SHARE:
Wednesday's Daily Pulse
What you need to know about Florida today
DeSantis to Florida lawmakers: ‘Stay the course’
With his presidential campaign in the background, Gov. Ron DeSantis used his annual State of the State address Tuesday to tout Florida’s accomplishments — while offering few new details of priorities for the 2024 legislative session. DeSantis’ speech in the state House chamber formally launched the 60-day session and came six days before the crucial Iowa caucuses in the fight for the Republican presidential nomination. More from the News Service of Florida and the Tampa Bay Times.
Florida drivers pay the most in U.S. for car insurance
Floridians are paying an average of $3,941 per year for a full coverage auto insurance policy, the highest average rate in the U.S., according to new data from the Insurance Information Institute. The industry association, which exists to improve public understanding of insurance, states Florida’s average rate is 55% higher than the national average of just more than $2,500 per year. [Source: Gulfshore Business]
Gambling Money Eyed for Environment
Legislative leaders pitched the use of gambling money to help pay for further expansion of a state wildlife corridor and other environmental projects as they kicked off the 2024 legislative session on Tuesday. The proposal (SB 1638), filed by Sen. Travis Hutson, R-St. Augustine, would use an “indeterminate” amount of revenue available from a gambling deal, known as a “compact,” that Gov. Ron DeSantis reached with the Seminole Tribe of Florida in 2021. The money would be used to provide money for land acquisition and management. [Source: News Service of Florida]
Florida ranks among top 10 states for remote workers
In the rapidly evolving landscape of remote work and digital nomadism, Florida stands out as the tenth best US state to be a digital nomad, according to a comprehensive index that considers various factors affecting the lifestyle of those working and traveling on the go. The Digital Nomad Index Score, developed by global accommodation experts at Bluepillow, reveals the top ten optimal destinations for those seeking a balance between work, lifestyle, and opportunity. [Source: Florida Today]
NASA delays both Artemis II and III moon missions
NASA announced it has delayed both the crewed Artemis II mission set to fly around the moon and the Artemis III mission that aims to send the next humans including the first woman back to the lunar surface for the first time since 1972. “We are doing something incredibly different in the process of all this as we remind everybody at every turn, safety is our top priority to give Artemis teams more time to work through the challenges with first-time developments, operations and integration,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “We’re going to give more time on Artemis II and III.” [Source: Orlando Sentinel]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Pop Rock Pickles? Here’s the wild food coming to Tampa’s Florida State Fair
Brace yourself and grab the Alka-Seltzer: The Florida State Fair has rolled out nearly two dozen new food concoctions for the brave souls who crave food on a stick on the midway. And this year has some doozies. The state fair, which runs in Tampa Feb. 8-19, is the first state fair in the country every year, thanks to Florida’s mild winter weather. It is famous, or possibly infamous, for debuting weird food combinations that make headlines around the world.
› Here are the busiest airline routes that disappeared in Orlando
While demand for air travel has roared back after the pandemic, some airline routes at Orlando International Airport have not returned. The busiest route that disappeared from Orlando was a Virgin Atlantic Airways flight to London Gatwick, which scheduled 133 flights in the fourth quarter of 2019 but none in the quarters since then. Interjet had 105 flights to Mexico City originating from Orlando in 2019 but none as of 2023.
› UNF economic survey: Positive signals for 2024
A monthly survey of Jacksonville manufacturers by the University of North Florida’s Local Economic Indicators Project showed stability in the Northeast Florida economy at the end of 2023, with some positive signals for 2024. A purchasing manager’s index derived from UNF’s Jacksonville Economic Monitoring Survey remained at 50 in December for the second straight month. An index above 50 signals expansion and a number below it means contraction.
› When speed cameras come to Miami-Dade schools, county expects tickets to fly
County administrators haven’t released forecasts on how many tickets they expect the cameras to generate now that the devices are legal in Florida. But in a deal that won preliminary approval on Monday, Miami-Dade predicted RedSpeed, a national camera operator out of Chicago, will collect nearly $12 million a year from a roughly $20 payout per ticket once the agreement goes into effect sometime later this year.
Go to page 2 for more stories ...
In case you missed it:
