The Florida Legislature convened its 2009 regular session Tuesday with the state in such a dire financial condition that even the staunchest conservatives said lawmakers would have to at least consider tax and fee increases.

A Pinellas County activist said Tuesday that he is filing an ethics complaint against Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp over the cost to the state of flying and driving Kottkamp between his Fort Myers home and Tallahassee.

After months of standing in front of crowds chanting “Drill, baby, drill,“ Gov. Charlie Crist stepped in front of a microphone Tuesday to shouts of “Yes We Can.“

Gov. Charlie Crist is backing an effort to revive a proposed commuter rail line for central Florida.

Florida has lists of “shovel ready” transportation and environmental projects that can swiftly put federal stimulus funds to work, state officials Monday told Gov. Charlie Crist.

Gov. Charlie Crist used his line-item veto power to undo $364 million in spending cuts, trust fund raids and money shifts Tuesday as he signed into law a series of bills designed to avert a current-year budget deficit of at least $2.3 billion.

The Commission on Open Government Reform will send a nearly 200-page report to Gov. Charlie Crist this week on how to make government and records more accessible.

Miamian Robert Gonzalez says a $1 tax hike on a pack of cigarettes might just be enough to make him quit smoking after 20 years.

Applications are due for a fourth Florida Supreme Court vacancy in the past year.

At least 34 Florida businesses will be able to obtain low-interest loans from the state to help them expand.

A House committee examining a potential gambling deal with the Seminole Tribe was told the agreement Gov. Charlie Crist already signed essentially doesn’t exist.

The Republican senator who chairs the committee making budget decisions says it’s time to start slashing overhead.

Gov. Charlie Crist says an ambitious Everglades restoration plan that will cost the state $1.34 billion “creates unprecedented possibilities.“

Gov. Charlie Crist has suspended the mayor of a South Florida city from public office.

Gov. Charlie Crist became the first sitting Florida governor to wed in nearly 42 years, exchanging vows Friday at a ceremony attended by some 200 relatives, friends and celebrities.