Whoâs behind a thorny Florida property rights bill? A real estate empire
It would bolster a law critics say is a hurdle to protecting the environment.
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Sen. Ray Rodrigues, R-Estero, sits at the Capitol in Tallahassee during session earlier this month. [ IVY CEBALLO | Times ]
Updated Mar. 16
A bill in the Florida Legislature that would bolster a state property rights law â one critics say already scares local governments away from protecting the environment â was written by representatives of a major development business that has donated to its Senate sponsor.
Sen. Ray Rodrigues, R-Estero, said he worked with a lobbyist for the Barron Collier Companies and Collier Enterprises Management to draft the proposal. An email shows a lobbyist passed along draft language from an executive at Barron Collier Companies, one branch of a real estate and investment empire that traces back to Collier Countyâs namesake.
Wikimedia Commons
More than 200 people called into the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s virtual meeting to share their thoughts on the banning of nonnative reptiles.
More than 200 people called into the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s virtual meeting to share their thoughts on the banning of nonnative reptiles.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission held a virtual meeting Thursday where they approved the prohibition of the ownership and commercial use of 16 out of 4,000 nonnative and invasive reptiles.
The rules, which were approved by a unanimous vote, apply to animals like the Argentine black and white tegu, Burmese python, and green iguana that are found to be “high-risk” to Florida’s environment and economy.
CBS News
Solving the mystery of the Appalachian hiker Mostly Harmless
It s believed he started walking the Appalachian Trail sometime around April of 2017. From a state park in New York, he hiked south and, about a thousand miles and 10 months later, crossed into Florida. I saw a man walking on the side of the road, said Kelly Fairbanks, a so-called trail angel offering help to weary hikers. The thing that stood out to me first was his beard. Also, his trekking poles. His trekking poles let me know that he was a hiker.
Nicholas Thompson, of the Atlantic Magazine, asked, Why did he make an impression on you?