People who are sent to prison for crimes they didn't commit would be compensated under a bill passed Tuesday by the Senate - unless they had other convictions in their past.

That means Alan Crotzer, who sat in prison for 24 years for a rape and robbery he didn't commit, wouldn't get compensation because of a previous robbery conviction. Crotzer, who now works as a hospital janitor, went free after DNA evidence proved him innocent in January.

The bill's sponsor, Sen. Daniel Webster, R-Winter Garden, said his primary concern is getting a bill that establishes compensation on the books. His choice was to make legislation as narrow as possible so it would stand a chance this year, or secure nothing for no one, he said.

The problem isn't just about Crotzer, said Jennifer Greenberg, an attorney with the Florida Innocence Initiative, the local branch of a nationwide organization working to free wrongly convicted prisoners.

Most felons who are mistakenly convicted often have past crimes that aren't indicators of the people they've become, Greenberg said. Plus, the state still owes a debt to innocent men and women whose freedom and safety the state has stripped away.

Florida shoppers could get books, clothing and other items tax-free during the last nine days of July under a measure advanced Tuesday in the House. The House didn't take a final vote on the bill (SB 692), but is expected to later this week. The measure has already passed the Senate.

The measure would exempt books, clothing, wallets or certain bags under $50 from the state sales tax during the period. School supplies less than $10 per item would also be tax free during the period.

Police departments wouldn't be liable for injury, death or property damage caused by people fleeing from police in a chase under a bill advanced Tuesday in the House.

There would be certain requirements of the police agency under the bill, including requiring that the pursuit is not conducted in a reckless manner and that the officer reasonably believes that the person he's chasing has committed a forcible felony.

House and Senate staff began distributing paper copies of the proposed budget to lawmakers just after 4:15 p.m. Tuesday, starting the clock on a 72-hour waiting period before they can take a final vote.

The waiting period was meant to make sure that lawmakers have ample time to plow through the massive spending proposal - this year it's 433 pages - to examine it for spending items that they may not have noticed before.

Once all the lawmakers had a copy on their desk and the proposed $70 billion budget was posted online, the official clock started, making a final vote possible sometime after 4:30 p.m. on Friday, the last day of the legislative session.

The House voted 81-36 to allow sitting lawmakers to roll over the cash they raise when they're unopposed for re-election to the next election, instead of returning it or giving it away as they're currently required to do.

House members who decide to carry over cash would be prohibited from accepting campaign contributions for one year after qualifying, Senate members for two years.

"This will end the year-round fundraising process," said Rivera. "It will make us focus on legislation during the committee process rather than focusing on fundraising."

But by carrying over their unused money from their last race, incumbents could have a huge head start on anyone who wants to run against them, Democrats argued. And that means few challengers would come forward.

The Senate is set to vote on a House-passed bill that would require owners of multiple gas stations to have one generator for every 10 stations.

The plan is a reaction to the difficulty faced by many Floridians after last year's hurricanes, particularly Hurricane Wilma, which left parts of South Florida paralyzed by people's inability to get gasoline because of power outages.

A bill that would give prosecutors the last word in closing arguments when the defense doesn't present evidence except for the defendant's testimony was reconsidered, modified and passed 34-0 in the Senate on Tuesday, a day after it had been defeated.

The chamber had voted 25-11 for the bill (HB 147) Monday, but it required two-thirds - 27 votes - to pass because it would repeal a court rule. It now will return to the House, where it passed 85-31 last week, for another vote.

The prosecutor in most cases makes a closing argument and then gets to offer the last word to rebut the defense's argument. The procedure is reversed only when the defense fails to present any evidence other than the defendant's testimony.

The bill would give prosecutors the last word in all cases by changing court rules. A compromise amendment was accepted in the Senate to let the Supreme Court have the last word on the rule change if the justices determine the issue is strictly a procedural matter.

The Senate wants to give citizens a chance to write or change state laws by putting their proposals on the ballot through a petition process just as they now can do to amend the Florida Constitution.

The chamber voted to add statutory citizen initiatives to a proposed amendment, expected to come up for a vote today, that is designed to fix grammatical errors and remove outdated material from the constitution.

The measure (SJR 1918) also would remove four amendments placed in the constitution through citizen initiatives in recent years and turn them into state laws.

One of those amendments protects pregnant pigs. The others deal with medical malpractice cases by capping lawyer fees, giving patients a "right to know" about doctors' past malpractice records and revoking licenses of physicians who have committee three or more acts of malpractice.

Disabled war veterans at least 65 years old who were Florida residents when they enlisted would get a property tax break on their homes through a proposed state constitutional amendment that passed 37-1 Monday in the Senate.

The proposal (HJR 631) previously had passed in the House but only offered the tax break to World War II veterans at a cost of $1 million in lost revenue to local governments.

It now returns to the House because the Senate expanded it to include disabled veterans of all wars, which would increase the revenue loss by $14 million.

Veterans' property tax would be reduced by a percentage equal to their level of disability. That means the tax bill of a veteran who is 70 percent disabled would be reduced by 70 percent.

The measure was introduced in response to funeral protests by the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. Church members claim the deaths are punishment from God because the United States tolerates homosexuality.

The bill (H7127) would increase fines to $1,000 and maximum jail sentences to one year for anyone who disturbs a military funeral. The present penalties are a $500 fine and 60 days in jail.

Florida's no-fault auto insurance system would continue at least until Jan. 1, 2009 if the House agrees with a bill that passed 37-0 on Tuesday in the Senate.

The measure (SB 2114) would re-enact the no-fault law through that date, giving lawmakers two more years to consider the issue. Unless the re-enactment becomes law, the non-fault system will automatically be repealed on Oct. 1, 2007 under existing statutes.

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