Who should control Florida’s electric vehicle charging stations?

Under Florida law, the third-party sale of electricity to a retail customer is not permitted but, in 2012, the Legislature created an exemption for electric vehicle charging. Since then, the state’s investor-owned electric utility industry has been the primary investor in the emerging market. Should gas stations and others have more of a chance to compete with Florida’s utilities?  [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

First class flights and pricey snacks: How Space Florida spent your tax dollars

Would you buy cookies that cost $64 a dozen? What about bagels for $58 a dozen? Coffee for $96 a gallon? Hate to break it to you, but you already did. Those are all prices Space Florida paid with your tax dollars. You also paid for their executives to fly internationally in first and business class, even though state law requires they use the most “economical” means of travel. [Source: WTSP]

House offers tax ‘holidays,' no gas tax break

A House panel Thursday will take up a package that would provide a wide range of tax breaks but does not include Gov. Ron DeSantis’ big-ticket proposal to suspend the state’s gasoline tax for five months. The House Ways & Means Committee will consider a bill (PCB WMC 22-01) that includes 14-day sales tax “holidays” in May on gear for the hurricane season and in late July on back-to-school items such as clothes, school supplies and personal computers. [Source: News Service of Florida]

Publix drops mask requirement for most vaccinated employees

Publix is adding some breathing room to its mask requirement for employees. Fully vaccinated staffers of the Lakeland-based grocery store chain can decide not to wear a mask “as a result of the decrease in COVID-19 cases and wide availability of the vaccine,” Publix’s website states. The policy started Monday unless a worker’s responsibilities or a government requires a mask. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]

Voting advocates won’t oppose Florida’s state legislative redistricting maps

After years of litigation and bitter opposition from the Republican-led Legislature, the coalition of voter advocacy groups that brought the state its redistricting standards have called a truce. FairDistricts Now, and its consortium of voting advocates, will not oppose the House and Senate redistricting maps that were passed by the Florida Legislature two weeks ago, setting the stage for the plans to serve as the political boundaries for the 120-member House and 40-member Senate for the next decade. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Florida tax watchdog calls for breaching controversial Rodman Dam [Orlando Sentinel]
A Florida tax watchdog called Tuesday for busting the Rodman Dam to restore the Ocklawaha River, bolstering the push to remove the aging and controversial structure as beneficial to the economy, wildlife and water resources. “Florida TaxWatch recommends the legislature appropriate funding,” the nonpartisan, nonprofit group said in its analysis of the dam’s condition, environmental effects and ecotourism. “To do otherwise would be a dam shame.”

› Jacksonville's International Auto Show expands to 4 days, starts Thursday [Florida Times-Union]
Jacksonville's International Auto Show returns to its usual February time slot on Thursday at the Prime Osborn Convention Center. After last year's somewhat smaller, delayed event due to COVID-19, 2022's show adds a fourth day and new attractions along with a OneBlood and food bank drive. Last year's show had to be moved from February to May due to the pandemic's effect, ending up being one of the few automotive events anywhere last spring, said Lowell Briggs, marketing director for Paragon Expo, which hosts the show.

› Port Canaveral officials take new CDC program to task as cruise travel warning level reduced [Orlando Sentinel]
Some members of the Port Canaveral board of commissioners joined Port CEO John Murray questioning the logic behind the new voluntary cruise safety program from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, especially one day after the CDC lowered its risk level for cruise travelers. On Tuesday, the CDC guidance for cruise travel was reduced from a level 4 health notice to level 3, which suggests travelers just be up to date with their COVID-19 vaccines ahead of cruising.

› Downtown Miami’s 32 office buildings 24% vacant [Miami Today]
Downtown Miami is not experiencing office space reduction but growth, as a variety of buyers and renters are coming to the area from all parts of the globe, despite some negative net absorption in the market at the end of 2021. Downtown Miami has an office inventory 32 buildings, encompassing 6,813,620 total square feet and a total vacancy rate of 24.4%.

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› Judge to consider lawsuit over Piney Point wastewater discharge in Manatee County [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
After the state scrambled last spring to prevent a potential catastrophe at a former phosphate-plant site, a federal judge will hear arguments Tuesday about whether he should toss out a lawsuit filed by environmental groups alleging “malfeasance” in the handling of hazardous waste. U.S. District Judge William Jung will hold a hearing in Tampa on motions by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Gov. Ron DeSantis and other defendants to dismiss the lawsuit centered on the Piney Point site in Manatee County.

› FTC claims South Florida company violated Do Not Call list to peddle ‘bogus’ auto warranties [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
How many times have you received a phone call from someone at “Dealer Services” seeking to sell you an extended warranty for your vehicle? You might not receive them anymore, if the Federal Trade Commission gets its way. The FTC is suing a Fort Lauderdale company it claims “bilked” customers out of more than $6 million over four years by making illegal sales calls to sell auto warranties that did not cover what its sales representatives claimed.

› Elected Miami-Dade sheriff could move HQ out of Miami [Miami Today]
In a move linked to a new county sheriff’s post, a bid to expand the area of Miami-Dade’s county seat beyond the City of Miami is headed to the county commission after the Chairman’s Council of Policy adopted it 7-1 last week. The resolution by Joe A. Martinez would allow the sheriff, tax collector, property appraiser, supervisor of elections, and clerk of court to move their offices to other locations.

› Midtown Tampa’s new True Food Kitchen marks a homecoming for CEO [Tampa Bay Times]
Christine Barone’s parents often clip and send her local news stories about the new True Food Kitchen at Midtown Tampa, the $500 million mixed-use development just off Interstate 275 and N Dale Mabry Highway. “Every single update on Midtown,” she said. She’s happy to get them, because she’s also excited for the new restaurant, a health-focused fast-casual chain founded by wellness guru Andrew Weil and backed by Oprah Winfrey.