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Florida’s theme music could change. For decades “Suwannee River” has been Florida’s state song. At a Senate committee meeting this morning lawmakers approved legislation to change the song. The song is offensive to many Floridians because of racially charges lyrics. Lawmakers are pushing a bill that would change the state song to “Where the Sawgrass Meets the Sky.”

“I think the time that that song was adopted by resolution in 1935, is not the Florida we know today. I think that the Florida we see today is Where the Sawgrass meets the sky,” said Anthony Hill, a State Senator from Jacksonville.

Governor Charlie Crist called the current song “outdated” and didn’t play it at his inauguration

Proposed legislation could cost Florida drivers their vehicles, if they’re caught speeding three times. The original bill would have allowed law enforcement officers to confiscate motorcycles from drives who where caught driving faster than one hundred miles per hour. The legislation was amended this morning. Now the bill would allow the confiscation of all vehicle if their owners were caught driving more than 50 miles an hour over the speed limit three times. Motorcycle enthusiasts welcome the change, because they say the former bill discriminated against bikers.

“I think it’s a good bill. It’s a problem obviously in specifically in South Florida, that’s where the problem seems to be the worst, and we want to help the law enforcement take care of the problem,” said Winn Peeples representing the Florida Motorcycle Dealer Association.

The bill also increases penalties for motorcyclists who pop wheelies on Florida’s Highways.

Last month the Florida Board of Education approved teaching the theory of Evolution in Florida’s classrooms. Since then, Republican lawmakers have filed legislation to protect teachers who present holes in Darwin’s theory to their students. As Whitney Ray tells us, a celebrity is supporting the bill but the ACLU says the legislation is really about teaching religion in the classroom.

Hear it here: Ben Stein Lobbies Lawmakers to Protect Teaching Against Evolution

The movie “Expelled” claims people who argue against the theory of evolution are losing their jobs and being persecuted. Ben Stein produced the documentary. Stein was in Tallahassee Wednesday, to support proposed legislation to protect teachers who want to debate the origin of man.

“I don’t think the bill is aimed at protecting intelligent design. It’s aimed at protecting freedom of speech,” said Stein.

Last month, Florida’s Board of Education approved a measure that requires teaching the theory of evolution in public schools. Since then lawmakers filed the academic freedom bill. ACLU members said the bill is religion in disguise

“This has nothing to do about academic freedom, this has to do religion, this is an attempt to circumvent what the board of education decided to do in Florida,” said Larry Spalding of the ACLU.

Propionates of the bill hope Ben Stein’s movie can persuade lawmakers. There’s a free screening of the movie for lawmakers. The public and the media aren’t invited. Some said the screening is state business and banning citizens is illegal. Organizers of the event say lawmakers won’t discuss the film so the meeting isn’t open.

“I guess if they do what they say they’re going to do, it’s not an open meeting. If they do what everybody thinks they’re going to do, then they’re violating open meeting laws,” said Spalding.

Stein’s documentary claims information about evolution is being kept from students, but that hasn’t stopped him, at least for now, from keeping his movie from them either. Expelled is set to hit movie theaters by the middle of April.

For the third year in a row, the Florida Chamber of Commerce and the National Rifle Association are facing off over a proposed gun bill. The NRA is backing legislation that would allow employees to keep their guns in their cars while they are at work. The Florida Chamber of Commerce leaders say it should be up to individual business owners to decide if they want guns in their parking lots.

“If you’re looking at a situation where people are going to have guns, even if no one is using a gun, a gun can go off accidentally, and you still have a situation where you’re going to be looking out for the safety of your employees. But at the end of the day it’s a decision that an employer has to make on their own, and whether or not they want to derail the risks associated with it some employers do some employees don’t, but it’s not the government’s decision to make,” said Adam Babington with the Florida Chamber of Commerce.

“This bill is about law abiding people having firearms in their own personal private vehicles for self-defense in parking lots, nothing more. It never has been about guns at work,” said former NRA president Marion Hammer.

This is the third year lawmakers have looked at this bill.

Florida Democrats are on the verge of announcing a mail in redo election to select their delegates. A party poll shows the majority of democrats who voted January 29th favor the re-vote, but as Mike Vasilinda tells us, many believe the idea is a mistake.

Hear it here: Democrat Redo On the Way

Chris and Tammy Webb both voted in the Democratic primary January 29th. Both are also against a redo.

“I don’t like it,” Chris Webb said.

“We voted the way that we wanted to vote the first time around and it’s really not necessary,” Tammy Webb said.

But an internal poll released at the Capitol Wednesday suggests the Webbs are in the minority of Democrats.

“Fifty-nine percent of the 1.7 million voters have determined that we should do a do-over,” Senator Steve Geller said.

A mail -in ballot plan has been drafted by Florida Democrats, but party chairwoman Karen Thurman is staying behind closed doors. We called for an interview.

But a spokesman says she’s too busy to talk. But GOP Chairman Jim Greer wasn’t

“They say what will it do to that 1.7 million Democrats that went to the polls on January 29th? I think it’s going to disenfranchise those voters,” Greer said.

We met Independent voter Crystal Files and her daughter Aaron playing in the park.

The controversy over delegates has her so embarrassed she doesn’t even want to call Florida home.

“Why can’t we be like every other state and do things right the first time?” Files said. “I’m ashamed of it and sometimes I’m ashamed of being a Floridian.”

While moving forward, the Democrats still don’t know where they’ll get the ten million dollars the mail-in election will cost.

The final plan for a mail in ballot, barring any unforseen changes, will be announced Thursday. The poll also found that up to one in four democrats may not vote in November if their voices are not heard at the Democratic Convention.

The Florida Senate has given tentative approval to legislation prohibiting students from showing their underwear at school. The so called droopy drawers bill would give students a pass on the first offense, but three day and ten day in school suspensions would follow if students continue to show their undergarments. Sponsor Gary Siplin says the idea is to eliminate distractions.

“In education, we teach our kids how to do arithmetic, how to type, how to drive,” Siplin said. “We should also teach our kid how to dress. And the way some of the kids are coming to school, showing their underwear, their g-string and things like that, that’s a distraction and we want to prevent that.”

The legislation still faces a tough time in the state House.

Florida Realtors are reporting 20 to 30 percent increases in the number of pending sales since January. They credit Amendment one, which allowed homeowners to take their property tax savings with them when them move. Realtor spokesman John     Sebree says the increases are showing up across the state.

“That’s given people hope. I went to the property appraiser’s website myself to look at what amount I have that’s portable from one home to another, which starts to make us think about the property that we could now afford that we probably couldn’t previously,” Sebree said.

The Realtors also say the sales are across all lines of residential property…condos, town homes and single family homes.

A million dollars in paid advertising is hitting Florida airways this week, urging homeowners to sign up for a free home inspection. The home inspections are designed to suggest improvements homeowners can make to strengthen their homes against hurricanes. My Safe Homes spokesman Kevin Cate says homeowners whose homes are inspected will likely save money in the long run.

“They can get online, they can go to mysafefloridahome.com and apply for a free wind inspection,” Cade said. “A wind inspector will then come to their home and see if they qualify for discounts to their wind insurance.”

Grants of up to five thousand dollars are also available to homeowners to help them cover the costs of improvements.

Florida’s economic health is deteriorating. Economist met Tuesday in Tallahassee to estimate how much money the state will have in the general fund next year. As Whitney Ray tells us early estimates show a deficit of nearly 3 billion dollars.

Hear it here: Budget Cuts Higher Than Expected

Sales tax collections and real estate taxes remain down. Even liquor and cigarette tax collections are slow. Tuesday the news went from bad to worse. Economists say Florida’s budget will have even less money than once thought. Lawmakers say the cuts will continue.

“Unfortunately it’s going to mean programs and services are not only going to be cut, but eliminated all together,” said state representative Curtis Richardson.

What‘s eliminated is still to be decided. This is the first time in state history that lawmakers have had less money two years in a row to balance the budget and they don’t see relief in sight. Lawmakers are getting ready to cut an extra 500 million dollars from this year’s budget. Education will take the brunt of the blow, with schools losing more than 300 million. Lawmakers say with such a huge deficit nothing is safe from next year’s budget cuts.

“I don’t think there’s any sacred cow in Tallahassee, business are having to reduce families are, government will as well,” state representative Ray Sansom said.

Florida’s hospitals have already seen a billion dollar cut in reimbursements. The news of a larger than expected deficit worries executives.

“Hospitals will have to decide will there remain trauma centers. Hospitals will have to decide, will they continue to do burn centers, will they continue to offer neonatal level three centers, all those services which are very costly tend to lose money and hospitals will have to evaluate if they continue to offer them,” said Rich Rasmussen, a spokesperson for the Florida Hospital Association.

The governor continues to say the state can avoid big cuts by dipping into its rainy day fund, but so far lawmakers only see clouds.

Seven Bills proposed by Democratic lawmakers aim at saving energy and the environment. Tuesday in Tallahassee, House democrats announced their “Dollars and Sense” plan. The plan includes extra incentives for people who buy hybrids. It places a mandate on businesses to sell energy saving appliances and provides a tax credit for homeowners who install solar panels or wind powered systems. Democratic lawmakers said the budget cuts shouldn’t affect their bill package.

“What we’re looking for as democrats here is looking for the most efficient way, the least expensive way to accomplish our goals. We know just building new power plants and doing the same things we are doing now isn’t going to work, we are going to have to do something else that is better for Floridians and better for the environment,” said Florida Representative Mary Brandenburg.

One of the seven proposed bills would require government agencies to buy only hybrids or other fuel efficient vehicles.

Hospital Executives from across the state met in Tallahassee this afternoon to urge lawmakers to protect the certificate of need. The certificate of need sets strict standards for hospitals. If the certificate was eliminated, a company could set up a limited service hospital. Members of Florida’s Hospital Association say if the standards are lowered new hospitals wouldn’t have to live up to a higher standard of service. Texas is one of a few states that eliminated the certificate of need. A Tracy Spivey from the lone star state told reporters she tried to save her husband’s life but no one at the limited service hospital was able to help her.

“When the surgeon came around a few minute later he demanded to know why I was the one doing CPR. He assessed the situation and exclaimed, ‘is there nothing in this room to help this man,’ when he was told no he ordered the staff to call 911,” said Tracy Spivey.

Governor Charlie Crist recommended eliminating the certificate of need as part of his proposed health care package.

Anyone who has purchased a ticket on a cruise since November is likely entitled to receive some cash back. Two lines, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, have agreed to a 21 million dollar refund based on hidden fuel surcharges that were added on after customers booked their cruise. Attorney General Bill McCollum says more cruise lines are under scrutiny.

“And what it boils down to is that there have been retroactive charges for fuel on these cruise lines without the proper notice, in the judgment of the Attorney General’s office, to the public before they did this. And so they’ve agreed, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, to refund to all of those who were retroactively charged these extra fuel charges, that money.”

Exact amounts are not available, but up to 3 hundred thousand cruise bookings may be entitled to either a refund, or a credit against a ticket if the cruise has not yet sailed. Customers should be contacted within the next month by Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, and if they are not, they should contact the Attorney Generals office.

Today is the day Floridians would have voted in the presidential primary had lawmakers and the Governor not changed the date. Tonight  new cost estimates suggest a mail in Democratic primary could cost the party as much as ten million dollars.  As Mike Vasilinda tells us options and time are running out.

As Many as 4 point 8 million Democrats may soon be voting by mail.  Democrats have two options left: the mail vote or the Clinton and Obama campaigns cutting a deal to allot Florida’s delegates. The latest cost of a mail-in election is now estimated at between 8 and ten million dollars. State Senator Steve Geller says a decision must be made by Thursday.

“This is really, according to federal law and all the court rulings, the Democrats can conduct the vote anyway we want to,” Geller said.

Latest plans now call for no state involvement in a mail in vote what so ever.

Democrats still have more questions than answers. Questions like whether to send one ballot or two and who will pay.

There are a host of other questions to be answered as well.

Governor Charlie Crist continues to call for the January 29th vote to be honored. Few now think it will be. Still he doesn’t regret moving the primary up.

“It certainly has put Florida in the forefront,” Crist said. “And Florida continues to be there and I think that they did exactly the right thing.”

One option being floated is for the candidates to agree on splitting Florida’s delegates, And while the governor has no say, Charlie Crist says he doesn’t like the idea.

“It doesn’t seem to me that that honors the will of the people,” Crist said.

No matter what democrats do, they risk handing the GOP ammunition to use against them in November.

Democratic Party leaders in Florida are racing against the clock to come
up with a game plan to have the state’s delegates seated at the national
convention. Florida was stripped of its delegates for moving up its
primary. As Whitney Ray tells us, democratic lawmakers said a decision
about whether or not to hold a mail in election should come by Thursday.

Hear it here: Time Running Out For Democrats Seeking a Mail-In Election

For more than four hours Monday, Democratic lawmakers met with the
Democratic National Committee, state party leaders, and lawyers, trying
to decide how to get Florida’s 210 delegates seated. State Senator
Steve Geller said the party only has two real options; ask the nation
committee to seat the delegates based on the result of the January 29th
election or call for a mail-in ballot.

“To overseas and our military, you have to mail the ballots 45 days in advance, before that there’s a thirty day comment period which is required under DNC rules,” said Geller.

The deadline to have Florida’s delegates seated is June 10th. Florida Democratic party leaders aren’t speaking publicly about a redo election, but sources said a decision is coming in the next couple of days. With the cost of a mail in election estimated at up to 6 million dollars, super delegate Allan Katz said another election of any kind isn’t worth the money. Katz suggests splitting the delegates.

“Recognizing what the outcome would be, are democrats not better off spending their money to elect members of congress, or elect a democratic justice,” said Katz.

The governor has said Florida taxpayers won’t pay for a do over. That
leaves the cost up to the state party or the candidates to pay. Still
there are some concerns hosting the state’s first mail-in election on
such short notice.

“Do we have the state help us, do we just go out and hire a private accounting firm,” said Geller.

If a mail in election is held, Party officials are looking at June 7th
as the deadline for the ballots to be counted. If a mail in do over election is held and the DNC recognizes the results, Florida Democrats would get about 60 more delegates as a bonus for holding its primary after May 10th.

Efforts by the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission to add a sales tax to some services is likely to bring opposing from powerful groups said former Florida Governor Bob Martinez. Martinez should know. He was governor in 1987 when the state passed a sales tax on service, only to repeal it six months later after advertisers and home builders mounted campaigns against the tax. Martinez said the TBRC would be better off going after a tax on internet sales.

“There’s no reason to protect, in my view, internet sales against those that are paying taxes here in the state of Florida with buildings, hiring employees, while I go buy a product at their store I pay the same sales tax. If I buy that same product on the internet I don’t pay the sales tax,” Martinez said.

Because the state had already spent the money from the services tax, it was forced to raise the general sales tax by a penny when the services tax was repealed.