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The stories near you
• WUFT News Special Report: Dam Love Affair. Today, WUFT News launches Dam Love Affair, a special report on the more than 1,000 dams and reservoirs in Florida. Ninety-four of them are designated “high hazard,” which the state defines as “likely” causing loss of human life and extensive property damage if the dam were to fail. While dams are taken down across the country due to aging, public risk and environmental harm, Florida holds onto its dams. Read Part I, Dam Dilemma, today. On Tuesday, we look at the impact of Florida’s dams and locks on wildlife. On Wednesday, we explore the lack of public access to crucial records on the condition of the state’s dams.
• WUFT News: UF Board of Trustees cracks down on presidential spending, chooses location for Jacksonville campus. "Under the new policies, any administrative hires with salaries above $200,000 per year require final approval from Board Chair Morteza 'Mori' Hosseini. Additionally, the UF president must approve any consultant agreements between $100,000 and $1,000,000, and the board chair must approve any consulting agreements of $1,000,000 or more."
• Fresh Take Florida: Why did the turtle cross the runway? Reports of planes colliding with wildlife increasing in Florida. "The list of animals hit by airplanes in Florida so far this year reads like a tragic version of 'The Twelve Days of Christmas': five opossums, four iguanas, three turtles, two alligators and a coyote on a runway that, luckily, narrowly missed meeting with a 737 landing in Tampa."
• WUFT News: Alachua County Animal Resources opens six criminal cases in 2024. "This year the department opened six cases, which is the highest it’s been since 2011. Criminal cases are usually opened by Animal Resources if there is animal abuse. Otherwise, animal enforcement officers will issue citations."
• WUFT News: The mystery around Gainesville's missing bats. "They’re migratory species, meaning their populations can fluctuate throughout the year. But after a routine inspection, UF Environmental Health and Safety was concerned that the numbers were lower than normal."
• Florida Storms: Are you ready for Florida’s winter hazards? "Most Floridians probably don’t put much thought into prepping for winter weather like they do for hurricane season. However, some parts of Florida get temperatures that dip below freezing and occasional snow and ice storms can happen during winter months in north Florida."
• Mainstreet Daily News: Gainesville denies tax break for 7 market rate student apartments. "Both government bodies were required to give these tax breaks last year, but an update to the Live Local Act allowed the city and county to opt out of giving the breaks. The Children’s Trust of Alachua County also opted out, and the library district is likely next."
• WCJB: Guy Fieri brings the flavor to Gainesville. "Celebrity chef Guy Fieri visited North Central Florida Friday afternoon to film his show for the Food Network as well as visit Gainesville residents to advertise his newest creation."
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Around the state
• Associated Press: Florida woman charged with threatening health insurance company with 'delay, deny, depose'. "A Florida woman has been charged with threatening her health insurance provider during a phone conversation after police say she uttered the same words found on the bullet casings used in the killing of an insurance executive in New York."
• News Service of Florida: A Florida agency is being sued over Baker Act data. "The Baker Act allows for people with mental illness to be involuntarily held and treated at such facilities under certain circumstances. The lawsuit alleges, in part, that the department has not complied with a 2007 law that requires publishing reports and data about use of the Baker Act."
• WFSU-Tallahassee: Voices rise against oil drilling in the fragile Apalachicola River Basin. "The site being considered is in rural Calhoun County, in the river basin’s floodplain – and the state Department of Environmental Protection supports the idea. But the basin is highly fragile. In the past, its struggles for survival have upended the economy of Franklin County and reached the U.S. Supreme Court."
• Associated Press: Young activists take on a government agency in a Florida climate lawsuit. "Young activists believe the Florida Public Service Commission's continued reliance on fossil fuels is a violation of their constitutional rights. It's one of a string of environmental lawsuits filed by kids and teenagers across the U.S. in recent years."
• Miami Herald: How will climate change impact Florida’s Everglades? Gators may be a key gauge. "Gators are a bit like Goldilocks. Too much water, and they use too much energy trying to catching fish and other prey. Not enough, and they struggle to move or mate. They need the water just right."
• WUSF-Tampa: Solar power continues to shine brightly in Florida. "Gallagher said Florida is predicted to take over as the top-ranked residential solar state by 2028. He said this comes despite a backlash from many electric utilities, which see solar as competition to their monopolies."
• News Service of Florida: Florida is suing over parking garage leaks at the Capitol. "After a years-long project to renovate underground parking garages at the Capitol, the state this week filed a lawsuit against a contractor and two other firms because of water leaks."
• Central Florida Public Media: This holiday, Florida has a second chance to opt-into food assistance for kids. "Last year, Florida was one of thirteen states that opted out of the SUN Bucks or Summer EBT program. The federal program run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture provides struggling families with an additional $120 dollars per child to buy groceries during the summer months when school’s out."
From NPR News
• National: Will Luigi Mangione's tipster get the $60K reward? It's complicated
• National: As drone sightings spread across East Coast, federal officials still don't know much
• Law: Supreme Court to hear challenge to California's authority to set vehicle emissions standards
• National: McKinsey & Company to pay $650 million for role in opioid crisis
• Health: Will the FDA finally ban Red No. 3? A decision could come soon
• Business: The Biden overtime rule was struck down. Now, some workers are losing pay raises
• Health: How to prevent drowning: a ground-breaking report that's startling yet hopeful
• Business: Coffee prices haven't been this high in 47 years
Kristin Moorehead curated today's edition of The Point.