Florida state employees received well-deserved recognition at regional luncheons throughout the week of June 20th – 24th. Honoring winners of Florida TaxWatch’s 2016 Prudential Productivity Awards, these luncheons took place in Tampa, Miami, Orlando and Jacksonville. The 28th Annual awards ceremony highlights state employees who innovatively reduce costs and improve services for Florida taxpayers. The Prudential Productivity Awards is the only program where the state’s private businesses recognize and reward public employees for making state government run more efficiently.

Today, Florida TaxWatch announced the 2016 Prudential Productivity Award winners at its Tallahassee office. The program, founded by Florida TaxWatch, has been honoring dedicated state employees since 1989. The Prudential Productivity Awards program recognizes and rewards hard-working state employees who develop and implement innovative cost-saving and efficient improvements.

Florida’s elected lawmakers put fewer secret spending projects into the budget in the waning days of this Legislative session, but improvements are still needed to guarantee taxpayers have full openness, transparency and accountability when lawmakers spend their money.

With the traditional hanky drop, the 2016 Legislative session has officially come to a close. The Legislature avoided a Special Session this year, approving the $82.349 billion state budget, which will fund various state agencies and critical needs for all Floridians.

Floridians’ tax burden remains lower than most states, despite local government taxes that are higher than average, according to the 2016 edition of Florida TaxWatch’s How Florida Compares: Taxes . The report helps Floridians understand how state revenues stack up against the rest of the nation.

Florida lawmakers will have a $635 million surplus when they craft the 2016-17 state budget, but in a new research report, Florida TaxWatch warns that spending the entire surplus will create a deficit in the near future.

This week, President Obama announced the commutation of 46 nonviolent federal offenders, offering them a second chance. Eleven of these offenders who will be released early from their prison sentences are Floridians who have a unique opportunity to re-assimilate into their communities and become productive taxpaying citizens in the Sunshine State.