Florida lawmakers start new ‘journey’ as legislative session gets underway
Legislative leaders opened the 2026 legislative session Tuesday citing a need to make life more affordable for Floridians. But they offered few clues about what will pass in the coming weeks and downplayed divisions between the House and Senate that emerged during the 2025 session. The 2025 session was extended 45 days because of a stalemate over the state budget and tax cuts. Part of the dustup involved House leaders fighting with DeSantis about issues such as property taxes, spending by his agencies and the Hope Florida program. [Source: News Service of Florida]
Florida Trend Exclusive
Tech’s healing touch
In 2023, Moffitt Cancer Center debuted its expanded Innovation and Entrepreneurship Office to help commercialize its research products. Now, it has launched AccelerOnc Studio, the nation’s first venture studio solely dedicated to oncology innovation. The cancer research nonprofit in Tampa has been awarded more than 120 patents over the last five years, says Dr. Kamal Jethwani, who leads AccelerOnc Studio. [Source: Florida Trend]
Florida data centers would be curbed under legislative bill
Data centers that use massive amounts of electricity and water to power artificial intelligence, streaming and other computer usage are the target of a bill in the Florida Legislature that aims to rein in the larger facilities. House Bill 1007, filed by Republican Rep. Philip Wayne Griffitts, would establish a multi-level government approval process that includes local municipalities and a public hearing before large-scale data centers could be built. [Source: The Center Square]
What hemp products has Florida seized from shelves?
Florida has seized more than 1 million packages of hemp products since the summer of 2023 for violating state packaging and production regulations, according to the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Tallahassee, where the agriculture department is headquartered, had far more individual products taken off the shelves than any other city. Still, overall, the hemp regulations are more limited than they could have been. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]
Want to sell your own baked goods? See Florida's cottage food laws
Notice more and more farm stands opening up around your city? Or does your social media algorithm keep showing you users restocking their stands? Maybe you want to start one yourself? Whether you want to sell homemade food on your own property or stop by a nearby stand, you might be wondering how legal it is. Here's what to know about Florida's cottage food laws. [Source: Gainesville Sun]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› TECO rate hike ignored affordability issues, lawyers tell Florida Supreme Court
State utility regulators failed to adequately consider how Tampa Electric’s rate hikes would make it harder for Floridians to afford their bills, new filings before the Florida Supreme Court argue. They were submitted by Public Counsel Walt Trierweiler, the Legislature-appointed advocate for utility customers who has appealed regulators’ decision in the 2024 case to the court. Trierweiler and a separate group of attorneys representing two consumer groups are asking justices to overturn aspects of the rate hike, which took effect last year.
› NASA's Jared Isaacman tours KSC, wants to start 'new era on the moon'
As NASA teams prepare to roll out the hulking 322-foot Artemis II Space Launch System rocket ahead of launch, Administrator Jared Isaacman said the upcoming 10-day crewed mission is "going to tee up a series of grand Artemis missions" to the moon's rugged surface. "I hope there’s 50 more Artemis missions to follow. And we could be leveraging our vehicle designs and SpaceX’s and Blue Origin’s. And we’ve got other players like Stoke and Rocket Lab that are building reusable vehicles," Isaacman said.
› Largo tops national ranking for cities with most manufactured homes
One in four residences in Largo are manufactured homes, a recent study found — the highest percentage of any community in the nation and a harbinger of housing trends in communities across the state. The findings, which use U.S. Census data, show that Florida tops the nation in the number of manufactured homes with more than 824,000 — driven by high demand in growth corridors like Largo and Jacksonville and a favorable climate for alternative, affordable housing.
› ‘Era-defining moment’: West Palm mayor on why Vanderbilt campus matters
With the announcement that Vanderbilt University has raised the money to move forward with a West Palm Beach campus, the vaunted school ushered in what the city’s mayor called “an era-defining moment for our city.” Mayor Keith James said Vanderbilt’s planned graduate school campus in the downtown area will be a key catalyst in transforming the city center into a hub for financial and technology companies. That won’t just mean an economic boost for the region, he said.
More stories ...
› Alabama firm acquires Tampa tech company
A Tampa-based software company founded by three USF graduates has been acquired by Thompson Holdings Inc., an employee-owned parent company for a family of firms in engineering, architecture, infrastructure and disaster response. Sourcetoad began operating as the third independently run subsidiary of Mobile, Alabama-based Thompson Holdings Inc. on Jan. 1, according to a release. The company’s other subsidiaries include Thompson Engineering, Watermark Design Group and Thompson Consulting Services.
› Kaseya cuts 250 jobs in another layoff round
Miami-based tech company Kaseya cut 250 jobs in another layoff round that represented 5% of its global workforce. Chief Communications Officer Xavier Gonzalez told the Business Journal the layoffs were part of a go-to-market realignment that began on Jan. 5 following what he described as a "very strong end to 2025." He said most affected employees were based in Miami, with additional cuts across North America, Europe and Australia.
› 'Rednecks' and a billionaire. Inside a battle over a Florida dirt road
The battle between a billionaire housing developer and a few self-identified “rednecks” in Englewood broke into the public view on a particularly hot August afternoon in 2025 at the chambers of the Sarasota County Commission. In a time where the average political partisan could probably tell you more about Gavin Newsome’s California than their own local government, much of what happens at the county commission is the business of major developers, their assisting engineering firms and attorneys, county staffers, a few of the local non-profit groups, and a handful of hyper-plugged in local activists.
› Developers pitch 23-story riverfront tower in Fort Myers
A development group is proposing a 23-story luxury hotel and residential tower with as many as 600 units, along with restaurants, retail space and a public-access marina, at the western edge of downtown Fort Myers near the Edison & Ford Winter Estates. St. Louis-based KLM Development is serving as the project’s lead developer.