Florida Supreme Court allows recreational marijuana, abortion amendments on November Ballot
The Florida Supreme Court this week released a number of high-profile opinions.
Justices approved the language for a proposed amendment that gives voters the option to protect abortion access in the state Constitution. The court also gave the go-ahead to the ballot measure to legalize recreational marijuana. Florida voters will decide on both issues in November.
At the same time, justices ruled to uphold the state's 15-week restrictions, triggering a new six-week abortion ban to take effect beginning May 1.
We spoke with Florida House Speaker Paul Renner about why he opposes both proposed amendments. Then, we heard from a Florida family physician about how abortion providers are operating under current laws while preparing for further restrictions.
Plus, we find out why the Florida Chamber of Commerce opposes the recreational marijuana measure.
Guests:
- Rep. Paul Renner, R-Flagler, speaker of the Florida House.
- Dr. Chelsea Daniels, staff physician at Planned Parenthood.
- Mark Wilson, president and CEO of the Florida Chamber of Commerce.
Weekly briefing
We’re still about two months away from the start of hurricane season. But this week, Floridians got a glimpse into what many meteorologists are expecting to be an extremely active season.
Colorado State University released its first outlook for the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. The prediction is for 23 named storms and 11 hurricanes with five growing into major hurricanes.
Recovery efforts are still underway more than a year after Hurricane Ian made landfall along Florida’s Gulf Coast. And now some residents in Lee County are grappling with the threat of rising flood insurance rates, as WGCU’s Michael Braun reports.
Affordability continues to challenge many folks across the state when it comes to buying a home. Buyers oftentimes are competing not with another person, but with corporate investors, as WUSF’s Gabriella Paul explains.
Six states were undercounted in the 2020 census, and Florida was one of them. Cary Barbor with WGCU tells us why this shortfall is important to securing federal funding.
This week, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill that could use some of that online gambling money to help fight sea level rise and save undeveloped land. But as WLRN’s environmental editor reports, there’s still one major hurdle.
Regardless of any legal challenges, online gambling is here now in Florida. And there’s been an increase in calls to Florida’s gambling hotline since then, as WUSF’s Kayla Kissel shares.