News

Florida Exports Provide Economic Bright Spot

TALLAHASSEE –  Fueled by a weak dollar overseas and healthy Latin American partners, Florida exports boomed in 2008 as fertilizer, motor vehicles, aircraft and medical supplies led a surge of commodities and products at rates exceeding national trends.  Overall, international…

Florida Unemployment May Top 8 Percent

Florida could lose a total of 315,000 jobs by 2010 with unemployment rising as high as 8.4 percent, a University of Central Florida economist projected Thursday. Sean Snaith, director of UCF’s Institute for Economic Competitiveness, forecasts that unemployment will peak…

Budget Woes and Special Session

TALLAHASSEE — Not even the rosiest of glasses appear able to soften the glare as lawmakers face a $2.3 billion hole in the current year budget and a worse financial conundrum in the year to come. Senate President Jeff Atwater…

Pension Fund down by $40B

TALLAHASSEE — The value of the state pension fund has plummeted by more than $40 billion since last year in light of an economic maelstrom that has caused the state's investments to greatly decrease in value. Right now, the losses…

PSC Study: Utilities Could Meet Energy Goals

TALLAHASSEE — Florida's utilities could feasibly increase the amount of renewable energy they produce by 20 percent by the year 2020, as called for by Gov. Charlie Crist and environmental groups, according to a study presented Wednesday to the Florida…