The Florida State Legislature, Governor Rick Scott, and sagging pants are in the headlines today.Welcome to WJCT First Read, your daily weekday morning round-up of stories from the First Coast, around Florida, and across the country. We'll also preview some of WJCT's upcoming news programming.
Florida House expected to pass budget: Following several hours of debate, the Florida House is poised to approve a $75.3 billion budget today with Senate debate and a possible vote to follow. (The News Service of Florida)
Jury selection, retrial dates set for Marissa Alexander: Following a pre-trial hearing, jury selection in the retrial of Marissa Alexander is scheduled to begin July 21 with the trial itself slated for July 28. (WJCT)
FSCJ Trustees to vote on charter school closure: The board of Florida State College at Jacksonville will vote next week on whether to close the college's eight-year-old charter school. (WJCT)
House committee approves bill allowing guns in schools: A House bill that would allow armed school personnel in was approved by the Florida House Justice Appropriations Committee. (News4Jax)
Sweet Pete's plans Downtown move: Following their appearance this week on a CNBC reality show, Springfield-based Sweet Pete's candy shop will lease space on Forsyth Street for a downtown location. (Jacksonville Business Journal)
Dreamette ice cream denies service to patrons with sagging pants: The owner of Dreamette Ice Cream & Dessert in Murray Hill says the shop will not serve customers who are wearing saggy pants. (First Coast News)
With political shots, Scott signs auto fee reductions: Gov. Rick Scott on Wednesday signed a measure to cut car registration fees by an average of $25 and blamed former governor and current gubernatorial opponent Charlie Crist for raising them. (South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Scott orders inspections of Florida VA hospitals: Gov. Rick Scott has asked Elizabeth Dudek, secretary of the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, to inspect U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals in the state due to reports of a series of preventable deaths that may have occurred there. (Modern Healthcare)
Officials investigate possible lottery scam: Florida authorities removed all lottery equipment and tickets from three South Florida convenience stores on Wednesday after a newspaper investigation found that store owners and clerks may have stolen millions of dollars in winning tickets. (Reuters)
Immigrant tuition, emergency concealed carry, child welfare bills all advance in committee: A bill that would allow undocumented students to pay in-state college tuition rates was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday. Meanwhile, a contentious gun bill was approved by the Senate Military and Veterans Affairs, Space and Domestic Security Committee, and a bill overhauling the state's child welfare system cleared the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services. (Bradenton Herald, The Huffington Post, Tampa Bay Times)
Marco Rubio won't run for U.S. Senate if he runs for president: Florida's junior U.S. Senator Marco Rubio says he will not run for reelection to Congress in 2016 if he decides to pursue the White House. (National Journal)
Today on First Coast Connect, Denise Marzullo of Mental Health America of Northeast Florida will discuss the 2013 Youth Risk Behavioral Survey.
You can get all the latest headlines online at WJCTNews.org, on our Facebook page, and on Twitter @WJCTJax. You can follow Patrick Donges on Twitter at @patrickhdonges.
