STATE NEWS BRIEFS

Bear Warriors United, which has filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction to halt an upcoming Florida black bear hunt, displayed signs at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission meeting at the Klein Conference Center at the College of Central Florida in Ocala on May 21, 2025. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette file photo]

Bear hunt permit applications top 163K

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission received 163,459 applications for up to 172 permits that will be issued for the state’s first bear hunt in a decade, according to the agency.

The hunt is scheduled from Dec. 6 to Dec. 28 in four areas of the state.

Each application cost $5. The agency will use a lottery-style drawing to select recipients of the permits, who will then have to pay $100 if they are Florida residents or $300 if they are non-residents. Unclaimed permits will be offered to the next people in line, the agency said.

Bear hunting has long been controversial in Florida, with the most recent hunt held in 2015. The conservation group Bear Warriors United has filed a lawsuit in Leon County circuit court to try to block this year’s hunt.

County, school board term limits proposed

A House Republican on Sept. 23 filed a proposed constitutional amendment that seeks to impose 12-year term limits on county commissioners and school board members.

The proposal (HJR 27), which Rep. Jeff Holcomb, R-Spring Hill, filed for consideration during the 2026 legislative session, could refuel a debate about whether to limit terms of local officials.

The House this year passed a measure that sought eight-year term limits for county commissioners and school board members, but the proposal died in the Senate. That measure, at least in part, drew opposition from rural counties.

If lawmakers pass Holcomb’s proposal, it would need voter approval in the November 2026 elections.

The Legislature in 2023 approved eight-year term limits for school board members, but those limits are not in the Constitution. Also, counties with charters can adopt term limits for commissioners.

The 2026 legislative session will start Jan. 13. Lawmakers, the governor and state cabinet members have eight-year term limits.

State considers $84.5M land buy

After lawmakers included the project in this year’s budget, Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state cabinet next week will consider spending $84.5 million to buy four acres of land along the south side of Destin Harbor in Okaloosa County.

The land, owned by Pointe Mezzanine LLC and Point Resort LLC, abuts Destin’s Norriego Point Beach Access and Park. A cabinet staff report said buying the land would improve access to the park.

“Once acquired, the park area will expand to nearly 16 acres, offering an expansive beachfront, over 100 parking spaces and excellent outdoor recreational opportunities for boating, fishing and swimming,” the staff report said.

The property is zoned for high-density residential use.

“Conservation of this property would prevent this type of development and create additional recreational opportunities for the public,” the staff report said.

If acquired, the land would be managed by Okaloosa County. Fine print in the state budget that took effect July 1 directed purchasing the land, though it did not include a dollar amount. DeSantis and the cabinet will meet Sept. 30.

Pharmacists OK’d for COVID-19 vaccines

Amid widespread debate and questions about COVID-19 vaccines, the Florida Board of Pharmacy on Sept. 23 said pharmacists in the state are able to provide the vaccines to patients.

The board, during a brief meeting, cited a state law that allows pharmacists to administer vaccines that are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Board members said COVID-19 vaccines fall under that category.

Pharmacists also need to have what is known as a “protocol” under a physician to administer vaccines.

Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo has been a prominent critic of COVID-19 vaccines, and the issue has gained additional attention through actions by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, a vaccine skeptic.

State eyes Miami site for Trump library

Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet next week will consider a proposal to provide 2.63 acres of land next to Miami’s Freedom Tower for President Donald Trump’s presidential library.

The governor’s office said on Sept. 23 that the land is used as a parking lot for Miami Dade College’s Wolfson Campus.

“No state has better delivered the president’s agenda than the free state of Florida and we would be honored to house his presidential library here in his home state,” DeSantis said in a prepared statement.

Trump is a Palm Beach County resident.

DeSantis and the Cabinet—Attorney General James Uthmeier, Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia and Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson—will meet Sept. 30.

In June, DeSantis signed a bill (SB 118) that prevents local governments from placing restrictions on presidential libraries and would give the state authority to regulate establishing and operating such facilities.