Fed signals interest rate hike firmly on the table for June

Federal Reserve officials felt the U.S. economy could be ready for another interest rate increase in June, according to the minutes from the central bank's April policy meeting released on Wednesday. More from Reuters, the AP, and Bloomberg.

See also:
» U.S. Federal Reserve Meeting Minutes for April 27
» To Keep Sanity, The Federal Reserve Must Act Insane

Can a tiny wasp save the citrus industry?

Researchers in Arizona are fighting fire with fire – they're collecting new data on a wasp that may help slow the spread of citrus greening, a plant disease that has devastated millions of acres of citrus crops, particularly in Florida. [Source: NPR]

See also:
» Citrus department facing smaller budget

U.S. research groups going to war again over small business funding

Advocates for small businesses and the U.S. research community are once again at loggerheads over pending legislation to expand a multibillion-dollar federal program that promotes commercialization of academic research. [Source: Science]

The top 10 hottest jobs in today's economy

What are the best jobs for Americans in this economy? The answers are as varied as the millions of individuals that make up the national workforce. [Source: CNBC]

Celeste Philip named Florida surgeon general

Dr. Celeste Philip, who has been acting surgeon general since March, was on Wednesday appointed to the permanent job running the Florida Department of Health. Gov. Rick Scott first named Philip as the temporary replacement for Dr. John Armstrong, who the Senate refused to confirm for the job. More from the Tampa Bay Times and Florida Politics.

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Bright House now part of Charter Communications [Orlando Sentinel]
Charter Communications completed its purchase of Time Warner and Bright House cable companies Wednesday, creating the second-largest provider in the U.S., behind only Comcast.

› New private flood insurance product offered in Florida [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
Assurant Inc. announced a new primary flood insurance product for customers with properties in flood zones "A" and "V." Those are the zones considered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency as most vulnerable to flooding.

› South Florida company acquires aerospace firm for $210 million [St. Louis Business Journal]
Wellington-based KLX Inc. has acquired Missouri supply chain management and hardware distributor Herndon Aerospace & Defense LLC for about $210 million in cash.

› You can can use your chip credit card Walmart and Target, but why not Publix? [Tampa Bay Times]
Last year credit card companies began installing chip technology that was expected to dramatically reduce the likelihood that a thief or hacker could steal from customers' accounts. But not all stores are yet on board.

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› University of Florida In Talks About Major Research Role at Sanford Burnham [WUFT]
A research organization that has been key to the growth of a thriving medical community in Orlando is in talks with the University of Florida about giving the school a major role at the organization’s campus.

› State to appeal court ruling allowing State Farm to keep policy tallies private [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
Florida's new insurance commissioner has decided to appeal a circuit court ruling allowing State Farm Insurance Co. to opt out of submitting policy-count totals to a publicly available database.

› Rate of Floridians without health coverage reaches new low [South Florida Business Journal]
The uninsured rate in Florida reached a low of 12.1 percent in 2015, according to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services’ latest survey on health insurance.

› Lionfish Day sees more than 14,000 pulled from Florida waters [Palm Beach Post]
More than 14,000 lionfish were removed statewide last weekend as part of the string of awareness festivals hosted by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.