plan for the future two months after Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis swept the state in the November midterm elections, numerous lawmakers and leaders told The Washington Post.

DeSantis won his reelection by 19 points after winning his initial election by only 0.4 points in the former battleground state. There is no clear frontrunner to replace Manny Diaz, former Florida Democratic Party chair, following his recent resignation, and Democrats both within and outside Florida appear to be giving up on the third most populous state, according to the Post.

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Audit of Florida Veterans’ Nursing Homes Finds Staffing and Procurement Issues

The Center Square

The State Florida Auditor General released this week the results of an audit into the Department of Veteran’s Affairs, which analyzed the department’s nursing home staffing, time and attendance records and followed up a 2019 audit.

The first issue surrounded staff members missing meal breaks during shifts that ranged from 6 to 16 hours, while other staff were missing their entitled two 30-minute breaks during double shifts.

According to the department’s own procedures and policies, staff members must have written approval from a supervisor to be able to work through meal breaks.

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Florida Legislative Committee Wants Accountability from Audited Entities

The Center Square
Florida State Capitol

The Joint Legislative Auditing Committee met in Tallahassee Thursday to discuss issues that have been found in some school districts, municipalities and private entities that have repeatedly not been addressed and also discussed ways to ensure more compliance.

According to Auditor General Sherrill Norman, who was in attendance during the most recent committee meeting, she and her staff were asked to produce “a list of things that would help address the barriers we had in completing our work.”

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The College Board’s Pilot AP African-American Studies Course Gets the Boot from Ron DeSantis’ Administration

Susan Berry, PhD

The administration of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) has rejected the College Board’s request for state approval of its new Advanced Placement (AP) African American Studies (APAAS) course.

In a copy of a letter obtained by The Star News Network, the Florida Department of Education’s (FDOE) Office of Articulation wrote to Brian Barnes, senior director of the College Board Florida Partnership, that the state “does not approve the inclusion of the Advanced Placement (AP) African American Studies course in the Florida Course Code Directory and Instructional Personnel Assignments.”

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DeSantis, State Legislature to Further Limit Chinese Influence in Florida

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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he’s considering banning Chinese entities from purchasing property in Florida and that the state legislature was looking at ways to further restrict the communist country’s influence in Florida.

“We don’t want to have holdings [in Florida] by hostile nations. If you look at the Chinese communist Party, they’ve been very active gobbling up land … and when they have interests that are opposed to ours and we see how they have wielded their authority especially with President Xi [Jinping], who’s taken a much more Marxist-Leninist turn, that is not in the best interest of Florida to have the Chinese Communist Party owning farm land, owning land close to military bases.”

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Florida Cracks Down on Companies That Hire Illegal Foreign Nationals, Won’t Comply with E-Verify Laws

The Center Square

The state of Florida is cracking down on companies that aren’t complying with E-verify laws in an attempt to ensure they aren’t hiring people who are in the country illegally, including the American National Red Cross.

The state Department of Economic Opportunity sent letters to six companies putting them on notice that if they don’t reply by Monday, January 16, their business licenses will be suspended and they won’t be able to operate in Florida.

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Florida House Speaker Demands Information on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion ‘Prevalence’ on College Campuses

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Republican House Speaker Paul Renner of Florida requested Thursday that state public colleges and universities submit documentation about the “prevalence” of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) offices and programs on campus, Florida’s Voice reported.

The requests were delivered to every president’s office in the Florida College System and the State University System, according to Florida’s Voice. The request furthers a demand from Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis on Dec. 28 which required colleges and universities to submit a report detailing the amount of state funding used on DEI and critical race theory programs.

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