Issues of Interest

STANLEY CUP The Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup on September 28th, besting the Dallas Stars 4-2 in the series. Congratulations to the team- some welcomed good news for Florida! 

AMAZON DRONE AIRLINE Amazon received approval from the Federal Aviation Administration to operate its fleet of Prime Air delivery drones. The authorization gives Amazon the ability to carry property on small drones “beyond the visual line of sight” of the operator.

SPRINGS RESTORATION More than 20 statewide springs restoration projects will share $50 million to aid their recovery and provide additional protection for Florida’s springs. Many of the projects will benefit ongoing restoration efforts in springsheds. For more details, go here.

EDIBLE MARIJUANA PRODUCTS The Florida Department of Health issued an emergency rule establishing guidelines for edible products. The rule is designed to discourage children from consuming marijuana-laced products that include the euphoria-inducing compound tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. The regulations require edible products to be in geometric shapes, bans “icing, sprinkles, or other toppings of any kind” and the products cannot “bear a reasonable resemblance to commercially available candy.” The products are appearing on shelves nearly four years after Floridians approved a 2016 constitutional amendment that legalized medical marijuana.

COLLEGE ENTRANCE EXAMS On September 1st, the Governor signed an executive order extending the deadline for students to earn the minimum qualifying SAT or ACT score to earn a Bright Futures scholarship. High school seniors who graduated in the 2019-20 school year now have until December 1st to achieve the qualifying score.