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The top stories near you

• WUFT News: An Accident Took A Boy’s Ability To Walk. A Community In Ocala Wants To Give It Back. "Jacen Mancil never got to take his first steps as a toddler, but that could soon change due to the efforts of a small community in Ocala."

• WUFT News: Gainesville And Duhok Students Design Sister City Sculpture As Potential Confederate Statue Replacement. "Gainesville Mayor Lauren Poe and Ali Tatar, the governor of Duhok (in Iraq), renewed an agreement of mutual friendship and collaboration between the public and private sectors in both cities in March."

• WUFT News: ‘The World Isn’t Against You:’ Gainesville Community Playhouse Returns To Musicals With ‘Fun Home.’ "After more than a year, the Gainesville Community Playhouse is putting on its first musical since the start of the pandemic. Its show, 'Fun Home,' will run from April 8 to 25. It follows the life of cartoonist Alison Bechdel as she comes to terms with her sexuality and her relationship with her closeted father. The cast features nine actors, with three of them playing Bechdel at different points in her life."

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Around the state today

• NPR News: Longtime Florida Congressman Alcee Hastings Dies At 84. "Hastings announced he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2019, but continued to work until his death. News of his passing brought condolences from Democratic and Republican colleagues alike."

• WUSF: Scientists Monitor Water Quality Near Piney Point Leak As Threat Of Algal Blooms Remains. "Officials say the wastewater being released into Tampa Bay is not radioactive but it does contain a lot of nutrients that can fuel algal blooms. Scientists say it will take time to see if damage occurs."

• WFLA-Tampa: Piney Point crisis: Officials confident in new outflow models, will reopen US-41. "The US Army Corps of Engineers, DEP and Manatee County Public Safety officials met and determined it was safe to reopen US-41, which was shut down over the weekend as part of an evacuation zone put in place. While the highway reopened, the evacuation zone remains in effect."

• Florida Politics: Transgender sports bill clears final House committee stop. "A bill that would limit female sports teams to biological women and girls cleared its final committee stop on Tuesday." Listen to today's episode of our podcast to hear an interview with the reporter behind this story.

• WUWF: Florida Could Axe 'Permanent Alimony.' "Passing its final committee stop Tuesday, the bill pits many homemakers against their former spouses — who claim they are forced to continue working long past retirement age so they can afford to make required monthly payments to their exes."

• New York Times ($): Matt Gaetz, Loyal for Years to Trump, Is Said to Have Sought a Blanket Pardon. "In the final weeks of Mr. Trump’s term, Mr. Gaetz sought something in return. He privately asked the White House for blanket pre-emptive pardons for himself and unidentified congressional allies for any crimes they may have committed, according to two people told of the discussions."

• WMBB-Panama City: Governor DeSantis makes huge announcement in Panama City. "...100 percent of costs incurred by local governments responding to Hurricane Michael will be waived, with federal and state governments covering all costs related to the storm."

• Spectrum News: Nearly 1,000 Hillsborough County Teachers and Staff Losing their Jobs. "One year on the job, Hillsborough County Public School Superintendent Addison Davis says the district’s financial difficulties are forcing him to make major cuts."

• Palm Coast Observer: County Commission rejects settlement offer from former elections supervisor Kimberle Weeks. "Facing a $129,600 court-imposed penalty for filing false complaints against county officials, former Flagler County Supervisor of Elections Kimberle Weeks on (Monday) sought the county's leniency, asking the County Commission to agree to a $20,000 settlement."

From NPR News

• National: Police Expert Testifies About Medical Support In Trial Of Derek Chauvin

• National: As Biden Pushes Major Rail Investments, Amtrak's 2035 Map Has People Talking

• Business: Rising Tide: Powerful U.S. Growth Set To Lift Global Economy, IMF Says

• Science: Woman Gets New Windpipe In Groundbreaking Transplant Surgery

• World: A Row Over Rare-Earth Deposits Could Bring Down Greenland's Government

• Health: The Ethics Of 'Vaccine Passports'

• Health: Governor Aims To Reopen California By Mid-June, Contingent On Public Health Metrics

About today's curator

I'm Ethan Magoc, a news editor at WUFT. Originally from Pennsylvania, I've found a home telling Florida stories. I’m part of a team searching each morning for local and state stories that are important to you; please send feedback about today's edition or ideas for stories we may have missed to emagoc@wuft.org.