Politics

House to consider 15% tax on consumable hemp goods

Published

2 weeks ago

April 15, 2025

An amendment from Michelle Salzman addresses budget issues surrounding a regulatory framework.

Rep. Michelle Salzman overnight filed an amendment to House hemp legislation that would levy a 15% excise tax on THC-infused goods.

New proposed language for a House committee bill (HB 7029) would impose the tax on consumable goods derived from hemp. The legislation, first passed out of the House Housing, Agriculture & Tourism Subcommittee, would have imposed higher taxes similar to cigarettes for edible products. But this legislation sets a lower 15% excise tax on hemp consumables across the board.

That’s a lower amount than Salzman, a Pensacola Republican, discussed with Florida Politics over the weekend, when she suggested a 20% charge would be proposed. That suggests House conversations are shifting toward lower charges being adopted.

The amendment will be taken up at a House Budget Committee meeting at 8 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

In addition to setting the tax, the amendment also establishes how much of the revenue raised should be spent. The proposed language allocates the first $6 million of proceeds to go toward law enforcement and testing, with the rest funding general revenue.

The legislation also puts tax filing requirements on dealers, including electronic filing for any dealer of hemp consumables who has paid more than $5,000 in taxes in recent years.

This amendment deals entirely with financial issues surrounding the effort in the Legislature to establish a regulatory framework around hemp. The House Budget Committee will also take up a policy-focused bill (HB 7027), and Salzman has signaled another amendment to that legislation will be filed before both hemp bills land before the House Commerce Committee ahead of Session’s end.

The Senate has already passed hemp legislation as a single bill (SB 438), and Salzman said the chambers will likely have to negotiate differences between the bills in conference.

Meanwhile, the work this year follows efforts to pass regulations last year that were ultimately vetoed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

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Politics

As Elon Musk gained power in Washington, his popularity has fallen, an AP-NORC poll finds

Published

1 hour ago

April 27, 2025

May Greene

Much of the downsizing has been done through so-called the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, which was Musk’s brainchild during last year’s campaign. Thousands of federal employees have been fired or pushed to quit, contracts have been canceled and entire agencies have been brought to a standstill.

Musk has succeeded in providing a dose of shock therapy to the federal government, but he has fallen short of other goals. After talking about cutting spending by $1 trillion, he has set a much lower target of $150 billion. Even reaching that amount could prove challenging, and DOGE has regularly overstated its progress.

He is expected to start dedicating more time to Tesla, his electric automaker that has suffered plummeting revenue while he was working for Trump. Musk told investors on a recent conference call that “now that the major work of establishing the Department of Government Efficiency is done,” he expects to spend just “a day or two per week on government matters.”

Musk, in his work for the administration, has continued a political evolution toward the right. Although the South African-born entrepreneur was never easy to categorize ideologically, he championed the fight against climate change and often supported Democratic candidates.

Now he criticizes “the woke mind virus” and warns of the collapse of Western civilization from the threats of illegal migration and excess government spending.

Musk’s increasingly conservative politics are reflected in the polling. Only about 2 in 10 independents and about 1 in 10 Democrats view Musk favorably, compared with about 7 in 10 Republicans.

In addition, while about 7 in 10 independents and about 9 in 10 Democrats believe Musk has too much influence, only about 4 in 10 Republicans feel that way.

Mark Collins, 67, a warehouse manager from Michigan who has leaned Republican in recent years, said Musk “runs a nice, tight ship” at his companies, “and the government definitely needs tightening up.”

“He’s cleaning up all the trash,” he said. “I love what he’s doing.”

Republicans are much less likely than Democrats to be worried about being affected by recent cuts to federal government agencies, services or grants. Just 11% said they are “extremely” or “very” concerned that they or someone they know will be affected, while about two-thirds of Democrats and 44% of independents have those fears.

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Republished with permission of the Associated Press.

The AP-NORC poll of 1,260 adults was conducted April 17-21, using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.9 percentage points.

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Politics

Collier County foster care leader honored among top nonprofit ‘heroes’ in the state

Published

2 hours ago

April 27, 2025

May Greene

Gov. Ron DeSantis and First Lady Casey DeSantis recognize leader of ‘Fostering Success’ in Southwest Florida.

A Southwest Florida leader among nonprofit organizations was recognized as a 2025 Florida Hero by Gov. Ron DeSantis and First Lady Casey DeSantis.

Ann Hughes, the CEO of Fostering Success in Naples, was honored this month by Florida’s First Couple for her work in providing educational and enrichment opportunities for foster children. Hughes helped lead the organization as it expanded its reach and it provides resources, mentorship opportunities and additional advocacy for foster youth in the Southwest Florida area.

Hughes was among 62 “heroes” honored at the Florida Heroes Reception this month which highlighted a plethora of Floridians who’ve been involved in exceptional commitments to their communities.

Casey DeSantis also expressed her admiration for the honorees and said, “We were proud to highlight the good works and heroic acts of Floridians from across the state. These individuals have gone above and beyond to serve others, and we are grateful to each of them.”

The Fostering Success program in Naples advocates for foster children reaching their full potential. While headquartered in Naples, the nonprofit serves foster care systems in Collier, Hendry and Glades counties. The organization seeks to improve educational, social and emotional development so the foster children have an opportunity to engage in productive lives.

Some of those Fostering Success programs include kindergarten preparation, academic tutoring programs, emergency supply provisions, scholarships, as well as classes and assistance for those children who transition out of foster care.

Ron DeSantis said all the heroes who were honorees deserved the recognition.

“These individuals exemplify the very best of Florida, demonstrating courage, kindness, and selflessness in their efforts to improve the lives of others,” Ron DeSantis said.

Other professionals in lines of work for those being honored included educators, first responders and other community leaders who had an impact.

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Politics

Wife of U.S. Coast Guard member arrested over expired visa after security check for military housing

Published

5 hours ago

April 27, 2025

May Greene

Wife was detained by ICE after background check showed a U.S. visa expired.

The wife of an active-duty Coast Guardsman was arrested earlier this week by federal immigration authorities inside the family residential section of the U.S. Naval Air Station at Key West, after she was flagged in a routine security check, officials said Saturday.

“The spouse is not a member of the Coast Guard and was detained by Homeland Security Investigations pursuant to a lawful removal order,” said Coast Guard spokesperson Lt. Cmdr. Steve Roth in a statement confirming Thursday’s on-base arrest. “The Coast Guard works closely with HSI and others to enforce federal laws, including on immigration.”

According to a U.S. official, the woman’s work visa expired around 2017, and she was marked for removal from the United States a few years later. She and the Coast Guardsman were married early this year, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an enforcement incident.

Though the Trump administration has made immigration arrests a top priority for federal law enforcement, it did not immediately appear the on-base arrest of the military spouse was part of a broader sweep.

The official said that when the woman and her Coast Guard husband were preparing to move into their on-base housing on Wednesday, they went to the visitor control center to get a pass so she could access the Key West installation. During the routine security screening required for base access, the woman’s name was flagged as a problem.

Base personnel contacted the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which looked into the matter, said the official. NCIS and Coast Guard security personnel got permission from the base commander to enter the installation and then went to the Coast Guardsman’s home on Thursday, the official said. They were joined by personnel from Homeland Security Investigations, a unit within Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

HSI eventually took the spouse into custody, and the official said they believe she is still being detained. Officials did not provide the name of the country she is from.

The Coast Guard referred questions about the woman’s identity, immigration status and charges to ICE, which did not respond to a request for comment on Saturday. The Department of Homeland Security also did not respond to a request for comment.

The husband of the arrested woman is a Coast Guardsman assigned to the USCGC Mohawk, a 270-foot-long cutter based at Key West. The couple was moving into U.S. government housing at the nearby Naval Air Station.

An online database that tracks ship movements shows the Mohawk has been docked in its home port since mid-March. A March 16 media release says the ship had recently returned following a 70-day deployment to the Eastern Pacific Ocean on a mission to intercept shipments of illegal drugs.

In a statement, the Navy said that it “fully cooperated with federal law enforcement authorities on this matter. We take security and access at naval installations seriously.”

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Republished with permission of The Associated Press.

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