Study: 20 percent of major companies in Florida have women on their boards

Florida's major public and private companies added three women to their boards this year, for a total of 53 women board members compared with 50 a year ago, according to a report by 2020 Women on Boards. That's 20 percent of companies in the state with women on their boards. Read the full study here. Also see more at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Another hurricane? It's possible, but unlikely to threaten Florida

Just when we thought hurricane season was pretty much over, a reminder that it isn't. A smattering of clouds and showers in the southwestern Caribbean Sea is likely to become a tropical depression by the end of the weekend, and possibly a tropical storm or hurricane, forecasters say. More from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and AOL News.

Florida agency approves 'critical wildlife areas' around the state

State wildlife commissioners on Wednesday approved creating new "critical wildlife areas" off-limits to humans or expanding existing ones in 13 areas. These designated areas protect places where wildlife congregates to breed, nest, roost and feed. Read the announcement from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, here. Also see more at the : Tampa Bay Times.

Small Business Administration OKs more than $24 million in Florida disaster loans

The U.S. Small Business Administration funnelled more than $24 million in low-interest disaster loans into Florida during October to help with Hurricane Matthew recovery — but the deadline to take advantage of this resource is quickly approaching. [Source: Florida Times-Union]

Making “cents” of community banking in Florida

The interaction between the small business owner and the local, community bank has been one keenly interlaced with each other’s mutual success. Amidst the turmoil of the past several years, it has been the smaller community banks that have maintained their roots in relationship-banking, particularly in support of small business. [Source: Gainesville Business Report]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Medical marijuana looks like cash crop to Miami’s entrepreneurs [Miami Herald]
Real estate speculators stake out territories for what’s to come, infrastructure builders and lawyers queue up for business, investors jostle to get in on the ground floor. This could be any nascent industry, but in this case it’s marijuana.

› St. Petersburg College ranked among top 10 online vocational trade schools [Florida Business Daily]
The Community for Accredited Online Schools (AccreditedSchoolsOnline.org) recently recognized St. Petersburg College (SPC) as one of the nation’s top 10 online vocational trade schools for the 2016-2017 school year in its annual rankings.

› Orlando's Solodev gets early boost from new Amazon service [Orlando Sentinel]
An Orlando tech company is among the first 21 pushed by Amazon Web Services in a new offering that helps connect consumers with so-called “software as a service” businesses.

› USF innovation push brings huge rewards for the Tampa Bay region and Florida [PDF News Release]
The University of South Florida system's efforts to commercialize research discoveries and newly patented technologies is having a pretty significant impact on the state — to the tune of more than $400 million, according to an economic consultant's report. [Also read more on this topic at the Tampa Bay Times.]

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› Bradenton moves closer to medical marijuana moratorium [Bradenton Herald]
The city’s move toward a moratorium comes after Florida voters Nov. 8 approved the expanded use of medical marijuana, with 71 percent of the vote. However, City Attorney Bill Lisch said the Florida Legislature isn’t likely to have rules and regulations in place until July.

› Lake Mary-based Six Flags contractor unveils new wrist band [Orlando Sentinel]
Accesso, a technology company with North American headquarters in Lake Mary, this week unveiled a new electronic wrist band that will be used at Six Flags and other parks it works with.

› Boat show cruises into Fort Myers this weekend [Fort Myers News-Press]
The Fort Myers Boat Show offers a unique combination of indoor, outdoor and in-water display areas. More than 500 boats, 160 accessory booths, 130 different boat lines and a variety of how-to and boating information displays will be present at this year’s show.

› AT&T expands high-speed fiber-optic gigabit internet service beyond Jacksonville [Florida Times-Union]
The telecommunications giant already has about 75,000 home and business customers in Jacksonville but is now extending the offer to hook into a 1 gigabit connection in areas as far away as St. Augustine.