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Monday's Daily Pulse
What you need to know about Florida today
Multiple Florida areas vulnerable to cybersecurity threat
Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa-St. Petersburg, West Palm Beach and other areas in Florida rank among the nation's metro regions most vulnerable to cybersecurity threats. Using six months of data gathered within 55 media markets, Coronet said nearly 37,000 devices in the Tampa Bay area are using a non-original operating system. That’s 5 percent of the total, or 5,000 percent more than the national average. More from WTSP, the Orlando Sentinel, and the AP.
Florida businesses should plan for an active hurricane season
To kick off what is expected to be an active hurricane season, Attorney General Pam Bondi created a 2018 Hurricane Preparedness Guide. The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity also provided their own tips for businesses to safe-guard inventory and protect themselves during a natural disaster. [Source: Tampa Bay Business Journal]
As marijuana dispensaries open their doors, Florida registers 5,400 new users per week
Call it the New Marijuana Math: 91,000 Floridians are buying 56 pounds of pot a week under the orders of 1,400 doctors. A year and a half after an amendment to the state constitution legalized medical marijuana, the fledgling industry is finally starting to show some muscle. [Source: Miami Herald]
Florida nabs money managers as property tax cap boosts its pitch
Florida’s long-running effort to lure Wall Street hotshots is gaining traction thanks to a provision in the federal tax law that hits residents of high-tax states. The Sunshine State’s most recent conquests are two of the founders of I Squared Capital, Sadek Wahba and Adil Rahmathulla, who are among executives relocating to Miami from New York. [Source: Bloomberg]
Grim upside for the Keys this hurricane season — thanks to Irma, there's less to lose
The Keys economy has taken plenty of hits since the storm. Tourism is down, destroyed homes mean less property tax income and only $600,000 in FEMA cash has been deposited so far in county coffers. Despite that, Roman Gastesi, the county administrator, feels confident that Monroe has enough money to handle the next hurricane. [Source: Miami Herald]
See also:
» As 2018 hurricane season starts, Florida, Texas await 2017 aid
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
Florida Trend Exclusive
› UF Cybersecurity Institute is Thwarting Ransomware
While spam emails annoy computer users, ransomware is a bigger potential risk, says Patrick Traynor, co-director of the Florida Institute for Cybersecurity Research at the University of Florida.
› Florida nuisance bear deaths decline as ‘bear-wise’ areas rise
Florida wildlife officials are on pace this year to put down fewer than 20 black bears that pose a risk to public safety — the smallest number in five years — a sign that bear-resistant garbage cans and “bear-wise” rules may be reducing conflicts between people and the state’s largest native land mammal.
› Alachua County Economic Indicators Report released for April 2018
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity have recently released employment and unemployment estimates as well as revised historical data. As highlight of the report, the Gainesville Metropolitan Statistical Area is showing economic growth overall, losing pace with the state of Florida in specific indicators.
› FPL wants to keep old reactors running. New sea-rise studies could stand in the way
This spring when Florida Power & Light asked nuclear regulators to keep its aging reactors along the shore of Biscayne Bay running another 20 years, the utility used its own dated estimates on sea rise rather than the most recent, and far higher, projections by government agencies.
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