Florida Roundup

On this week's Florida Roundup we look at the proposed "citizens amendment." 

Florida’s heat set record highs last month. The Union of Concerned Scientists says in less than 20 years, Florida will be so hot for so much of the year that it could literally be life threatening. The scientists in a new report say the world must reduce carbon emissions now or face extreme heat that will take lives within decades. 

On Friday, Labor Secretary Alex Acosta resigned due to the role he played in the Jeffrey Epstein case while serving as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. Back in 2008, Acosta approved a plea deal for Epstein, a convicted sex trafficker. The deal offered very little jail time, even though a 53-page indictment detailed all of Epstein’s alleged crimes.

Our guests for the discussion were:

The first Democratic presidential debates took place in Miami Wednesday and Thursday nights at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade.

Later this month, the Supreme Court is expected to decide a brewing fight over the 2020 Census. It has to do with a proposed citizenship question the Trump administration wants to place on the Census.

We spent the full hour taking a closer look at what this might mean for Florida. Our guests for the discussion were:

When Bill Galvano became the leader of the Florida Senate, he made it clear that his top priority was building new roads.

In January, weeks before the start of the legislative session, Galvano called for three new roads. He called them corridors. Lawmakers and Governor Ron DeSantis agreed with Galvano and now the state’s biggest road project in 50 years is moving forward.

With the expansion comes concerns about the potential environmental impact, along with the additional stress motorists will endure during construction.

An expert on the impact of climate change on financial markets says no one should get 30-year mortgages anymore in the state of Florida.

This week we learned not one but two Florida counties had their voting databases hacked, but we didn’t learn which two.

This week, we discussed President Trump’s visit to the Panhandle - which is still recovering from Hurricane Michael - with Jessica Foster of WJHG News, NPR Correspondent Greg Allen and Arek Sarkissian of POLITICO Florida.

We took a closer look at the final moves of the Florida Legislature - particularly those surrounding school vouchers and the implementation of Amendment Four.  

Our guests were:

State lawmakers are poised to expand a school security program allowing teachers to carry guns in the classroom. However, some school districts are lobbying against it.

On Friday’s Florida Roundup, we devoted the full hour to the debate over immigration and sanctuary cities in the Sunshine State.

On Friday’s Florida Roundup, we took a closer look at the debate over drilling for oil in Florida’s waters with Zack Colman, Climate & Energy Reporter, Politico and David R. Mica, Executive Director, The Florida Petroleum Council.