Opposition in new congressional map
Monday, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a new congressional map ahead of this year’s midterms that reshapes the state’s political landscape to favor Republicans. WFIT’s Terri Wright has more.
Florida Republicans approved the new map, which DeSantis’s office drew, in a legislative special session last week. It ignores state constitutional protections against partisan gerrymandering, assuming that they will be invalidated in the wake of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling. Twenty-four of Florida’s 28 seats in the U.S. House will favor the GOP under the new map, four more than under the previous map. Hours after DeSantis signed the new map, a community group filed suit, saying it violates the state constitution.
Biosolid ban may continue
The biosolid ban in Brevard has been going on for seven years now, although experts still do not know exactly how long the contaminants that arise from the sewage remain in soil and water. Biosolids come from sewage treatment and are used to fertilize farmland, improving soil, and saves farmers money on synthetic fertilizer costs. However, conservationists are concerned about long-term use of biosolids, as they may create pollution in the Indian River Lagoon. Contaminants such as phosphorus, nitrogen, metals, and microplastics can harm ecosystems and give way to polluting groundwater and surface waters. Brevard county commissioners will be holding a meeting this week to consider continuing the ban.
Elections coming up
Gov. Ron De Santis is not running for governor again as he is approaching the end of his second term. The next Florida governor will be elected on Tuesday, Nov.3, of this year. Currently, there are 48 candidates that have filed to run for the position of Florida governor. Another upcoming election is the primary election, and that will be Tuesday, Aug. 18, later this year. The deadline to register or change party affiliation is July 20th and the deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot is Aug. 6.
KSC Director retires.
NASA announced Friday that Janet Petro, Director of Kennedy Space Center, is retiring. Petro was the 11th director of KSC and the first woman to lead the facility. She grew up in Brevard County and graduated from Satellite High. Kelvin Manning has stepped into the role of acting center director.
In other NASA news, in Washington a House appropriations subcommittee advanced a spending bill that would keep overall NASA funding at 2026 levels, rejecting a 23% cut proposed by the White House. The bill goes to the full committee on May 13.
Another blow has hit Boeing as NASA says it’s not ready yet to schedule the next flight of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft to the ISS. Boeing and NASA continue to work through the problems found in the 2024 Starliner test flight.
Third drowning in a month.
Another person has drowned off the Space Coast. A 17-year-old drowned in the surf off Lori Wilson Park on Saturday. That’s the third drowning death in less than a month in Cocoa Beach. Brevard County lifeguards safely brought a 12-year-old to shore during the same rescue attempt. The National Weather Service issued another warning for a high risk of rip currents through early Tuesday.