Big deal

Sunrise

The Special Session on gambling is underway; it’s almost like lawmakers never left town.

Also, on today’s Sunrise:

— Session began with a major concession as the House Speaker announced a controversial provision that could have turned your smartphone into an online casino is gone from the proposed Seminole Compact.

— Some lawmakers are dead set against any expansion of gambling, but an attorney for the Seminole Tribe says Florida can’t afford to pass up this deal.

— The compact passed the Senate Appropriations Committee by a vote of 18 to one. It goes to the Senate floor and then the House floor tomorrow; lawmakers are trying to get out of town by Wednesday.

— The former Seminole County Tax Collector pleads guilty in a federal sex trafficking investigation, promising to cooperate with the feds as their investigation continues. North Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz was not mentioned by name, but an airplane was circling over the courthouse towing a banner that read “tick-tock Matt Gaetz.”

— If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Orlando Congressman Darren Soto is leading the charge for a bill allowing the government to negotiate Medicare drug prices with Big Pharma.

— And finally, a Florida Man lost his job as a deputy for sending inappropriate text messages to two women he met on the job.