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FLCGA News Digest
News from FLCGA Journalists
An open letter – and dire warning – from Florida Ethics Institute’s Caroline Klancke
As the executive director of the Florida Ethics Institute and former deputy executive director of the Florida Commission on Ethics, I’ve dedicated my life and career to the cause of ethics in government and have been heartened to see that cause championed by the...
FLCGA’s public watchdog efforts lead to arrest of county’s former top official
Former Manatee County Administrator Scott Hopes’ jail mugshot is what government accountability looks like. The 63-year-old Hopes was charged Thursday with three felony crimes – notary fraud, grand theft, and felony use of a public record – following a police...
Disney wants trade secrets kept confidential in lawsuit with DeSantis appointees
AP/US News Mike Schneider February 5, 2024 Disney wants to keep confidential any proprietary information or trade secrets that comes out of its state court fight with Gov. Ron DeSantis’ appointees over who controls the governing district at Walt Disney World. The...
‘Delay and obfuscate’: Disney fights DeSantis for public records, joining others
The Orlando Sentinel Skyler Swisher February 5, 2024 As Disney tries to rebound from a major legal setback, the entertainment giant is battling Gov. Ron DeSantis and state officials on another front: access to public records. The corporation’s lawyers are demanding...
“Corrosive” Florida Senate bill will hide public corruption rather than expose it, ethics expert says
A top Florida ethics expert is sounding the alarm about an ethics bill passed by the state Senate Thursday that would make it easier for corrupt officials to avoid investigation – and much harder for residents to hold them to account. “This bill would be incredibly...
While touting “family values” agenda, the Zieglers were on the “hunt” for threesome partners, police report reveals
While Republican power couple Christian and Bridget Ziegler publicly pushed for “family values” and backed an agenda widely viewed as anti-LGBTQ, they were secretly on the “hunt” for threesome lovers and had prior concerns the woman who alleged Christian sexually...