Florida's Latest News

DeSantis Promises to End the Ukraine War as President

Governor Ron DeSantis promised to end the war in Ukraine if elected President.

"It is in our interest to end this war and that is what I will do as President," DeSantis said at the Republican debate in Simi Valley, California tonight. "We are not going to have the blank check. We are not going to have U.S. troops. We are going to make the Europeans do what they need to do."

Outside the GOP debate, protestors held up Ukraine flags and chanted "Don't be Putin's puppets!"

Since the war began, the Biden administration and the U.S. Congress have directed more than $75 billion in assistance to Ukraine, which includes humanitarian, financial, and military support, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a German research institute.

Last week, Biden announced an arms package totaling $325 million to Ukraine including AIM-9M missiles for air defense, additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), avenger air defense systems; and.50 caliber machine guns.

In Florida schools, parent permission now a must for many more activities

Pinellas County high schools will now require permission slips for students to access library books deemed appropriate for juniors and seniors only.

Pasco County school officials are revamping consent forms for after-school activities and events, including football games. If their parents don’t sign, kids can’t go.

Hillsborough County schools have told students they must have written approval from home to participate in clubs.

In past years, schools told families they could opt out if they didn’t want their children to read certain materials, take part in specific activities or receive available services. Non-responses were taken as passive consent.

As state Republican leaders push to give parents more control over public schools, they’ve shifted the terms. Instead of having concerned parents opt out, they want all parents to opt in.

Agriculture losses from Idalia could exceed $447M

Officials are anticipating a serious agriculture setback in areas affected by Hurricane Idalia.

Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson released preliminary estimates that in total could spell more than $447 million in losses for Florida producers. That’s across all sectors, including crops, infrastructure, fruits, tree nuts, greenhouses, animals, vegetables and forestry.

All the data comes with an asterisk, however, as it’s only been weeks since the cyclone made landfall and it takes time for a complete picture of the damage to reveal itself.

The forecast goes beyond the upper limit of other estimates. Last week, experts with the University of Florida (UF) figured the storm would have an agriculture price tag of anywhere between $78 million and $371 million. The new and bigger numbers represent a composite analysis of the data from UF, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s statistics program, the Florida Census of Agriculture, the Florida Forest Service and direct communication with growers.

Simpson said the estimates reflect the “magnitude of the disaster” and that the focus will soon turn toward support for producers “to replant, to rebuild and to recover.”

I-275 expansion work in Tampa to begin Monday

Commuters on Interstate 275 should prepare for a little construction dust beginning Monday.

The state Department of Transportation and contractor Lane Construction are beginning work Monday to add lanes to I-275 between the Interstate 4 interchange and Hillsborough Avenue.

Crews will add one traffic lane in each direction over the 2.5-mile stretch of highway. The lanes will be built in the existing center median. The $85.3 million project is expected to be completed in early 2026.

The most recent state traffic counts from 2020 — compiled during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic — showed an approximate average of 144,500 vehicles traveling on that portion of the interstate each day.

The expansion is separate from the accelerated work announced by Gov. Ron DeSantis in September that will make safety improvements to the I-4/I-275 downtown interchange, known commonly as Malfunction Junction. The contract for that project is expected to be awarded in May, said David Gwynn, regional transportation secretary.