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Today's Florida stories
• News Service of Florida: State to weigh property insurer rate hikes. "Florida regulators have scheduled three hearings next week on proposals by property insurers to raise homeowners’ rates more than 20 percent, while the state weighs a plan by another insurer that has shed policies amid financial losses."
• WCJB: The City of Gainesville is tightening security at a downtown parking garage in response to violence. "Along with the city commission voting to ban open containers, some of the new safety measures the city is implementing are additional surveillance cameras, increasing overnight security, and closing the garage from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., Thursdays through Sundays."
• WFLA-Tampa: Florida car insurance among most expensive in US. "Property insurance isn’t the only type of coverage that Florida has cost concerns from. The average vehicle insurance coverage in Florida is almost $1,000 more than the national average, according to a study from Bankrate."
• Florida Politics: Citrus County airports facing need for corporate jet hangars. "Citrus County’s two public airports, historically home to single-engine aircraft owned by a smattering of local residents, are taking off. During a workshop Tuesday, County Commissioners said they wanted future hangars at both Crystal River and Inverness airports to accommodate larger corporate-sized jets, a need they say is starting to show now."
• WTSP-Tampa: Complaint filed to DEP over Weeki Wachee State Park management plan. "The complaint was made against the recently updated state park management plan. The plan is updated every 10 years and is supposed to go through an approval process with an advisory committee and public input."
• TCPalm ($): Florida bird flu is killing bald eagles. See how many have died from the HPAI virus. "At least 23 bald eagles have died from a highly infectious new bird flu strain spreading through Florida's wild bird populations, according to state wildlife data. Brevard County leads the state with eight eagle deaths. At least one eagle died in Indian River County since the virus was first detected in Florida in January, state data show."
• WLRN: How Disney and DeSantis clashed over power and policy, and what it means for business and politics in Florida. "The fortunes of Florida, its hospitality dominated economy and state government revenues driven by sales taxes, stepped through Disney World like a parade on Main Street. For decades, it was conventional wisdom to think what’s good for Disney was good for Florida. And vice versa. But that enchantment has tarnished under public pressure and political ambitions."
• Associated Press: A Florida high school's yearbook is on hold over student protest photos. "The principal at Longwood Lyman High School says one page is out of compliance with school board policy. It shows images of students holding rainbow flags and a 'love is love' sign during a protest of Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act, otherwise known as the 'Don't Say Gay' law."
• USA Today Network ($): Sen. Rick Scott says President Biden should resign; Biden says Scott 'has a problem.' "Tuesday's exchange of words was similar to the one that took place last month when Biden went after Scott, leading to a similar back and forth about inflation and the economy. But Scott went further on Tuesday when he took a swipe at Biden's mental capacity in demanding the president resign from office."
• WUFT News: A new group allows young professionals to connect with their community in Gainesville. "The program is for people ages 21-39 and who are involved in a post-graduate program, looking for work, working for a business and/or own one."
• Fort Myers News-Press ($): Garden or trash? Fort Myers code office relents on Dean Park couple’s 'dream' landscaping. "A notice recently taped to their door notified the couple of a pending hearing in May before the Code Enforcement Board of Fort Myers brought about by an anonymous neighbor’s complaint and resultant code violations. The violations pointed to the content and makeup of raised growing beds on the property, items said to be blocking a sidewalk and wood in a backyard area."
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From NPR News
• World: Kyiv residents begin to find calm after Russian forces' retreat
• World: The ripple effects of Russia's war in Ukraine are changing the world
• World: Ukranian journalists win a Pulitzer citation for their courage and persistence
• Politics: Senate to vote on a bill that codifies abortion protections, but it will likely fail
• Business: Solar projects are on hold as U.S. investigates whether China is skirting trade rules
• Health: The Biden administration is working to ease the ongoing shortage of baby formula
• Education: Lincoln College closes after 157 years, blaming COVID-19 and cyberattack disruptions
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.