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Today is the 59th day of the 60-day session.
Compiled from Times wires
© St. Petersburg Times, published May 3, 2001
Drugs mean big trouble for rave club operators
It would become a felony to willfully run rave clubs or other facilities where illegal drugs are used, sold, kept or delivered under a bill that went to Gov. Jeb Bush on Wednesday.
The House voted 120-0 for the bill, which previously cleared the Senate.
The legislation is aimed primarily at rave clubs that hold all-night dance parties, but it can cover other places.
They would be considered public nuisances, and anyone willfully maintaining or aiding in maintaining them could face up to five years in prison.
A bill meant to give prisoners who might be innocent a better chance to clear themselves through DNA testing passed the House and Senate and is headed to Gov. Jeb Bush.
The bill would give prisoners two years after their sentence becomes final to ask a judge to order testing of genetic material from the crime scene if they can show it could help prove they are innocent.
The bill was prompted by several cases in which DNA evidence exonerated prisoners. One was that of Frank Lee Smith, who died last year after spending 14 years on death row. DNA tests completed after his death proved him innocent.
Regulations to protect payday loan customers from getting in over their head with high-interest revolving loans are about to become law.
Gov. Jeb Bush said he will sign legislation that puts limits on the lenders, after the reform bill passed both houses.
Payday lenders let customers cash a personal check for a fee and hold the check until the borrower's next payday.