Another $2.3 million in election security grants issued to 55 Florida counties

State and local officials have little choice but to assume the Russians are coming before the 2020 elections to probe and “phish” as they did in 2016, when according to federal officials they gained still-undefined access to two Florida counties’ elections systems. And with at least three Florida cities’ computer systems targeted in recent “ransomware” attacks, forcing two to pay a combined $1.1 million in Bitcoin blackmail to retrieve encrypted data, cyber-security is a foremost concern. See the annoucement here and read more from KPVI, Florida Politics, and WWSB.

Florida Trend Exclusive
Florida tax laws and intellectual property

Why does Florida still allow companies to set up subsidaries to collect royalties from themselves? Last year, for instance, a subsidiary of Whole Foods Markets sued the Florida Department of Revenue, seeking a refund of $1.4 million worth of corporate income taxes it paid to the state between 2011 and 2014. More from Florida Trend.

Florida ranked in top 10 states to start businesses

WalletHub compared the 50 states across 26 key indicators of startup success to determine the most fertile grounds for startup and small business hopefuls. The Sunshine State landed at No. 6 overall on the list, earning high scores for it’s business environment. While Florida did have some of the least-accessible financing across the country, the state ranked third for average growth in number of small businesses, and fifth in the category of startups per capita. See the results from WalletHub and read more from WFLA.

All businesses in building where Plantation explosion occurred expected to be demolished

All businesses that rent a space in the building where an explosion occurred over the weekend in Plantation are expected to be demolished because the building is structurally unsound, Plantation Fire Department Deputy Chief Joel Gordon said. About 11 or 12 businesses at the Market on University shopping center will be affected. More from WPLG.

Companies that promote composting pick up where Florida governments leave off

The Dunedin company BioBag says it’s the largest producer of compostable bags in America, but not many of its customers are in Florida. In the south, throwing food and waste in the landfill is cheap because space is abundant, said Jennifer Pope, vice president of marketing at BioBag. “I don’t think there's a lot of initiative to grow into this recycling organics,” she said. “Which is a sad story.” More from the Tampa Bay Times.