March 18, 2024

Friday's Daily Pulse

What you need to know about Florida today

| 7/1/2022

State, national jobless claims decrease

First-time unemployment claims in Florida and across the nation dipped last week, while a study showed small businesses continuing to grapple with supply-chain issues. The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday estimated Florida had 6,072 unemployment claims during the week that ended June 25, down from a revised count of 6,500 during the week that ended June 18. The initial estimate for the week ending June 18 was 5,778. Florida claim totals are similar to the pace before the COVID-19 pandemic caused massive job losses in 2020. [Source: News Service of Florida]

Business BeatBusiness Beat - Week of July 1st

Get top news-to-know with Florida Trend's headline-focused video newsbrief, hosted by digital content specialist Aimée Alexander.

Supreme Court’s EPA ruling could slow Florida’s climate change fight

A Supreme Court ruling that limits how federal environmental regulators can force power plants to shift away from fossil fuels could delay efforts to fight climate change, including in Florida, legal experts say. In an opinion released Thursday, Justices voted 6-3 to limit the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority. Republican attorneys general representing 18 states (along with Mississippi’s governor) brought the case, West Virginia v. EPA. Florida was not among them. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

Crypto curious: Academics, bankers, entrepreneurs look to the future of money

Financial institutions are increasingly waking up to the fact that cryptocurrencies are here to stay and the forward-thinking ones can even benefit from them. Dunedin-based Achieva Credit Union, for example, recently became the first Florida credit union to offer bitcoin trading services via its mobile app, generating fees from each transaction. [Source: Business Observer]

Invasive giant African land snail found in Florida can carry meningitis, officials warn

Florida officials warn that the giant African snail can carry the parasite rat lungworm, which is known to cause meningitis in humans. According to the Florida Department of Health, people can get infected by the parasite by eating raw or undercooked snails, which may be found in small fragments on unwashed produce. More from WESH and KIRO.

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Low attendance at job fair as companies struggle to hire in Southwest Florida
The signs are hard to miss. Help wanted, now hiring and on-the-spot interviews. And still, employers can’t find enough people. At a job fair on Wednesday, there were more hiring managers than job seekers. The job fair was looking to fill 200 jobs. But that was wishful thinking. The room was nearly empty.

› Judge to temporarily stop Florida’s 15-week abortion ban
A Leon County circuit judge said he will temporarily block Florida’s 15-week abortion ban, finding it unconstitutional. But when the order will take effect is unclear. Although the abortion ban takes effect Friday, Judge John Cooper said his temporary injunction will not take effect until he signs the order. “It will not be today,” Cooper told attorneys on Thursday.

› Florida lowering fees to reinstate suspended driver licenses
The fees required to pay for reinstatement of a suspended driver license in Florida are about to be lowered, as a new state law takes effect on Friday. The law will make it more affordable to pay off court fees and reinstate licenses to drive. Beginning July 1, House Bill 397, among the laws approved by the governor, makes changes to how court clerks charge residents for fines and other penalties. Upfront payments in full will no longer be the only method to pay off fees for traffic violations and other citations.

› Will Disney get on board the Brightline, SunRail Sunshine Corridor?
A historic quest to pair public commuter and private intercity train service across the Orlando region – spanning from the gargantuan growth coming to the east, to the centrally positioned international airport and west to theme parks – has taken on blockbuster drama. Will the feds grant billions of dollars for Central Florida rail dreams? Will the SunRail commuter system’s local governments turn to dysfunctional bickering over inflating costs? Will Orange County voters approve a penny increase in sales tax to underwrite transportation upgrades?

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