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House Set To Act On Economic, Death Penalty Bills

Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.
Florida House of Representatives
/
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

The House's first full floor session Thursday is expected to include taking up bills that would abolish Enterprise Florida, overhaul Visit Florida and make a key change in the state's death-penalty sentencing laws.

The 2017 legislative session will start Tuesday with a largely ceremonial session, and the House is slated to meet Thursday afternoon to begin taking up bills.

The issues on what is known as a "special order calendar" for the Thursday session include a controversial measure (HB 7005) that would abolish Enterprise Florida and other economic-development programs.

Also, it includes a proposal (HB 9) that would require changes in the operations of the tourism-marketing agency Visit Florida and a bill (HB 527) that would require unanimous jury recommendations before defendants can be sentenced to death.

House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O' Lakes, and Gov. Rick Scott have battled about the Enterprise Florida and Visit Florida issues. The Florida Supreme Court in October rejected a law that required only 10 of 12 jurors to recommend death in capital cases.