Sen. Jeff Brandes

Florida lags far behind other states in reforming its criminal justice laws. But the fight continues for prison advocacy groups and their allies in the Legislature. Now, the new coronavirus pandemic has intensified concerns about an aging inmate population.

Calls to cap THC levels in Florida's medical marijuana products are drawing outcry from cannabis advocates.Members of the Veterans Cannabis Project joined…

This week on Florida Matters, we sat down with local political reporters to look at the2020 Florida Legislature and discuss some of the most pressing…

St. Petersburg Republican Sen. Jeff Brandes is once again seeking to do away with the Florida Constitution Revision Commission, the powerful panel that…

This last May was the hottest ever recorded in the Sunshine State. That was followed by higher-than-average temperatures in June and July. The scorching...

Florida's prisons have a health care problem.The state's aging prison population and the high cost of treating inmates with debilitating diseases are…

State lawmakers are hoping to increase access to health care by allowing nurse practitioners to treat patients without a doctor's supervision.Rep. Cary…

A high-profile effort to repeal the state’s ban on smokable medical marijuana morphed Monday into legislation that, according to the proposal’s author,...

State Senator Jeff Brandes believes the Florida Legislature is now organized in a way that will lead to more insurance issues being heard and ultimately...

If Florida lawmakers don’t do anything policy wise soon, the state’s prison population could increase. That’s according to a report commissioned by the...

A new report paid for and released by the Florida Senate finds that while the state is sending fewer people to prison than in the past, those who end up...

About $5 million separates the Florida House and Senate’s criminal justice budget. But, while there are some differences, there are areas where both...