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If a Florida firefighter dies in training, instead of during an emergency, benefits are cut to their families. Kristen Curry’s husband died during training in Volusia County in 2007. Shortly after his death she and her six year-old son Owen lost their health insurance. Kristen is asking lawmakers to close the loophole.

“I didn’t even realize what had happened until probably a couple of months later because obviously we were in a very emotional state, but when we found out it was devastating and I though that maybe our county would step up and take care of us but unfortunately they didn’t,” said Kristen.

That’s what brought Kristen to the state capitol. Legislation to close the loophole passed the Senate, but House leadership has refused to take it up. There’s still one more day for the House to act.

There will be at least five candidates on the ballot for US Senate in November. Crist’s departure from the primary makes three. A libertarian candidate Alex Snitker announced last week he would run. Today Bernie DeCastro filed his federal qualifying paperwork. DeCastro is running as Constitutional Party candidate. He says he’s more conservative than Republican Marco Rubio.

“May the best man win and I believe I have the most conservative message out there and I believe when people see it and they connect to it and if they’ll open the debates on and if they’ll let me into the debates then it will be on then,” said DeCastro.

The Constitution Party was founded in 1992, but didn’t get its name until 1999. The party has similar believes as the Libertarian Party, but is more conservative.

As a few flip-flopping Florida politicians backpedal to shed their pro-drilling labels, exploration in the Gulf of Mexico continues. Last week’s oil spill 30 miles off the coast of Louisiana has killed state efforts to drill off Florida’s coastline in the immediate future, but as Whitney Ray tells us, the industry isn’t going to lie down and die.

With more than 11-hundred miles of coastline helping to bring in billions of tourist dollars, the thought of oil drilling near Florida has historically been considered political suicide.

Then in the summer of 2008, gas hit four dollars a gallon. Politicians began to flip-flop on drilling. Governor Charlie Crist had the most notable change in position.

“When you are paying over four dollars a gallon for gas you have to wonder if there might be additional resources you could utilize to bring that price down,” said Crist in June of 2008.

Oil lobbyists touted the industry’s newest technology as safe. Then last week, an explosion on one of BP’s newest rigs killed 11 and continues to pump thousands of gallons of oil into the gulf near Louisiana. Crist toured the destruction Tuesday.

“It was disturbing, I mean it was horrific,” Crist said Wednesday.

It will likely be months before the source of the accident is revealed, but David Mica with the Florida Petroleum Council says efforts for drilling near Florida will still move forward.

“We think that that importance of replacing and continuing to supply products to consumers is important and Florida has a role to play in that,” said Mica.

But Democratic gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink says no way. Sink held her ground, as dozens of politicians jumped on the drilling bandwagon.

“We need the kind of leaders who are able to stand up and be principled and understand that it’s important to get all the facts before drinking the Kool-Aid of the special interest,” said Sink.

Sink’s likely Republican opponent, Attorney General Bill McCollum, is also against the idea. In a Tuesday news release McCollum threatened to veto any drilling legislation if he’s elected governor.

Legislation lifting the ban on drilling in state waters, or three to ten miles off the coast, passed the state House in 2009, but the Senate refused to take it up. A similar plan this year was postponed just two weeks before the spill.

Several news outlets are reporting Governor Charlie Crist will drop out of the US Senate Republican Primary and run as a No Party Affiliation candidate.

Crist is scheduled to make an official announcement tomorrow at five o’clock in his hometown of St. Petersburg. Today Crist was asked if he’s worried about losing endorsements by dropping out of the primary against the party’s wishes. Crist doesn’t seem to mind.

“The endorsement of my wife and my mom and dad matter a lot, so I think that endorsements are nice, but I don’t think they are critical,” said Crist.

By switching to a No Party Affiliation candidate and not changing races Crist is allowed to keep the seven million dollars he raised as a Republican, although many major party donors are already asking for a refund.

State leaders are back at the drawing board to figure out how to secure millions of federal dollar for education.

Florida lost the first round of the Race to the Top competition earlier this year. Race to the Top is a federal program awarding states that adopt standards like merit pay in an effort to improve the country’s education system. Florida lost out earlier this year, after the US Department of Education said the state’s education reform plan lacked teacher input. Crist told the Race to the Top Board this morning, educators will get more of a say in the process this go round.

“Now we move forward together to do what’s right for the children first and when we do that we can’t lose. We can’t lose,” said Crist.

The main piece education reform legislation that lack teacher input was Senate Bill Six. Crist vetoed the bill and outrages high ranking Florida Republicans. Now the state has six weeks to submit its education reform plan to put Florida in contention for the remaining 3.4 billion federal dollars.

Four months after two new Public Service Commissioners helped defeat a billion and a half dollars in electric bill increases, the state senate has voted down their confirmations.

Governor Charlie Crist appointed the new commissioners to the PSC late last year, after news broke of secret dealings between commissioners and utility executives. The new commissioners were able to service until the Senate voted. Governor Charlie Crist is defending his appointees.

“I was very disappointed. I think these were two very good men, men of great integrity. I think it was unfortunate that they weren’t selected to stay on. I think it was ironic as well. I chose from a panel the legislature gave me. Then, the legislature decided they weren’t qualified after they qualified them for me,” said Crist.

Denying the confirmations could be legislative payback for Crist’s veto of several Republican lead bills this session or for his anticipated departure from the US Senate Republican Primary. Supporters of the two appointees say they got voted off the PSC because they stood up to the rate hikes this winter and electric companies are a powerful lobby group in Tallahassee.

People living with ALS, also know as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, were at the state capitol Tuesday to raise awareness and research dollars.

The ALS Association covered the capitol courtyard with mannequins bearing the names of Floridians who have had the neuromuscular disease. Researchers still haven’t found a cure for ALS and people with the disease generally die within five years of diagnoses. Steve Franks was diagnosed with ALS in 2003. Franks still has hope that a cure could be found in time to save his life.
“I doubt that it will happen in time to help me, but there’s hope. We’re taking baby steps,” said Franks.

There are 1,200 Floridians living with ALS.

Under legislation considered by the House today in Tallahassee, the state’s four investor owned utilities ( FP&L, Progress Energy, TECO, and Gulf Power) would be allowed to raise rates four dollars a month next year to build solar or biomass plants. But as Mike Vasilinda tells us, the legislation does nothing to help eight thousand Floridians who have already installed solar and are waiting for a promised rebate.

The state’s big power companies are already collecting money every month from utility customers to build new nuclear plants. Now, the Florida House wants to also let them collect four dollars a month beginning next year and as much as ten dollars a month in 2013 to fund construction of solar plants.

“So, I think the bill does a lot to create jobs in our state and encourage jobs in our state,” Rep. Seth McKeel (R-Lakeland) said.

The measure has the backing of some Democrats.

“If you don’t make investments in the future, you have no future,” Rep. Joe Gibboms (D-Miami) said.

But it also has opponents on both sides of the isle.

“We’re going to raise rates for people in our districts, and we’re going to give it to industries,” Rep. Dave Murzin (R-Pensacola) said.

“Is now the time to pass a potential $376 million dollar rate increase onto consumers?” Rep. Scott Randolph (D-Orlando) said.

In a voice vote, the House said no to 8,000 people in Florida who have already installed solar and are expecting a rebate. They won’t get it because the money has run out.

Florida ran out of money for solar rebates in June of last year, but didn’t bother to tell anyone until November, racking up a 25 million-dollar promise that won’t be fulfilled… all while utilities could collect more than a billion dollars for solar.

The Senate is sending signals that it will not take the house plan.

The Louisiana oil spill has Governor Charlie Crist rethinking his position on offshore drilling. The sunken derrick is leaking an estimated thousand barrels or oil a day and as Whitney Ray tells us, some of that oil may harm Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Governor Charlie Crist boarded a plane Tuesday afternoon, heading to the Louisiana oil spill to see if there’s a threat to Florida’s shoreline.

“We don’t know how soon or how much, the idea is to go out there with Secretary Sol, and make sure that we do everything we can in the event that more of it comes our way,” said Crist.

News of the spill has the governor and legislative leaders backing down from their efforts to explore oil drilling in state waters. Legislation postponed this session would have allowed the governor and state cabinet to broker deals with oil companies to bring rigs as close as three miles from shore.

Support for offshore oil drilling grew in Florida after gas prices soared above four dollars in the summer of 2008. That’s when Crist, a former opponent of drilling, first changed his position, citing the high prices and newer, safer drilling technology.

“It would depend on the parameters; how far off the coast, how safe it would be, how much it would protect our beaches,” said Crist in a June 2008 interview.

Crist says the spill less than 30 miles from the Louisiana gulf coast doesn’t meet his standards.

“I’m not sure this was far enough. I’m pretty sure it was not clean enough. And it doesn’t sound like it was safe enough,” said Crist.

Legislative leaders plan to visit oil rigs this summer to do their own research on the risk Florida faces if the legislature decides to lift the ban. Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill McCollum came out strong against oil drilling today. McCollum says if he’s elected he will veto any legislation lifting the ban. Democratic frontrunner Alex Sink has been a long time opponent of drilling in Florida.

After a five year legislative battle a bill laying out statewide regulations for red-light cameras is finally headed to the governor’s desk.

There are already hundreds of red-light cameras taking pictures of violators statewide. This legislation would allow for the cameras on state roads and put more restrictions on their use. Bill Sponsor Ron Reagan says the measure will save lives.

“There’s no doubt in my mind, we’re going to save lives. The number, I can’t tell you but I know the fact that in other cities and states around the country, when they have installed these cameras, number one, accidents, especially t-bone type accidents, have dropped dramatically, 50 to 70 percent. Therefore I know it does save lives. I don’t have a number for you. But I will tell you, it was just under 300,000 law enforcement citations issued two years ago for people who ran red lights. So the number obviously may go up initially, but with the language, you know, every intersection is going to have a sign on it. So it’s going to tell you that ‘traffic enforced via camera.” So, should somebody run a red light, they’re doing it at their own peril,” said Reagan.

Reagan adopted the legislation after Mellissa Wandall’s husband Mark was killed by a red-light runner just weeks before their first child was born. Mellissa has spent the last five years working with Reagan on the bill.

The waiting game is almost over, Governor Charlie Crist says he’ll announce his future political plans this Thursday.

Crist is expected to drop out of the Republican Primary and run as a no party affiliation candidate for US Senate. Crist says he’s still weighing his options and is making sure his federal qualifying paperwork is done properly.

“I just want to give myself 24 hours to make sure everything is filled out right and we cross every “T” and dot every “I,” said Crist

Crist says there’s absolutely no change he’ll drop out of the race all together, a move party leaders have been pushing. They believe if Crist runs as an independent, it would improve Democratic Candidate Kendrick Meek’s chances of winning.

A state ban on texting while driving crashed in Tallahassee today. The Senate was poised to discuss the legislation, but House leadership quickly put the breaks on the bill. As Whitney Ray tells us, with just a week left in the legislative session, texting while driving is likely to stay off the radar until next year.

The 2010 legislative session began with more than 15 lawmakers pushing their owe version of a texting while driving ban.

“It’s such a terrible dangerous activity,” Said Sen. Carey Baker.

Legislative leadership whittled the options down to one bill; Senator Nancy Detert’s,

“It is recognizable dangerous to be going 70 miles an hour and not looking at the road. You might as well be wearing a blindfold,” said Detert.

But before a vote could be taken on the bill, a message from the House was delivered by Representative Ellen Bogdanoff telling Detert not to bother.

Bogdanoff says if the legislature were to ban texting while driving, then other activities, like eating or flipping through a CD case should also be illegal.

“I don’t think we should be isolating one negative activity when we have many others,” said Bogdanoff.

But even without the legislation efforts are underway to warn people about the dangers of texting from behind the wheel.

Studies show people who send or read text messages are 23 times more likely to have a wreck. 19 states already ban the activity. A state ban on texting while driving may soon be moot because the federal government is considering taking action.

People who want to run for a federal office have until Friday to qualify for the ballot.

Federal qualifying began at noon today. Congresswoman Corrine Brown filled out her paperwork and paid 10-thousand dollars today to run for another term in Washington.

“I think election is like a report card and you work hard and I believe you let the work you have done speak for yourself and I’ve worked hard and I want people to know that,” said Brown.

Former House Speaker Marco Rubio is expected to turn in his qualifying paperwork for the US Senate election Wednesday. Governor Charlie Crist will qualify later this week, although it’s unclear if he’ll stay in the Republican Primary or register as a no party affiliation candidate.

State House and Senate lawmakers are getting closer to a budget agreement.

Members of the joint budget conference worked over the weekend. Now they’re putting the final touches on the 69 billion dollars state spending plan. So far cuts to state worker benefits, mental health services, and a program to prevent child abuse are some of the biggest casualties. Department of Children and Families Secretary George Sheldon says the state will be paying for the cuts to the child abuse prevention program for years to come.

“We can not come back and pick up these lives a year from now or two years from now when the economy gets better because these are folks who are going to be permanently injured.” Said Sheldon.

The legislature must have a budget agreement before midnight Tuesday in order to take a vote before the scheduled end of session Friday.

The oil spill off the coast of Louisiana has Florida lawmakers rethinking their efforts to open up the state’s coast to oil drilling.

Legislation to allow drilling with in 10 miles of shore was already dead this session when the spill happened, but Senator Mike Haridopolos says the legislature needs to do some more research.

“What are the risk involved? We want to know. If they’re too high we can’t do it. that’s why we are going to go there first hand. We are going to invite reporters with us, we want to see exactly what happens before we change our policy,” said Haridopolos.

The spill in Louisiana happened just 30 miles from the coast. It’s pumping out a thousand barrels a day.