Governor Rick Scott today announced a joint venture between Florida-based Advanced Magnet Lab, the Advanced Innovation Center of Chile, and Fundación Avina. The partnership, located in Vina Del Mar, Chile, will utilize the country as a platform for the demonstration of innovative applications in energy efficiency and production. 

Peret Pass, 24, grew up yelling at the television while the news was on, driving her family crazy. Peret’s aunt Deborah decided to offer Peret a more constructive outlet for her passions and put her in touch with the local Republican Party, where Peret got to know County REC Chairman Mike Hightower and activist John Falconetti.

Three Palm Beach County lawmakers earned perfect scores from the Florida Chamber of Commerce. Not surprisingly, their Democratic counterparts received mostly failing grades from the powerful business lobby.

GOP Reps. Pat Rooney, R-West Palm Beach; MaryLynn Magar, R-Tequesta; and Bill Hager, R-Delray Beach, all received marks of “100″ from the Chamber. Senate budget chief Joe Negron, R-Stuart, received an “87.”

Celina Parker, 26, considers the ability to drive change as a calling. Originally from San Salvador, El Salvador, Celina attended Florida International for her bachelors and Florida State for her masters.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson urged Florida Gov. Rick Scott to veto legislation his fellow Republicans advanced that suspends for two years the state’s authority to set health insurance rates.

Nelson, a former state insurance commissioner, said in a Wednesday letter to Scott that allowing the bill (SB 1842) to become law would put consumers at risk of sky-high rate hikes.

Pam Bondi and 22 other attorneys general are demanding that Urban Outfitters quit selling accessories they say is glorifying drug use and “undermining” efforts to combat prescription drug abuse.

The trendy company is targeting the hipster crowd with a line of products that riff on prescription drugs, including a set of syringe-shaped shot glasses along with shot glasses, beer “koozies” and coasters that look like prescription pads.

Gov. Rick Scott’s office already has one catchphrase: “It’s Working.”

He might consider one more: “It’s Being Reviewed.”

One form or another of the word “review” is a favorite of the governor and his staff when asked the status of legislation and other state business.

For example, “We’ll review…

At first glance it isn’t clear if the Florida Chamber merely grades on a curve, or if Florida’s lawmakers are impressively aligned on a pro-jobs agenda: in its 2013 Legislative Report Card, nearly six out of ten lawmakers scored an “A”.  But at closer look, the Chamber’s grading methodology is impressively thorough, reliable and clear; a refreshing change from political scorecards issued by various other groups which toss out grades like beads at Mardi Gras.

Before launching an upstart insurance firm and donating $110,000 to Gov. Rick Scott’s campaign, the president of Heritage Property and Casualty Corp. repeatedly ran into trouble with Florida’s insurance regulators at previous companies he led. 

As for so many Americans, the attacks on 9/11 were a turning point for Caitlin Murray.

“I was motivated to enter politics as a high school sophomore. Watching the second of two airliners smash into the trade towers proved to be a life changing event for me,” Caitlin writes. “From that point on, I wanted to learn as much as I could about the world around me and, in particular, my country.”

As summer approaches, thousands of people will flock to Florida’s greatest natural beauty—the beaches. One environmental group wants beachgoers to remember they are sharing the sand with other “beach babies.”

This Memorial Day, the conservation group Audubon reminds those visiting the Florida coast to watch out for the various species of birds that live on beaches and coastal islands. Much of this native wildlife have become endangered and increasingly rare.

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi and 22 other attorneys general accused Urban Outfitters on Wednesday of "undermining" nationwide efforts to fight pharmaceutical-drug abuse because the store sells a line of drinking novelties that mimic prescription-pill bottles, boxes, pads and syringes.

In a move that may sound a little like rain on your wedding day, a leading online reputation-building company announced Wednesday that former Florida House Speaker Dean Cannon has joined its board of advisors.

ReputationChanger.com, whose website says it is dedicated to “protecting and advocating for our clients’ online images,” is part of a growing industry of digital message-shapers.