March 4, 2026 | by Anita Padilla on Florida Voice
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Florida House on Tuesday approved a higher-education bill that would require preeminent state universities to reserve 95% of freshman seats for in-state students and cap foreign undergraduates from any single country at 5%, sparking debate over diversity and university finances.
The bill, HB 1279, passed 84-25, affects the University of Florida, Florida State University, University of South Florida, Florida International University, and, once certified, the University of Central Florida. Schools that fail to meet the 95% in-state target by 2030 could lose preeminent funding.
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March 3, 2026 | by Drew Dixon on Florida Politics
The full Senate is set to review similar legislation.
The House has unanimously passed a measure designed to increase prison sentences for child sex offenders.
The bill (HB 1159) sponsored by Rep. Berny Jacques, a Seminole Republican, increases mandatory sentences for those committing crimes against children.
Repeat offenders will see minimum sentences increased from 10 years in prison to 15. Sentences for sexual performance with a child would jump from 20 years in prison to 30.
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February 11, 2026 | by Staff on CBS New Miami
A bill that would make it harder for undocumented immigrants to obtain certain licenses and financial assistance advanced in the Florida House on Tuesday.
The measure (HB 1307) would prohibit “unauthorized aliens” from getting any licenses the state Department of Financial Services issues, such as those related to insurance. It also would give the Division of Risk Management discretion to deny undocumented immigrants’ claims, require all testing for commercial driver’s licenses to be conducted only in English and make undocumented immigrants ineligible to receive workers’ compensation.
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January 22, 2026 | by Michelle Vecerina on Florida Voice
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Republican Reps. Tom Fabricio and Berny Jacques outlined a series of legislative priorities Wednesday aimed at reducing taxpayer burdens, tightening workforce integrity, and prioritizing Floridians in the state’s university system.
Speaking in separate interviews on Florida’s Voice Radio, both lawmakers described a fast-paced legislative session focused on “common sense” reforms and responding to the economic pressures facing working-class families.
Fabricio targets ‘ancient’ technology and professional oaths
Fabricio is pushing a plan to modernize vehicle registration by eliminating the physical yellow registration decals currently required on Florida license plates.
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January 9, 2026 | by Anita Padilla on Florida Voice
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida Rep. Berny Jacques filed sweeping legislation Thursday aimed at tightening restrictions on illegal aliens and sharply increasing penalties for employers who hire them, building on a broader Republican effort to eliminate what state leaders describe as incentives for illegal immigration.
Jacques’ proposal, HB 1307, was filed a day after a companion measure was filed in the Senate and comes amid a broader push led by Florida Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia to reform the state’s workers’ compensation laws.
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