In 2022, Gov. Ron DeSantis was blunt and concise about using tax dollars for professional sports. “I don’t support giving taxpayer dollars to sports stadiums, period,” he said to enthusiastic applause at a news conference in Orlando. DeSantis had been asked about his veto of a $35 million appropriation by the Florida legislature for a Tampa Bay Rays […]
The Florida Trident
Posted inNews & Views
More and more, officials are simply ignoring Florida’s public records laws
Requests for public documents can go unanswered for weeks, months, even years.
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Why Florida is hiding its data center boom
The Tampa and Miami areas split most of Florida’s data centers.
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Eliminating property taxes on homesteads ‘would disproportionately benefit wealthy Floridians at the expense of those who don’t own homes,’ report says
Proposals now being considered by Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state Legislature to sharply cut or eliminate property taxes on homesteads—owner-occupied homes—would likely make the tax structure even more regressive, according to tax experts.
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Florida pediatricians recall pre-vaccine suffering as Ladapo’s plan to strike mandates stalls
Jennifer Takagishi, who practices at USF Health, noted that many Florida parents have secured exemptions from school vaccines with little or no fuss.
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Florida DOGE leader quietly seeks $600K to spend on staff
Blaise Ingoglia wants to establish a new ‘Florida Accountability and Fiscal Oversight Office.’
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Firm connected to big DeSantis donor is set to reap millions from construction of ‘Alligator Alcatraz’
In total ARS has donated nearly $400,000 to Republican coffers.
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Sarasota’s Phillippi Creek won’t be dredged this hurricane season after no emergency permit issued
County commissioners were not told about the permit delay until Tuesday; three weeks after staff first learned of the agency’s decision.
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Florida sheriff with ‘zero tolerance’ for street racing caught speeding in his lambo
The video is part of a bigger beef with several allegations of corruption.
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Tampa flood experts among those worried that national rainfall database won’t be updated
They are calling on federal officials to save Atlas 15, as heated debate on the federal budget continues.
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The state should have audited the $10 million Hope Florida deal—that didn’t happen
The payment was shrouded in secrecy after it was approved last September by several state agencies.
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Hillsborough School Board among those who’ve spent money on D.C. lobbying
But it’s spent less than $300,000 since 2019.
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Sarasota’s search for a city manager has descended into chaos
There are 47 applications and no coherent process for narrowing the list.
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Tampa Bay’s Egmont Key is a bellwether for sea level rise in Florida
The island you see today is 300 acres smaller than it was in 1898.
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Tampa luxury complex, cultural spots, get redevelopment dollars while residents beg for streets, sidewalk repairs
Tampa’s CRA boasted a reserve of more than $120 million, according to its fiscal 2023 audit.
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‘Backed ourselves into an oligarchy’: Hillsborough Republican lawmaker chimes in on influence of lobbyists and party leadership
‘Three people — the House speaker, Senate president and governor — hold 95 percent of the lawmaking power.’
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Six months after John Ring Jr. plead guilty, the investigation about ‘corruption within the City of Tampa’ remains active
A motion to seal evidence was granted by a judge.