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The stories near you

• WUFT News Special Report: Adam Van Allen: ‘Perfect human’ credited with saving lives after his death. "Another time, his family asked him what he wanted to do as an adult. 'I’m not going to be around for very long,' he said."

• Fresh Take Florida: UF to spend $300,000 on new pool for incoming university president. "Construction on the expensive addition to the 7,400-square-foot, four-bedroom mansion – provided to Sasse at no cost – started in November and is nearly complete, ahead of his first day as UF’s new president on campus next month."

• Mainstreet Daily News: SBAC discuses December ABC reports. "The ABC Scorecard summarizes trends across the district, while the ABC Report includes more detailed and specific information regarding the academic performance of Alachua County Public Schools (ACPS) students."

• Ocala Gazette: Florida House District 24 special election gets more crowded. "After growing up in a family centered around politics, Justin Albright decided it was finally time to run for an elected public office once the District 24 seat of the Florida House of Representatives was vacated."

• Ocala Gazette: CF receives $17 million boost to its nursing program. "The College of Central Florida has received a $17 million infusion to bolster its nursing program, thanks to an incentive from the state legislature and the Citrus County Hospital District. It is one of the largest gift and grant commitments in the college’s history."

• WUSF-Tampa: Citrus County wants state funding to study traffic congestion during hurricane evacuations. "During a hurricane evacuation, the Suncoast Parkway can be a major artery, delivering residents north. But Citrus County commissioners are worried about what happens when all the evacuees reach the end of the road."

• WCJB: A veterinarian raises money for a horse rescue by living in a horse stall. "PARR moved its operation to Ocala from Pennsylvania and people with the organization and Langlois said they need money now more than ever."

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Around the state

• WGCU-Fort Myers: FAA lifts ground stop prompted by system glitch; Feds check into possibility of cyberattack. "An issue with FAA computer systems affected flights across the U.S. early Wednesday. Some airports, in Jacksonville, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and Richmond, Virginia, were shut down. Airports in Tampa and Orlando reported experiencing delays."

• News Service of Florida: As background check proposals are filed, Florida seeks to shield gun purchase information. "In September, Visa joined Mastercard and American Express in moving forward with plans to categorize gun shop sales, a step gun-control advocates say will help track any suspicious sales tied to potential mass shootings."

• WMFE-Orlando: New report ranks Ian as third-costliest hurricane on record. "Hurricane Ian was the most costly disaster of the year, causing nearly $113 billion dollars in damage and 152 deaths. Only hurricanes Katrina in 2005 and Harvey in 2017 were more costly."

• Florida Politics: More than 3.1 million Florida residents have signed up for Obamacare. "The number is significantly higher than the 2.7 million-plus who enrolled in Obamacare during the 2022 Open Enrollment period."

• Tallahassee Democrat ($): 'I'm being targeted': Proctor joins legal challenge to Florida amendment barring lobbying. "Leon County Commissioner Bill Proctor signed onto a federal challenge to a 2018 constitutional amendment, which created restrictions barring former elected officials from lobbying their former governmental bodies."

• Florida Politics: Space Florida expects humans in space will double in next decade. "A total of 639 humans have flown to space. Space Florida CEO Frank DiBello expects that number to double in the next 10 years."

• WLRN-Miami: 'There’s no safe level': Glades sugarcane burns continue despite link to tenfold mortality increase. "The pre-harvest burning season in the western part of the county occurs from October through April, with farmers setting fire to nearly 400,000 acres of sugarcane fields to strip the plant down to the stalk, which make it easier to harvest."

From NPR News

• Law: Sloppy handling of classified documents is very serious, ethics lawyer says

• Science: The FDA no longer requires all drugs to be tested on animals before human trials

• Education: During the pandemic many Americans chose not to go to college, but high schoolers did

• National: Addiction treatments in pharmacies could help combat the opioid crisis

• National: Here's where your money goes when you buy a ticket from a state-run lottery

• World: "It's like gold": Onions now cost more than meat in the Philippines
Kristin Moorehead curated today's edition of The Point.