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Friday's Afternoon Update
What you need to know about Florida today
Record tourism numbers for the Sunshine State
Gov. Rick Scott announced this morning that Florida set another record in tourism numbers by welcoming the highest amount of visitors of any quarter in the state’s history. In the first quarter of this year (January-March), 28.4 million visitors came to the state, an increase of 6.2 percent over the same period in 2014. More at Florida Today.
Whole Foods suffers as mainstream grocers like Publix go upscale
Some aspects of Publix Super Markets Inc.'s newer stores — big wedges of specialty cheeses, a rainbow of organic produce — have an upscale, undeniably Whole Foods-like feel to them. That's no accident, and it appears to be working in Publix's favor. More at the Tampa Bay Business Journal.
Scott, 'with some hesitation,' signs online voter registration bill
Florida Dining
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Gov. Rick Scott, citing "some hesitation," signed legislation Friday requiring Florida to create an online voter registration system by 2017. In a signing letter, Scott expressed concern about "the timing of required deliverables" that coincide with ongoing efforts to modernize the statewide voter database. More at the Times/Herald and the Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Growlers make the cut
Gov. Scott signed what has become known as the beer “growler” bill (SB 186), which will allow half-gallon containers to be filled at breweries, as can be done with other sized bottles. More at Pensacola Today and the Tallahassee Democrat.
Small business classes & workshops offered through May 22
The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering these classes and webinars to Florida businesses. Most webinars are scheduled for one hour. Participants can ask questions about the information. More at Florida Trend.
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