PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. — On the latest episode of “This Week in South Florida” host Glenna Milberg welcomed State Rep. Berny Jacques, Broward County Commissioner Beam Furr, Raymer Maguire with the Cleo Institute, Miami-Dade County Commissioner Raquel Regalado and El Portal Mayor Omarr Nickerson.
SEMINOLE, Fla. — Florida Republican Rep. Berny Jacques has qualified for the 2026 ballot by using the state’s petition process, avoiding the usual filing fees.
This marks the third consecutive election—and the fourth time in his political career—that Jacques has secured a ballot position through voter signatures rather than a qualifying fee. In Florida, legislative candidates can qualify by paying a fee or by collecting a specific number of verified signatures from registered voters within their district.
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.
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.
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.