Business Champs

A freshman legislator might seem like an unlikely if not foolish choice to be handed a top-priority bill and a centerpiece of both the governor's and the business community's legislative agendas.

But Florida House leaders trusted first-year Representative Dana Young, R-Tampa to sponsor a bill intended to make the state's ports more competitive and help lead the state's economic recovery.

Young, 46, took home a “Champions for Business” award from Associated Industries of Florida this month, one of 18 winners of the lobbying group's prestigious award, and the only freshman selected. She is also one of 33 House members who voted in favor of AIF positions 100% of the time, the most ever.