April 24, 2024
News Service of Florida
Experts: Increasing number of pediatric COVID patients is cause for concern
As Florida schools opened their doors to students - some maskless - the number of children hospitalized with COVID-19 has increased more than tenfold.
At a news conference Thursday, University...
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Published on 9/6/2021
Lawmakers say Florida could consider similar abortion legislation as Texas
While Gov. Ron DeSantis said people shouldn’t “read too much into” the U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal to block a Texas law that bans almost all abortions, Republican legislative leaders indicated...
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Published on 9/6/2021
Rules changed on updates for Medicaid managed care plans
Florida Medicaid managed care plans and managed dental plans soon won’t be required to send twice-a-month updates to health care providers who have filed complaints against them.
The written updates...
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Published on 9/6/2021
Affordable housing initiative tops 62,000 signatures
Backers of a proposed constitutional amendment aimed at ensuring money for affordable housing continue adding petition signatures as they try to get on the November 2022 ballot.
The Florida Division...
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Published on 9/6/2021
Florida's leaders review financial outlook. State is in ‘great shape,' but don't expect new programs
Florida’s financial outlook is in “great shape,” barring a direct hit from a hurricane or another pandemic, officials said Friday.
And even with an anticipated influx of tax dollars, don’t...
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Published on 9/6/2021
Florida jobless claims rise as two federal aid programs come to end
Jobless claims in Florida inched up for the second consecutive week, as two federal unemployment-aid programs tied to the COVID-19 pandemic are coming to an end.
The U.S. Department of...
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Published on 9/2/2021
Universities face constraints amid COVID-19 surge
The heads of some Florida universities are reminding students and faculty that campus leaders’ “hands are tied” when it comes to taking steps to try to curb the spread of...
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Published on 9/1/2021
Catastrophe fund eyed in workers' comp system
Sparked by fears that businesses could get hit with a future calamity similar to the COVID-19 pandemic, a proposal would allow charging Florida businesses an additional $20 million annually as...
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Published on 9/1/2021
Wages, population growth in Florida lag
The average annual wage in Florida dipped further below the national mark in 2020, according to an economic overview by the Legislature’s Office of Economic and Demographic Research.
A 21-page...
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Published on 9/1/2021
Florida penalizes Alachua, Broward school districts in mask standoffs
Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran announced Monday that the state Department of Education has withheld funds from the Alachua and Broward county school districts in amounts equal to school board members’...
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Published on 8/31/2021
Florida Supreme Court shields top corporate executives from depositions
Prompted by a case involving the retired chairman of Suzuki Motor Corp., the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday shielded high-ranking business executives from having to give depositions in lawsuits.
Justices,...
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Published on 8/30/2021
Replacing state surgeon general may be difficult
Florida needs a new state surgeon general. The question could quickly become: Will it be easy to find someone?
Scott Rivkees announced he will leave his post as surgeon general...
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Published on 8/29/2021
Panhandle could feel effects of developing storm
The National Hurricane Center is advising Panhandle residents to keep an eye on a rapidly moving and growing storm in the west-central Caribbean.
“The system is expected to enter into...
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Published on 8/26/2021
Florida jobless claims up slightly
New unemployment claims increased last week in Florida but remain similar to pre-pandemic levels.
The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday estimated that 6,494 first-time unemployment claims were filed in...
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Published on 8/26/2021
Judge weighs decision to halt unemployment money
A Leon County circuit judge Wednesday waded into a lawsuit about whether Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration violated state law when it cut off federal unemployment money in June for tens...
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Published on 8/26/2021
Legal battle over protest law could offer grammar lesson
Parsing sentences might be a lost art, but attorneys in a court battle over a controversial Florida law that targets violent protests might want to brush up on their grammar...
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Published on 8/25/2021
Groups line up behind electric rate increase to expand solar power
Two more organizations have signed on to a proposed settlement that would lead to Florida Power & Light raising base electric rates and expanding solar energy.
Vote Solar and The...
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Published on 8/25/2021
'Hitting the accelerator': Florida tourism leaders eye resurgence amid COVID-19 pandemic
Tourism leaders are focusing on the resurgence this year in the number of people visiting Florida, as the state continues grappling with a spike in COVID-19 cases.
In a brief...
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Published on 8/24/2021
New jobless claims stay at pre-pandemic level
Florida continues to see pre-pandemic levels of unemployment claims, with an estimated 4,092 first-time applications for benefits submitted last week.
The estimate for the week that ended Aug. 14 was...
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Published on 8/19/2021
Florida sports betting deal facing second court challenge
Upping the ante in the courts, two pari-mutuel facilities have filed a second federal lawsuit challenging a 30-year gambling agreement reached by Gov. Ron DeSantis that gives the Seminole Tribe...
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Published on 8/19/2021
Florida tax revenues get $2.6 billion boost
Florida lawmakers will have an additional $2.6 billion to play with in general-revenue taxes, along with nearly $6 billion in unspent federal coronavirus stimulus money, as they begin to piece...
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Published on 8/18/2021
Feds to continue picking up COVID-19 tab
In a boost for Florida and other states, the Biden administration on Tuesday issued a memorandum extending through the end of the year a move by the federal government to...
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Published on 8/17/2021
E-commerce company challenges state pot restriction
E-commerce company Leafly has carved out a niche as one of the nation’s leading shopping sites for all things cannabis.
Leafly and similar websites allow visitors to peruse the stock...
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Published on 8/17/2021
Tab for DeSantis, dignitary security nearly $4.85 million
Florida taxpayers spent nearly $4.85 million during the past fiscal year to protect Gov. Ron DeSantis, his family, the governor’s mansion and various visiting dignitaries, according to a state report...
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Published on 8/17/2021
AARP: Florida nursing homes lead nation in worker COVID infections
A report released Thursday by AARP shows that Florida had the nation’s highest percentage of nursing homes reporting new COVID-19 infections among staff members during a four-week period in June and July....
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Published on 8/16/2021
