Florida
State preemption bills have a good year at the Florida Legislature
The 2024 Florida Legislature passed a number of bills that would take away authority from local governments. Known as preemption bills, they were cleared for issues ranging from local wages to vacation rentals to affordable housing. Some of those that failed this year will likely be back next year.
“Over the past six or seven years, it’s not been a good year for home rule.”
That’s Jeff Sharkey, president of Capital Alliance Group. He represents Leon County government, so it’s his job to push back on preemption bills. Florida lawmakers filed about 1900 bills this year and roughly 325 bills passed.
“One out of 20 of those 1900 bills were preemption bills,” said Sharkey. “So, you can imagine it’s a constant battle with local government advocates, city officials, county officials, Florida Association of Counties, Florida League of Cities…trying to manage that onslaught of preemption bills.”
One of the most controversial is House Bill 433, which would prevent local governments from putting requirements on contractors about wages and heat-exposure protections for workers. Republican House sponsor Tiffany Esposito of Fort Myers and other supporters said the proposal would save taxpayer money and that businesses should be able to determine the wages of workers. Sharkey disputes that.
“But there wasn’t, to my knowledge, one piece of evidence or ordinance that showed it that had a dramatically adverse effect on businesses,” he said. “I mean, you talk about roofers, you talk about construction companies, you talk about landscaping. This is hot in the summer, and it’s not getting any cooler.”
A related measure by Republican representative Jason Shoaf of Port St. Joe. would override existing city and county ordinances that impose hiring preferences on local public works projects. In debate on the Senate floor, Democratic Senator Jason Pizzo said Broward County, part of which he represents, has a program to subsidize some workers’ wages so they can qualify for benefits.
“[Does] anything in this bill, if passed and signed into law, that would prohibit a place like Broward from offering that hourly subsidy?”
Republican Senator Jay Trumbull of Panama City in response:
“Senator Pizzo, not fully understanding the nuances within Broward, but there’s nothing in this bill that would prohibit Broward from giving a gift of some dollar amount to a particular industry or vendor…is my understanding.”
Another successful preemption bill deals with vacation rentals. Sharkey says there are hundreds of thousands of these in Florida now, and lawmakers have tried for years to address them. Some see them as extra income for property owners, others as party houses with no accountability. Senate Bill 280 by Republican Senator Nick DiCeglie of Pinellas County would preempt the regulation of vacation rentals to the state. Here’s DiCeglie:
“There’s been somewhat of — I’d say a weaponization of government to prevent these properties from operating as vacation rentals,” he said, “and I think that this bill is going to address those concerns.”
Also passing: a ban on public sleeping, new requirements for food delivery platforms and electric vehicle charging stations, and the uniform handling of complaints against law enforcement.
Other preemption bills failed, including a measure that would have capped transfers from a city or county’s municipal utility to its general fund…and a move to ban the removal of historic monuments that have been in place at least 25 years.
Republican Senator Blaise Ingoglia of Spring Hill fought for term limits for county commissioners, but ultimately the House and Senate couldn’t agree.
“I will continue working on this bill,” he said before the bill died. “We still have a way to go. We still have the House to reconcile with.”
Sharkey expects some of those proposals and others to come back in the next legislative session.
Florida
Florida ranks in list’s top 10 states for most adults living with their parents. Here’s why
Report finds Americans are optimistic about buying a home in 2024
After years of feeling priced out of the market, potential homebuyers are feeling optimistic again, according to a new report.
Scripps News
In 2020, the Pew Research Center conducted a study that found more than 50% of young adults in the U.S. were living with their parents for the first time since the Great Depression.
And that trend hasn’t slowed down, according to a newer study.
Ahead of the mid-May Mother’s Day rush, trucking industry website Truckinfo.com analyzed data from the US Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Federal Reserve to find how many young adults would only have to step out of their bedroom to wish their mother a happy Mother’s Day.
The study revealed that the number of young adults who live with their parents has continued to increase. And Florida ranked in the top 10 states where the most young adults are still living at home.
Here’s where Florida ranked on this list and why.
What percentage of 25-34 year-olds live with parents?
“Both men and women between the ages of 25 and 34 are twice as likely to live with their parents than in 1967,” the study said.
“While there was a steady increase until the early 2010s, the figure has grown significantly in recent years.”
According to the study, around 32.1% of adults between the ages of 25 and 34 live at home with their parents. Florida’s state average is a little higher, at 34.8%, ranking the Sunshine State tenth in Truckinginfo.com’s list of states where the most young adults still live with their parents.
Which state has the largest percentage of adults still living with their parents?
New Jersey emerged as the state with the largest percentage of young adults living at home. California placed in second and Connecticut in third. Florida ranked at the bottom, in 10th place.
“Compared to the national average, adult children in coastal cities and the south are much more likely to live with their parents,” the study said.
“Conversely, states in the Midwest and Mountain West are more likely to live with their spouses than the rest of the country”
Here are the rankings, with the percentage of adults between 25 and 34 living with their parents in each state:
- New Jersey, 43.3%
- California, 38.6%
- Connecticut, 38.6%
- New Hampshire, 37.4%
- New York, 37.0%
- Delaware, 36.9%
- Maryland, 36.1%
- Rhode Island, 35.9%
- Mississippi, 35.8%
- Florida, 34.8%
The study also found that high housing costs have the biggest influence on why so many young adults are living at home for longer.
“Even for men gainfully employed, many struggle to afford a home. Since 1984, the home-price-to-income ratio in the U.S. has nearly doubled,” the study said. “Meaning homes are twice as expensive today than in 1984.”
Florida
Florida man drunkenly steals school bus, drives 4 hours to Miami: police
A Florida man allegedly stole a school bus while drunk and drove to Miami in a wild Saturday night outing, police said.
Land O’ Lakes resident Daniel Saez, 32, was charged with grand theft auto on Sunday, according to FOX 13 Tampa Bay.
The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) told the outlet that the suspect stole the bus, which belonged to Hillsborough County Public Schools, near Tampa on Saturday night.
Saez then drove the vehicle to Miami, which is roughly 280 miles from Tampa. It’s about a four-hour drive.
FLORIDA MAN PRAISED BY POLICE FOR FATALLY STABBING INTRUDER WHO SHOT HIS WIFE
The suspect was stopped in Sarasota, the FHP said. He told authorities that he was on his way back to Tampa from Miami to return the stolen bus.
Sarasota is approximately 60 miles south of Tampa.
The suspect allegedly admitted to stealing the bus and was reportedly both drunk and high when the crime took place.
FLORIDA MAN LEARNS HE’S NOT A CITIZEN AFTER LIVING, VOTING IN US FOR DECADES: REPORT
After being arrested, Saez was placed in a county jail.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Fox News Digital reached out to FHP for additional information but did not immediately hear back.
Florida
South Florida’s scorching temps make for a weekend record-breaker. Here’s what’s ahead.
A record-breaking heat wave has most of South Florida wilting — and wondering when it will end.
There’s no major cooldown ahead just yet, but temperatures will drop a touch on Monday, said George Rizzuto, a meteorologist at the Miami office of the National Weather Service.
Monday’s heat index will hit around 100 degrees, down from Sunday’s “feels-like” temps of 105 to 110 degrees.
“It will still be hot, but not as oppressively hot as it has been this weekend,” Rizzuto said. “For Tuesday and Wednesday you can expect indices in the upper 90s.”
Next Saturday, the heat index will rise back up to 100 degrees, according to the forecast.
“Not too much of a break in the heat,” Rizzuto said.
Hot and humid conditions continued Sunday, with temperatures hitting to the low- to mid-90s and the peak heat index ranging from 105 to 110 degrees.
Both Broward and Miami-Dade counties were under a heat advisory until 6 p.m. Sunday.
The maximum heat index forecast for Sunday afternoon was 105 degrees in Fort Lauderdale; 106 degrees in West Palm Beach; and 109 degrees in Miami and Homestead.
The heat index is a measure of how hot it really feels when relative humidity is factored in with the actual air temperature.
“If you’re spending any time outside (Sunday), it is imperative that you are hydrating nearly constantly and take breaks from the direct sun,” the National Weather Service warned on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Saturday’s blistering heat was a record-breaker.
“West Palm Beach set a new record with a temp of 97,” Rizzuto said. “Their old record was 94, set in 1922. It beat it by 3 degrees. Fort Lauderdale tied their maximum temperature record of 96. That was set back in 2008.”
The region’s nightly lows did not drop much below 80 degrees Friday night into Saturday morning, Rizzuto said.
So now we have new records for minimum lows.
The new record low for West Palm Beach is now 80 degrees. That beat an old record of 78 degrees set back in 2003.
Fort Lauderdale set a new record low of 80 degrees. The previous record low was 77 degrees, set in 2015.
Miami set a new minimum low of 81 degrees. The old record of 79 degrees was set back in 1935.
Strong to severe storms were possible Sunday afternoon, according to meteorologists in Miami.
“Primary hazards will be large hail and damaging wind gusts but a tornado or two can’t be ruled out,” the National Weather Service’s Miami office said in its Sunday advisory.
Showers and thunderstorms might roll into Broward’s eastern metro areas late afternoon Sunday and into the evening, Rizzuto said.
But Palm Beach County’s eastern metro areas and Lake Okeechobee region are at a higher risk for thunderstorms Sunday afternoon and evening.
“I can’t rule out a strong cell for Miami-Dade County and its eastern metro areas,” Rizzuto said.
An isolated tornado might also be in the cards, he added.
“We can’t rule out hail either,” Rizzuto said. “The hail risk is more maximized toward northern Palm Beach County and the Lake Okeechobee area. We have a low pressure system pushing toward the east. That could allow raindrops to stay frozen in the upper atmosphere. But sometimes the hail melts before it gets to the ground.”
Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan
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