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Hurricane season 2026: AI changing future of forecasting

Forecasting hurricanes can be a big challenge, as small atmospheric changes can quickly shift a storm’s path or intensity. Predicting where a hurricane will go and how strong it may become requires forecasters to analyze massive amounts of data in a short period of time.

Now, artificial intelligence is becoming a helpful tool that meteorologists could use to improve forecasts and provide earlier warnings before storms hit. Joshua Wadler, an assistant professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University who studies hurricanes and drone technology, says AI can rapidly process huge amounts of information and generate more forecast possibilities than traditional forecasting models.

Traditional weather models rely on physics-based equations to simulate the atmosphere and predict storm movement. While those models remain essential, they can take significant computing power and time to produce forecasts.

AI models work differently. Instead of relying on equations, they learn from decades of historical data and recognize patterns like ocean temperatures, wind structures, atmospheric pressure and storm behavior. By studying past hurricanes, AI models can identify similarities with current storms and help forecasters detect important changes earlier. That can be especially valuable during hurricane season, when storms can rapidly intensify in a short amount of time.

However, experts say AI still has limitations.

“Now AI models are built off of historical data,” Wadler explained. “And so if you get a storm that is very atypical or just something that really hasn’t happened before, we would expect them to struggle.”

Prospective UF president faces a trio of forums next week

The University of Florida will host three public forums Wednesday, putting Stuart Bell, the sole finalist to become president of the institution, in the public eye.

Bell will face pre-screened questions submitted by the public in three forums, first in front of the faculty, second in front of students, and third in front of administration and staff.

A week later, on June 10, university trustees will interview Bell. If they approve, his name will be offered for the Board of Governors for final approval.

Bell’s selection as sole finalist came with controversy. Shortly after the university announced it, Gov. Ron DeSantis came out in support of him while other conservatives attacked Bell’s support for diversity, equity, and inclusion while at the helm of the University of Alabama.

Since the Phoenix published a story about the backlash, former governor and now-U.S. Sen. Rick Scott chimed in, deriding the process UF used to select Bell.

“The public and students have no idea if this candidate will be successful at helping UF graduates get good paying jobs since there has not been any public input,” Scott wrote in part in a letter to the State University System.

Florida lawmakers to debate property tax phaseout at special session

A plan to phase out property taxes for Florida homeowners will be hashed out in a special session next week.

Lawmakers will convene Monday to discuss a proposal put forth by Gov. Ron DeSantis that would exempt the first $250,000 of a homestead’s value and create a plan to phase out property taxes on homesteads entirely.

“Property tax revenue collected by local governments has nearly doubled in the past seven years and is expected to reach an astounding $83 billion by 2032,” the governor said. “Florida homeowners need relief. Now is the time to stand up for taxpayers, enact a historic reform, and save the home of every Floridian.”

The proposal requires local governments to continue funding core services including public safety, education, schools, infrastructure and natural resources. It would also establish a trust fund to provide grants to local governments to help with keeping core local services funded.

Final approval must come from the voters. Legislators will spend next week’s special session working to put the proposal on the November ballot as a joint resolution.

“I commend Governor DeSantis for starting what has been a robust discussion on property tax relief throughout our state and to our partners in the Florida House for putting forward several meaningful and thoughtful proposals,” said Senate President Ben Albritton. “Private property rights are fundamental to the American way of life. Respect for private property and protecting private property from the government has been a cornerstone of our democracy from its inception.”

Big Bend lawmakers land only a fifth of state funding sought in budget

After asking for nearly $440 million in local projects, Leon County's delegation to the Florida Legislature came away with a fraction of that total in this year’s state budget.

The results underscore how late-stage cuts and political dealmaking reshaped priorities in the final hours of negotiations. 

A review of House request lists and the final appropriations bill shows state Reps. Allison Tant, Gallop Franklin and Jason Shoaf collectively secured roughly $90 million — about one-fifth of what they sought — as lawmakers scaled back spending in a budget trimmed by more than $2 billion from earlier proposals. 

A project usually must appear in both chambers’ request lists to survive conference negotiations. State Sen. Corey Simon, R-Tallahassee, carried the Senate version for almost all of the delegation’s House requests. 

The funding, embedded across dozens of line items in the state’s sprawling 500-plus page spending plan, includes multimillion-dollar education projects in Gadsden and Wakulla counties, as well as a collection of smaller community initiatives in Leon County and across rural north Florida.