Florida tourism climbs during first quarter

First-quarter tourism into Florida was up 6.7 percent from a year ago, with overseas visitors still under pre-COVID-19 figures, according to a release from the governor’s office Friday. Florida’s tourism agency Visit Florida estimated a record 37.9 million travelers into the state during the first quarter of 2023, up from a prior single-quarter high of 35.528 million in the first three months of 2022. [Source: WUSF]

After Hurricane Irma ravaged parts of Florida, victims are still waiting for the state’s help

HUD has given Florida $615 million since 2018 to repair and rebuild properties for under and uninsured Irma victims. Now, five years later, hundreds are still waiting on help from the Rebuild Florida program. The Department of Economic Opportunity administers the Rebuild Florida program. DEO confirms it has spent $311 million and has returned more than 3,000 people to their homes so far. [Source: WFTS]

Why property insurance could keep rising in Florida

Insurance companies buy their own insurance — reinsurance — to spread out risk and cover claims. Experts are expecting the price of it in Florida to jump 40 - 50% — or even 70%. Inflation, fraud, litigation, and Hurricane Ian — "the second costliest insured loss ever on record globally" according to a report by the American Property Casualty Insurance Association — all contributed to reinsurers backing away. [Source: Axios]

How will Florida’s new immigration law impact law enforcement?

Tampa Bay police departments said they are not currently conducting traffic stops to check driver’s licenses despite Florida’s new immigration law, which will not recognize documents issued by other states to those without legal status. But Nanci Palacios, a Dover advocate, advised immigrants not to risk driving without a license and to be accompanied by someone with proper documentation. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

Daylight saving time: Sunshine Protection Act reintroduced. Still fall back in Florida? Yes, for now

Just over a week before daylight saving time started for 2023, the Sunshine Protection Act − bills to permanently adopt daylight saving time − were reintroduced. That was two months ago. How are they doing? Well, in November 2023, we'll still have to change our wall clocks by one hour and "fall back." So if you're not a fan of daylight saving time, the good news is you have six months to air out your grievances. [Source: Gainesville Sun]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Does downtown Tampa work at the office or go hybrid? Survey has answers [Tampa Bay Times]
What do downtowns look like in a post-pandemic shutdown world? A recent survey of workers and residents in downtown Tampa offers this glimpse. Very few employees — only 8% — reported that they worked fully from home in 2022, a notable drop from the 28% who said they worked totally from home in 2020. But plenty of workers — 43% — have been embracing the hybrid model of working both at home and in the office, up from 34% in 2020.

› Three Florida Keys water main pipes burst in a week. The state is now investigating [Miami Herald]
The state’s main environmental enforcement agency this month informed the Florida Keys’ water utility that it’s under investigation for failing to maintain aging underground pipes, according to a letter obtained by the Miami Herald. The deteriorating state of the pipes resulted in three breaks in one week in March, disrupting traffic and temporarily cutting off water to the island chain, where residents, businesses and tourists continue to be asked to conserve usage.

› Orlando among nation’s fastest growing metro areas in 2022 [Orlando Sentinel]
The flight from urban areas that took place during the first year of the pandemic either reversed or slowed in its second year, as last year metropolitan areas in Texas and Florida boomed and declines in New York and Los Angeles were halved, according to new estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. During the first full year of the pandemic in 2021, more than half of the 20 largest U.S. metro areas lost residents, and all U.S. metro areas grew by just 0.1%, as fear of the virus sent residents fleeing the most densely-populated urban areas and the popularity of remote work allowed people to live far from their workplaces.

› Pinellas should give Dalí $34 million for expansion, tourism panel says [Tampa Bay Times]
Pinellas County should give the Dalí Museum $34 million it is seeking, its tourism board said this week, which would cover about half the cost of a planned expansion. The Tourist Development Council made the recommendation at its monthly meeting. The final decision rests with the Pinellas County Commission, which will vote on whether to approve the funding this summer.

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› Florida religious leaders denounce DeSantis' years-long pause of Civil Rights Hall of Fame inductions [Gainesville Sun]
Every year for nearly a decade, three names were added to the Florida Civil Rights Hall of Fame, to honor those who've made significant contributions in the fight for equality and justice for all. It's in state law: the Commission on Human Relations shall recommend up to 10 people for selection, and the governor shall select up to three of them. Their names and portraits are put up in a corner beside the Capitol entrance.

› Florida Power & Light asks for rate reduction starting in July. How it affects your bill. [Gainesville Sun]
Florida Power & Light is asking state regulators for a third time this year to reduce its proposed gas costs that are ultimately passed onto customers. The Juno Beach-based utility wants to reduce these costs by $256 million, which translates to monthly bill savings of about $4 for a customer that uses 1,000 kilowatts of energy starting in July.

› South Florida prepares as CDC warns of potential summer resurgence of mpox [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
With summer PRIDE events ahead, federal health officials urged people at risk for mpox to get vaccinated and released new research Thursday that shows the two-shot series is highly effective. “Vaccines work, and our strategy of vaccinating people remains core to preventing mpox,” said Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, White House National mpox Response Deputy Coordinator. He added that only one-fourth of the 1.7 million individuals at risk are fully vaccinated.

› FBI agent: Former JEA CEO told associate he expected big payout from controversial bonus plan [Florida Times-Union]
Former JEA CEO Aaron Zahn told an outside attorney who was hired to help privatize the city agency that Zahn expected to receive "approximately $40 million" from a bonus scheme he and the utility's former finance chief are accused of concocting in secret, according to testimony Wednesday from an FBI agent who investigated the 2019 privatization campaign.