Capital Report WFSU Public Media

On tonight’s program: A special session of the Florida Legislature is over, but its result, the banning of mask and vaccine mandates, is already law and being implemented; Governor Ron DeSantis has repealed a 2002 law that gave Florida's surgeon general the power to mandate vaccines. Democrats are calling this a politically motivated stunt and say it's important to remember why the decades-old law was enacted in the first place; Healthcare facilities now have to abide by conflicting federal and state COVID-19 rules; Some lawmakers are concerned Florida’s recent special session may have done more harm than good; Republican Florida lawmakers have begun the process of pulling the state out of the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law this week a measure that would set up a statewide workplace safety plan in response to OSHA’s coronavirus vaccination mandates; And a deal between the State of Florida and Seminole Tribe of Florida giving the Tribe exclusive rights to offer sports betting is attracting attention and opposition.

On tonight’s program: Lawmakers are coming back to the Capitol next week in response to Governor DeSantis’s Special Session call. Not all of them are totally down with drill; A Florida pediatrician issues an urgent call to get children vaccinated against COVID-19; A flood of federal infrastructure dollars could soon be headed in Florida’s direction; Roger Stone insists he doesn’t have anything personal against Ron DeSantis. He just feels DeSantis needs to align himself even closer with former President Donald Trump; Lawmakers are considering a bill that would let local governments, rather than the state, make decisions about smoking at public parks and beaches; And a young lady from Jacksonville speaks about pushing her personal envelope to become a page in the Florida Senate.

On tonight’s program: The University of Florida reverses the stance that its professors aren’t allowed to testify against the policies of state government; Not that long ago, even saying the words “Climate Change” was essentially forbidden for those in Florida State Government. It seems that has changed; Florida’s 2020 elections were among the smoothest in the country, but the governor wants to make more changes. That has one county elections chief – known as a deeply conservative Republican when he served in the state legislature – more than a little upset; And lawmakers say the pandemic has improved access to telehealth. They want to keep that going.

On tonight’s program: Florida’s coronavirus cases are dropping, but health experts say that doesn’t mean its time to drop prevention efforts, likes vaccines; The path to confirmation for Florida Surgeon General nominee Joseph Ladapo keeps getting steeper; Florida’s coronavirus cases are dropping, but health experts say that doesn’t mean its time to drop prevention efforts, likes vaccines; Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried is calling a higher application fee for a medical marijuana license reserved for Black farmers discriminatory; For years, Desmond Meade lobbied on behalf of convicted felons to get their rights back after serving their sentences. We’ll hear an extended conversation with him; And much of the Halloween chocolate our kids will receive this Sunday was harvested by other little kids, often under slave-like conditions. A project at the Florida State University College of Law is attempting to stop the importation of the product to the U.S.

On tonight’s program: Governor DeSantis calls a special session of the Florida Legislature to oppose government employee vaccine mandates from the feds; Several Florida school districts battle a state rule banning local student mask mandates; A Texas-style abortion bill looks unlikely to move forward in Florida; Florida’s jobless rate keeps inching downwards. That’s a really good thing, because it seems the state’s unemployment system is still fraught with problems; Florida’s retirement system has been long considered a model for the rest of the nation. We’ll hear from the man who helped make it so; And we'll hear from a Democratic strategist on how state Senator Annette Taddeo's recent candidacy for governor could help the party's chances for success heading into 2022...

On tonight’s program: The culture clash involving parents and local school boards has now expanded into the national organization realm; A Texas-style anti-abortion bill is being teed up in the Florida Legislature. But there are differences, especially because of Governor DeSantis’s political aspirations; Police want lawmakers to make changes giving them more power to step in when someone talks on social media about plans to commit a crime; Florida lawmakers expect redistricting litigation to fly after they complete the state’s new election maps in the spring. Still, they insist they’re trying to keep everything fair; The state’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is asking Florida lawmakers for money to pay for things to help the state’s manatees. Part of that funding would go towards facilities that care for the injured creatures; And we get firsthand accounts of how the pandemic has strained all health care personnel. Including medical students.