Is Florida losing its headquarters mojo?

The state’s multiple bids to land the ballyhooed Amazon HQ2 project fizzled. Only Miami made the final 20. Florida took a less publicized hit in early December, when the PGA of America announced plans to jettison its headquarters for the past 50 years, Palm Beach Gardens, for a new home in Frisco, Texas. [Source: Business Observer]

Florida has a reputation as a senior haven. But is it?

Florida's reputation as the ideal retirement state may not be all it's cracked up to be. An analysis by the Senior List released this week ranked Florida dead last in a lineup of states that are considered the "safest" for seniors. Florida ranked No. 50 for fraud, No. 43 for those living in poverty, No. 39 for violent injury death rate, No. 39 for housing costs and No. 42 for those living alone. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

It is time to make Florida a technological leader

It is time for our state government to recognize and acknowledge the tremendous amount of talent and technology investment that is currently driving every industry in Florida. It is time for our state government to do the same and to become a national innovation leader among all states. [Source: Florida TaxWatch]

Federal shutdown rocks the boat for maritime industry

With Jacksonville being a big port city that does a lot of business at sea, there are concerns that mariners cannot get the government certifications required to work about commercial vessels during the federal shutdown, which has also affected those trying to start their careers on the water. [Source: WJXT]

Representatives push to make Florida's offshore drilling ban permanent

A bipartisan group of Florida representatives is pushing to end offshore oil drilling in Florida for good. New legislation would permanently extend a federal moratorium that is set to expire in 2022. Listen Listening... In November, Florida voters banned offshore drilling with the passage of Amendment 9. [Source: WLRN]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Florida plummets in national ranking of helping people with intellectual disabilities, report says [Orlando Sentinel]
Florida has plunged in a national ranking of states’ progress toward helping people with intellectual and developmental disabilities lead more independent and productive lives, according to a report released this week that blamed “declining state investments.”

› Florida blueberry growers urged to mind gall midge threat [Growing Produce]
The Florida Blueberry Growers Association (FBGA) has sent an important message to its members reminding them it’s time to keep an eye peeled for a mighty pest – the gall midge. According to the memo, UF/IFAS researchers have been conducting a limited amount of monitoring for adult gall midge on several farms throughout the state and have made positive identifications.

› Oasis of the Seas returning to Port Canaveral after norovirus outbreak [AP]
Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas is returning to a Florida port a day early and giving passengers full refunds of their fare after 277 guests and crew members were hit with an outbreak of Norovirus as it sailed to Jamaica.

› A $3 billion problem: Miami-Dade’s septic tanks are already failing due to sea rise [Miami Herald]
Miami-Dade has tens of thousands of septic tanks, and a new report reveals most are already malfunctioning — the smelly and unhealthy evidence of which often ends up in people’s yards and homes. It’s a billion-dollar problem that climate change is making worse.

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› Sarasota-area nonprofits won’t get $190,000 because of mistake [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
Ed DeMarco says he was sick to his stomach and is still upset. He was the person who applied for federal grant money to help local charitable organizations, only to see the funding negated because of a missed deadline. DeMarco is the CEO of the Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness and because of an error he takes responsibility for, five organizations must operate without roughly $190,000 they were expecting.

› Florida beaches earn "D" grade in annual report card [WFTS]
The Suncoast Surfriders Foundation puts out an annual report card for the nation's beaches. This year, Florida beaches received a "D" grade. Among the problems: Florida leaders allowing too much development near beaches, not planning for rising sea levels and relying too much on dumping more sand onto eroding beaches rather than finding long term solutions.

› South Florida Museum wing goes from ‘dirtpile to dream’ [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
An expansion at the South Florida Museum — one that’s gone from “dirtpile to dream” and is expected to open around June — will be an educational transformer. “You have the universe, the earth, Florida, life and people,” said provost and chief operating officer Jeff Rodgers of the new wing, which was devised in 2011.

› Florida has highest density of lightning strikes in 2018 [WCTV]
Data presented at the American Meteorological Society annual conference is shining a light on how often lightning strikes the Sunshine State. According to data from Vaisala and the National Lightning Detection Network, Florida is the state with the second-most cloud-to-ground lightning strikes in the country during 2018.