New research shows six in ten Florida community-college students drop out before they finish - even with good grades and only a few credits shy of graduation. 

University of Florida researchers surveyed 27,000 former community-college students in the state, and found tuition and fees, living expenses, and no longer being eligible for financial aid were the top reasons for not finishing. 

Republicans in the Florida Legislature are fast-tracking a 15-weekabortion ban over the objections of activists and medical professionals. 

Last Thursday, students activists chanted "Let us speak," after the committee chairperson, Rep. Bryan Avila - R-Miami Springs - cut off public comment to give committee members time to debate. 

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Ever receive one of those irritating political texts during an election – praising or criticizing a candidate – and wonder who was behind it? 

The Florida Election Commission is cracking down on political texts that don't explicitly say who paid for them, with new rules intended to improve transparency for voters and stem the spread of misinformation.

On the Florida Legislature's opening day, House leaders scheduled separate redistricting committee meetings at the same time - and critics blasted it as another attempt to limit public input.
Republicans in the Florida House, who control the process of drawing new congressional and legislative district boundaries, held meetings Tuesday, specifically for public comment - but both were at 4 p.m. What was scheduled as a two-hour meeting ended in just eight minutes, after only two county commissioners spoke about the redistricting process.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – In his State of the State address Tuesday in the Capitol, Gov. Ron DeSantis laid out a red-meat 2022 legislative agenda on crime and immigration, and he ridiculed COVID-19 restrictions in other states as ineffective and anti-American.

DeSantis, a Republican who is seeking a second term in November and hasn’t ruled out a White House bid in 2024, called Florida the “freest state” in the U.S.“Florida has become the escape hatch for those chafing under authoritarian, arbitrary and seemingly never-ending mandates and restrictions,” he told a packed and largely maskless House chamber in Tallahassee during his 33-minute address.

What happened to the weekly drops of The Rotunda? 

Here is a short answer: The Pandemic! 

That is a good enough reason to share, for now. We have a short time to get this award-winning program back up and running! Listen to the latest episode here. 

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As the U.S. Supreme Court deliberates the latest challenge to Roe v. Wade, new abortion laws are already in the works ahead of Florida's upcoming legislative session.

Encouraged by possible federal changes, conservatives are moving full speed ahead in the Statehouse with proposals like House Bill 167, which would require doctors to conduct a test and inform a pregnant person of a heartbeat.