By The News Service of Florida Hammered by hurricanes and citrus greening disease, Florida’s citrus industry ended the 2024-2025 growing season with the lowest production in more than a century, according to numbers released Friday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The final total for orange production increased slightly from a June estimate. But orange […]
By The News Service of Florida Florida had an estimated 6,035 first-time unemployment claims during the Fourth of July week, the lowest number since 5,698 claims were recorded during the holiday-shortened Memorial Day week, according to a U.S. Department of Labor report issued Thursday. The estimated 6,035 claims during the week that ended July 5 […]
By The News Service of Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds raked in more than $10 million during the year’s second quarter through a political committee and his campaign account, according to newly filed finance reports. The Friends of Byron Donalds PAC raised about $8.9 million from April 1 through June 30, bringing its overall […]
By The News Service of Florida State lawmakers and members of Congress will be able to visit a controversial immigrant-detention center in the Everglades on Saturday, after some Democratic legislators last week were denied access to inspect the facility. The Florida Division of Emergency Management on Wednesday sent an email inviting “congressional and state legislators” […]
By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a request by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier that would have at least temporarily allowed enforcement of a new state law targeting undocumented immigrants who enter the state. Uthmeier last month asked the Supreme Court for a stay […]
By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — The Trump administration Monday argued a federal appeals court should overturn a district judge’s ruling that blocked a new Florida law targeting undocumented immigrants who enter the state. U.S. Department of Justice attorneys filed a 33-page brief backing the state’s appeal of a preliminary injunction […]
By The News Service of Florida Backers of a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow recreational use of marijuana have submitted more than 600,000 petition signatures as they try to put the measure on the 2026 ballot. The state Division of Elections website Tuesday showed 613,206 valid signatures for the proposal, sponsored by the Smart […]
By The News Service of Florida Florida’s general-revenue tax collections beat expectations in May, with economists saying part of the gain was tied to people buying goods in anticipation of the effects of tariffs. The Legislature’s Office of Economic & Demographic Research on Monday released a report that said Florida collected about $4.56 billion in […]
Alleging that Gov. Ron DeSantis did not comply with a constitutionally required deadline, an attorney asked the Florida Supreme Court on Friday to direct the governor to appoint a circuit judge in the Tallahassee area. Attorney Maite C. Garcia contended in the court petition that DeSantis was required to appoint a judge within 60 days […]
By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — A divided federal appeals court Wednesday backed a 2023 Florida law that requires teachers to use pronouns that align with their sex assigned at birth, rejecting arguments that the law violated First Amendment rights of a transgender teacher in Hillsborough County. A panel of the […]