Florida News Archive

Questions remained Wednesday about when extended unemployment benefits from a newly signed federal stimulus package will be available for Floridians out of work because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The state’s jobs agency had not posted a timetable about the extended benefits, and no formal announcement had been made about whether Floridians will be covered for the current week because of when the $900 billion federal package was signed.

Bondholders this week asked a circuit judge to quickly order the Florida Department of Transportation to reinstate toll collections on a controversial Panhandle bridge where tolls have been suspended since a September hurricane.

The department has not collected tolls on the Garcon Point Bridge since Hurricane Sally damaged and forced the shutdown of the Pensacola Bay Bridge. The tolls on the Garcon Point Bridge, which spans part of Pensacola Bay and is being used as a detour route, have been suspended at least through Jan. 12.

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration is relying on Florida hospitals to provide COVID-19 vaccinations to health care workers, seniors and at-risk populations in the communities the hospitals serve.

It’s a task that some hospitals fear could be impossible given the state’s large senior population.

More than 122,000 Floridians received COVID-19 vaccinations during the first two weeks that the long-awaited shots were available, according to numbers posted Monday on the Florida Department of Health website.

Florida lawmakers could consider a proposal aimed at ensuring employers provide accommodations for pregnant women. Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez, R-Doral, filed a proposal (SB 384) on Monday that, in part, would make it illegal for employers to “fail to make reasonable accommodations, upon request, for an employee with a medical need related to pregnancy, unless the employer can demonstrate that the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of the employer’s business.”

A bill dealing with a voter-approved prohibition on public officials and employees using their offices to benefit themselves, their families or employers is among four new laws that will take effect this week.

As Gov. Ron DeSantis prioritizes seniors for new vaccines, the COVID-19 death toll for long-term care residents and staff members has increased to more than 8,000 since the pandemic started.

Sen. Keith Perry, R-Gainesville, is again pursuing legislation that would require 6-year-old children to be in car seats or booster seats, raising the age in state law by one year. As he’s done for the past three years, Perry on Wednesday filed a measure (SB 380) to raise the age in which children must be […]

As Florida continues trying to claw itself out of financial problems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, November general-revenue collections exceeded expectations and slightly topped collections in pre-pandemic November 2019, according to a report released Wednesday.

The first wave of COVID-19 vaccinations in Florida went primarily to people under age 65, as Gov. Ron DeSantis says the state is pivoting to give the vast majority of shots to seniors due to their increased risk of illness and death from the coronavirus.