Proposed property tax cuts rely on a population boom that has slowed dramatically
From 2020 to 2024, Florida’s population grew by 8.5%, from 21.6 million to 23.4 million. This is nothing new: The state’s warm weather, amenities that include world-class golf courses and beaches, and lack of income tax have long attracted newcomers, so Florida often leads the U.S. in population growth. But recent data suggests that population growth may be slowing. More from The Conversation.
Florida regulators cast doubt on Duke Energy’s data center plan
As Florida wrestles with how it will handle data centers and the added costs they can bleed down to residents, utility regulators took up a case Tuesday that will test the state’s resolve for how strictly it wants to regulate the warehouses. The Florida Public Service Commission’s hearing focused on a Duke Energy plan for how it intends to handle data centers and the huge demand for electricity they bring to the grid. More from the Tampa Bay Times.
Breakthrough Miami gets $2 million gift from Kenneth Griffin
With a $2 million donation from business executive Kenneth C. Griffin, Breakthrough Miami is set to expand its Students-Teaching-Students leadership model. The support will better position Breakthrough Miami to create more opportunities for high school and college students to serve in apprenticeships as volunteer teachers, teaching assistants, and teaching fellows. More from Refresh Miami.
Waymo to begin fully autonomous driving in Tampa
Waymo is taking the next step in bringing self-driving vehicles to Tampa. After eight months of testing its Jaguar I-PACE fleet on local neighborhoods, streets and highways with human safety drivers behind the wheel, the company will begin fully autonomous testing. The move is part of a broader expansion that also includes San Diego, Las Vegas and Denver. More from the Tampa Bay Business Journal and CNBC.
Orange County’s tourist-tax record stretches to 14 months
As Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings prepares to reconvene a task force this month to recommend how to spend future tourist-tax revenues, collections in May shattered another record, according to figures released Tuesday by the comptroller’s office. The haul of $32.7 million — $2.8 million better than May 2025 — is the 14th straight, monthly record collection but the last before the mayor’s TDT panel starts weighing spending priorities and applications for uncommitted tax revenues. More from the Orlando Sentinel.
Development Trends
This company raises Tampa Bay homes. Is it a solution to our warming world?
Jeff Trosclair hopped into his truck, coffee in hand, and placed his phone on the dashboard, anticipating the inevitable call from a crew member or customer. He wore a crisp polo with his company’s logo, JAS Builders — one of a handful of companies in Tampa Bay specializing in hoisting homes into the air. Business is booming. After 2024’s hurricanes, residents searched for a way to stay dry but remain steps from the water. One of those ways: Go up.
» More from the Tampa Bay Times.
Nature & Environment
New Florida python hot spot has wildlife officials worried
On the marsh-fringed Gulf Coast where a trio of unhurried rivers slug into Charlotte Harbor, a semi-aquatic invader has settled in, taking advantage of Florida’s natural and man hewn waterways. An established population of Burmese pythons has been identified in Charlotte County, a modest but emerging scourge that the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has targeted for enhanced elimination efforts.
» Read more from Florida Today and the Palm Beach Post.