Florida wants more international tourists

Florida is promoting new travel deals to bring in more Canadian tourists. The travel deals come as the number of tourists from Canada — Florida’s top international market — has declined in recent years. Canadians account for 23 percent of Florida’s international visitors and spent $3.6 billion in the state last year. More from the Orlando Sentinel and Florida Politics.

Florida workers' comp rate cut to ease businesses' load

State Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier has ordered a 9.8 percent decrease in the premiums businesses pay for workers' compensation insurance beginning next year. Florida businesses paid nearly $3.8 billion in workers' compensation premiums in 2016, up from about $2.8 billion in 2012. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]

At least 82,000 guns stolen since 2007 are still missing in Florida

The Tampa Bay Times and Reveal from The Center for Investigating Reporting spent 10 months examining thousands of law enforcement records to chronicle the extent of the stolen gun problem in the state. Those guns turn up in the hands of drug dealers and felons. Some wind up killing people. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

Who gets to appoint 3 new Florida justices, Rick Scott or the next governor?

The traditionally staid justices in black robes on Florida’s Supreme Court got emotional and animated Wednesday as lawyers asked them to weigh in on something more intimate than what usually comes before them: their jobs. [Source: Miami Herald]

Florida looks at fuel reserves for future storms

Florida could be moving closer to stockpiling fuel for future hurricanes or other disasters. Sen. Gary Farmer, D-Fort Lauderdale, filed a proposal (SB 700) Tuesday that would establish a task force within the state Division of Emergency Management to come up with recommendations for a strategic fuel reserve. [Source: FOX13]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Sarasota nonprofit aims to raise $1 million for Puerto Rican farmers [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
Elizabeth Cuevas-Neunder, the leader of a nonprofit group advocating for small businesses in Puerto Rico, is overcoming personal tragedy to help farmers in her native Puerto Rico get back on their feet after Hurricane Maria destroyed their farms.

› Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis will seek four-year term in 2018 [Tampa Bay Times]
Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis confirmed Wednesday what has been expected for a long time: He will seek a full four-year term in 2018.

› Loews Hotels planning ‘largest investment so far in Orlando’ [Orlando Sentinel]
Loews Hotels, the company that runs Universal Orlando’s hotels, is preparing to announce its “largest investment so far in Orlando,” CEO James Tisch said recently. Tisch said the announcement will come in the next few weeks.

› Miami’s TheVentureCity launches $100 million fund for tech startups [Miami Herald]
This summer, when former executives of Facebook, Google, eBay and other hyper-growth companies formed a global “city” based in Miami with everything a tech startup needs to scale internationally, they were missing one key element: the money. But not anymore.

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› Medical marijuana license approved for Miami-Dade nursery [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
After a failed attempt at removing the judge from the case, state health officials have agreed to grant a coveted medical-marijuana license to Keith St. Germain Nursery Farms, a Homestead-based grower.

› Gasparilla Inn No 1 in Florida, says Travel + Leisure [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
For the second year in a row, the 104-year-old Gasparilla Inn & Club has been named the No. 1 Resort in Florida by Travel + Leisure magazine. The resort’s guests have included Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, Thomas Edison and the George H.W. Bush family

› Premature birth rate in Florida remains in C grade range at 10.1 percent [Naples Daily News]
Florida is not making progress to reduce the rate of babies born prematurely, according to a new report from the March of Dimes.

› Strong economic signs fan optimism as 58th Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show opens [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
Fort Lauderdale’s annual marine ‘Super Bowl’ sailed back into town Wednesday and early indicators from exhibitors and organizers point to another stellar run for the five-day extravaganza.