Florida Trend | Florida's Business Authority

Friday's Daily Pulse

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Posted 10/10/2014

Updated 10 yearss ago

Florida unemployment benefits still lag nation

Despite promises from Gov. Rick Scott's administration that the state's new online unemployment system is fixed, unpaid claims keep mounting and Florida now ranks last in the nation at providing timely relief for jobless workers. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

Florida's current, past governors helped Embraer move

At groundbreaking ceremonies six years apart, Florida's current and past governors touted their administration's role in Embraer's move and expansion here. But will Gov. Rick Scott and former governor Charlie Crist share credit for bringing the aviation bigshot to Melbourne? [Source: Florida Today]

See also:
» Embraer starts construction on new Florida assembly plant

How the Weather Channel found success by not talking about weather

The writers and editors at the Weather Channel’s weather.com don’t often talk about the weather. When they wheel their desk chairs together in the open-office newsroom for their morning editorial meeting, many of their ideas have nothing to do with storms or sunshine at all. [Source: Businessweek]

New citrus trees resist greening

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has released five new citrus varieties that appear to tolerate the fatal bacterial disease citrus greening better than existing varieties. [Source: Lakeland Ledger]

Federal rules take a bite out of school lunch sales

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which runs the national school lunch and breakfast programs, has been ratcheting up the amount of fruits, vegetables and whole grains cafeterias must serve to students. School cafeterias are struggling to serve meals that will appeal to students while still meeting federal health requirements. [Source: Daytona Beach News Journal]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Entrepreneurs vie for cowboy hat, glory at business pitch competition [Gainesville Business Report]
Dozens of entrepreneurs gathered this week to wrangle for the ultimate prize: a black Stetson cowboy hat. The Fourth Annual GAIN Investor Pitch ShootOut, a Wild West-themed business pitch competition returned to Gainesville

› Sawgrass Mills job fair attracts younger job seekers [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
Several hundred job seekers — most of them young people — swarmed Sawgrass Mills on Thursday for the mall's seasonal job fair. Many had just graduated from high school and were looking for their first jobs.

› Simulation firm ECS to add jobs with new $29M contract [Orlando Sentinel]
Orlando-based Engineering & Computer Simulations (ECS) has won a new five-year $29 million contract with the U.S. military.

› And the greenest school in Florida is… [Palm Beach Post]
Eagles Landing Middle School in Boca Raton was named the winner of the Green School Award. The statewide competition sponsored annually by the Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection recognizes students, teachers, classes, schools and school districts for their environmental achievements.


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› SunTrust Banks CEO says, 'We're in full invest mode in Tampa' [Tampa Bay Business Journal]
An improving region economy and a focus on revenue growth are key issues for Bill Rogers, the president and CEO of SunTrust Banks Inc.

› Adrian Wyllie files suit to join statewide Florida governor’s race debate [Miami Herald]
Shut out of televised debates, Libertarian candidate for governor Adrian Wyllie on Thursday filed a federal lawsuit that seeks to force the Florida Press Association to allow him onstage with Gov. Rick Scott and Democrat Charlie Crist.

› Florida fern may be listed as endangered species [AP]
Federal wildlife officials have proposed listing a small fern found only in two Florida counties as an endangered species.

› Cade Museum announces grant matching for building fund [Gainesville Business Report]
The Cade Museum for Creativity + Innovation is moving forward with plans to build public exhibit space, and the project just got a huge boost.