By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida The University of West Florida Board of Trustees on Thursday approved former state Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr., an ally of Gov. Ron DeSantis, to serve as the university’s president. Diaz, who has been interim president since July, emerged from a search as the lone finalist for […]
A growing controversy is unfolding in Leon County as public school officials grapple with the prospect of closing or consolidating schools amid years of declining enrollment and tightening budgets. At a recent school board meeting, members debated whether to begin formal discussions about school consolidation, a move proponents say could help stabilize the district’s finances […]
TALLAHASSEE REPORTS Thursday, January 8, 2026 Weather: Today, a high near 75. Tonight, low around 57. Friday, high near 77. NWS US stock markets close mixed (S&P 500 -0.3%, Dow -1.0%, Nasdaq +0.2%); S&P 500 and the Dow pull back from records (More). High School Sports: Leading scorers for boys and girls basketball. ________________________________________________________________ Local […]
By Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix Legislation that would require new Florida voters to show proof of U.S. citizenship has again been filed in advance of the Florida legislative session kicking off next week in Tallahassee. HB 991 reportedly has the backing of the Florida supervisors of election and is sponsored by state Reps. Jenna Persons-Mulicka, […]
By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida Florida’s unemployment rate jumped to 4.2 percent in November, the highest rate for the state in more than four years. While still considered just above “full employment” by state economists, the November rate was up from 3.5 percent a year earlier and represented 466,000 people qualified as […]
TALLAHASSEE REPORTS Wednesday, January 7, 2026 Weather: Today, partly sunny, with a high near 77. Tonight, low around 59. Thursday, high near 74. NWS US stock markets close up (S&P 500 +0.6%, Dow +1.0%, Nasdaq +0.7%); S&P 500 and the Dow hit record highs (More). ________________________________________________________________ Local & State News Despite a 2025 decline in […]
According to filings with Leon County and the City of Tallahassee, the number of single-family new construction permits and permit value were relatively flat in December 2025 when compared to December 2024. This is also the case for the year. The number of permits issued in 2025 were the same as in 2024, see chart […]
By Liv Caputo, Florida Phoenix Undocumented immigrants in Florida won’t be able to attend public universities if a sweeping new education bill passes the state Legislature. The 32-page SB 1052, filed Monday by Vero Beach Republican Sen. Erin Grall, instructs public colleges and universities to exclusively admit students who are “citizen[s] of the United States” […]
By Jim Saunders, News Service of Florida Florida lawmakers next week will start the 2026 legislative session. With hundreds of bills filed for consideration during the session, here are 10 issues to watch: — ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: Gov. Ron DeSantis has made a priority of creating what he has dubbed an “Artificial Intelligence Bill of Rights.” […]
Crime incident data published daily by the Tallahassee Police Department shows that total crime incidents have declined by 22.6% in 2025 when compared to incident data from 2024. The drop was driven by a 28.3% in property crime. Violent crime incidents were down 8.9%. Despite the decline, over the last four months of 2025 violent […]