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Here comes another bill that would change the citizen-led petition process in Florida

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floridaphoenix.com – Mitch Perry – 2025-03-07 15:33:00

Here comes another bill that would change the citizen-led petition process in Florida

by Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix
March 7, 2025

The Senate Ethics and Elections Committee introduced a comprehensive election bill on Friday (SB 7016) that includes provisions that Republican lawmakers say are intended to reduce fraud and “safeguard the process” by which amendments are placed on the ballot.

“Investigations conducted by the Office of Election Crimes and Security have shown that agents of political committees sponsoring initiative petitions engaged in illegal and fraudulent activities while gathering petition signatures in the leadup to the 2024 General Election,” Northwest Florida Republican Sen. Don Gaetz, chair the Ethics and Elections Committee, said in a press release announcing the legislation.

“There are numerous instances of petition circulators being paid per signature, signing petition forms on behalf of deceased individuals, forging or misrepresenting voter signatures on petition forms, using voters’ personal identifying information without consent, committing perjury, and swearing false oaths. Our bill guards against this kind of strategic and deliberate malfeasance with strong penalties for those who willfully disregard our laws,” Gaetz said.

SB 7016 is the second such measure introduced in the Florida Senate to address criticisms leveled by Gov. DeSantis about the petition gathering process that he said in January required the Legislature to convene in a special session. While GOP leadership didn’t immediately respond back then, they are now moving quickly on fulfilling his request (the other Senate measure to deal with ballot petition fraud was earlier introduced by Hernando County Republican Blaise Ingoglia – SB 1414).

SB 7016 also:

Reduces the number of days a sponsor has to submit signed petition forms to the appropriate supervisor of elections to 10 from 30.Enhances the fines regarding late- or not-submitted signed petition forms to the supervisor of  elections to $50 per each day late, and raises the fines from $250 to $2,500 for each petition form if the sponsor or petition circulator acted willfully.  Increase fines for non-submitted petition forms from $500 to $5,000 if the sponsor or petition circulator “acted willfully.”Prohibits all felons who have not had their right to vote restored and all noncitizens from collecting signatures. The initiative sponsor is liable for $50,000 fine for each person collecting petitions on its behalf in violation of the prohibition. The bill also requires applicants for petition circulator to complete training about these and other related legal requirements.

And while the Legislature in 2019 made it a third-degree felony to pay petition circulators based on the number of petition forms gathered, the bill broadens this prohibition to capture incentive schemes that are not “pay per signature” but “incentivize based on volume.”

The Senate Ethics and Elections Committee committee published SB 7016 one day after the House Government Operations Subcommittee passed similar legislation. The Senate committee bill will be heard Monday afternoon.

Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.

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Europe and Canada are eyeing alternatives to American-made fighter jets. Here’s why

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www.clickorlando.com – Stefanie Dazio And Tara Copp, Associated Press – 2025-03-19 01:17:00

SUMMARY: Concerns are rising in Canada and Europe regarding the strategic value of U.S. defense technology, particularly the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, amid U.S. policy shifts under President Trump. NATO allies are questioning U.S. commitment to mutual defense as the war in Ukraine persists. Some nations, like Canada and Portugal, are reevaluating their F-35 purchases, considering alternatives such as European-made jets (Saab Gripen, Eurofighter Typhoon, and Dassault Rafale). Experts suggest that the unpredictability of U.S. relations may trigger European countries to enhance their defense capabilities independently, potentially diminishing demand for U.S. military aircraft and affecting companies like Lockheed Martin.

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Massive brush fire in SW Miami-Dade causing traffic headaches for motorists

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www.youtube.com – CBS Miami – 2025-03-18 21:10:43

SUMMARY: A massive brush fire in southwest Miami-Dade caused severe traffic delays for motorists heading to and from the Florida Keys. Authorities shut down Card Sound Road and US 1 due to heavy smoke and flames, leaving drivers stranded for hours. Many travelers, including those from Wisconsin and South Korea, were heading to vacation destinations but were caught in the traffic jam. The situation improved late in the evening when traffic began to flow again, but some road closures remained. Authorities warned of possible further delays as firefighters continue to battle the blaze and weather conditions change.

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Traffic is slowly moving in both directions Tuesday evening on U.S. 1’s 18-Mile Stretch after a massive brush fire forced authorities to shut down the only highway linking the Florida Keys to the mainland for hours.

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Judge blocks Trump administration from terminating $14 billion in ‘green bank’ grants

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www.news4jax.com – Michael Phillis And Matthew Daly, Associated Press – 2025-03-18 20:12:00

SUMMARY: Summarize this content to 100 words: FILE – Vice President JD Vance, right, and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, left, listen as Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lee Zeldin, center, speaks in East Palestine Fire Station on Feb 3, 2025, in East Palestine, Ohio, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)FILE – Former Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency, appears before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Capitol Hill, Jan. 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)Copyright 2025 The Associated Press, All Rights ReservedFILE – Vice President JD Vance, right, and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, left, listen as Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lee Zeldin, center, speaks in East Palestine Fire Station on Feb 3, 2025, in East Palestine, Ohio, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)WASHINGTON – A federal judge on Tuesday blocked the Trump administration from terminating $14 billion in grants awarded to three climate groups by the Biden administration.The order by U.S. District Judge Tonya Chutkan prevents — for now — the Environmental Protection Agency from ending the grant program, which totaled $20 billion.Chutkan’s order also blocks Citibank, which holds the money on behalf of the EPA, from transferring the money back to the government or anyone else.Climate United Fund and other groups had sued the EPA, its administrator Lee Zeldin and Citibank, saying they had illegally denied the groups access to $14 billion awarded last year through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, commonly referred to as a “green bank.” The program was created by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act to finance clean energy and climate-friendly projects.Zeldin accused the grant recipients of mismanagement, fraud and self-dealing and froze the grants. Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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