Measure to require E-Verify moves through Florida House.
The Florida Legislature passed a law two years ago that required employers with more than 25 employees to use E-Verify to vet the legal status of new hires. Now, a proposal that would require all private employers in Florida to use the E-Verify system won approval by its second committee in the House on Monday. It will now will go to the Florida House floor for a final vote. Whether the measure will be come law is doubtful. None of the bills addressing E-Verify are moving forward in the Florida Senate.
Alternative to homeowner’s insurance.
An increasing number of Floridians are dropping “all-perils” homeowner’s insurance, in favor of less expensive dwelling/fire policies. Also known as “landlord insurance,” dwelling/fire policies typically do not include coverage for contents, water damage, or liability. But they do cover protection from fire and hurricanes. According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, dwelling/fire policies still make up only a small percentage of homeowner policies sold in Florida. Insurance agents say demand for lower-cost policies are growing as insurance costs skyrocket.
Meanwhile, Florida’s Office of Insurance Regulation told legislators that a department led by then-Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis may have buried thousands of complaints Floridians made against property insurance companies. Consumers lodged more than 52,000 complaints against property insurers, but Patronis’ office referred only 5% of the complaints to regulators for possible violations of state law.
ULA rocket launch Wednesday evening.
ULA has moved the time for tomorrow’s rocket launch from around noon to 7PM. An Atlas V with five side-mounted boosters will send the first operational internet satellites for Amazon to low-Earth orbit. There’s a 65% chance of favorable weather conditions. Project Kuiper is Amazon’s competition to SpaceX’s Starlink satellite constellation.
In other space news, the hearing for NASA’s proposed administrator is set for tomorrow. Jared Isaacman goes before the US Senate Committee on Commerce. President Trump nominated Isaacman to replace NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.
Search for new Brevard County Manager.
The Brevard County Commission is debating how to replace County Manager Frank Abbate. Abbate has announced his retirement, effective May 15. County commissioners are in disagreement on whether to conduct a national or statewide search for a replacement. Abbate said the last time Brevard County did a national search for a county manager, in 2017, the process took six months. In the end, commissioners rejected the outside applicants, and promoted Abbate — who at the time was assistant county manager for public safety.
Port Canaveral to get new Carnival ship.
The Carnival Cruise Line says it will be sending a new ship to Port Canaveral. The Carnival Festivale will debut in the Spring of 2027. It will be the sister ship to the Carnival Mardi Gras, and will take over the longer itineraries from the Port.
Get a piece of history.
Love it or hate it, the bird of paradise carpeting has been a feature of Melbourne airport since 1986. Now, here’s your chance to get a piece of the airport carpet for your home. MLB is hosting a a giveaway for a framed piece of the original carpeting. Enter the contest at the airport’s social media pages. The carpet in the ticketing area is being replaced by terrazzo flooring.
