Sports betting in Florida close but not yet ready to launch

Sports betting becomes legal in Florida Friday, but you won’t be able to place your bets immediately. Not a single casino in the state has announced a date it will start taking wagers. There are several legal challenges, and those could tie up gambling until 2022. The good news: It’s very likely there will be […]

CEO on why giving all employees minimum salary of $70,000 “works”

It was six years ago when CEO Dan Price raised the salary of everyone at his Seattle-based credit card processing company Gravity Payments to at least $70,000 a year. Price slashed his own salary by $1 million to be able to give his employees a pay raise. He was hailed a hero by some and […]

Ag commissioner urges buying Florida-grown crops

Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried on Monday urged people to purchase Florida-grown blueberries, strawberries and other produce to help counter what she described as “unfair foreign trade practices” by Mexico. Fried, who is running for governor, made the request as she released a report from the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services about economic injury […]

Trapper still searching for alligator that attacked man in south Fort Myers

A trapper is still searching for an alligator nearby a busy park after a man was attacked by it. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has one of its contracted, nuisance alligator trappers still searching for an alligator in the area of Wa-Ke Hatchee Park in south Fort Myers Tuesday. This comes after 60-year-old William […]

3 U.S. senators test positive in “breakthrough” COVID-19 cases

Three U.S. senators — John Hickenlooper, Angus King and Roger Wicker — announced Thursday that they all have tested positive for coronavirus. All three senators were vaccinated and experiencing a “breakthrough” case of COVID-19. Hickenlooper, a Democrat from Colorado, announced his positive result on Twitter. “I’ve tested positive for a breakthrough case of COVID-19,” he […]

Ex-chair of Purdue denies responsibility for opioid crisis

The former president and board chair of the company that makes OxyContin told a court Wednesday that he, his family and the company did not cause the opioid crisis in the United States. Richard Sackler, a member of the family that owns Purdue Pharma, was asked under oath during a federal bankruptcy hearing whether he, […]

Feds raise concerns about governor’s school mask order

The U.S. Department of Education is “deeply concerned” about Gov. Ron DeSantis’ executive order seeking to ban school mask mandates and is ready to help districts directly, the federal agency said in a letter to the governor Friday. “Florida’s recent actions to block school districts from voluntarily adopting science-based strategies for preventing the spread of […]

Boat goes up in flames on Naples Bay, 3 on board are safe

Naples Fire-Rescue Department responded to a boat fire Tuesday night on Naples Bay between Port Royal and Royal Harbor. Three people on board were able to evacuate without injuries and were rescued by another boat in the area. According to the fire department’s Facebook post, it was a 17-foot bay boat that went up in […]

DeSantis urges Cuban military to overthrow government

Gov. Ron DeSantis told young members of Cuba’s military to “live in the history books” by overthrowing their nation’s communist leadership, as he pushed President Joe Biden to bring Wi-Fi access back to people protesting on the island nation. DeSantis, appearing in Miami on Thursday, reiterated his request that the White House allow Florida to […]

NRA appeals ruling on gun sales to people under 21

The National Rifle Association on Wednesday went to a federal appeals court after a judge last month upheld a Florida law that prevents people under age 21 from buying guns. The NRA, which challenged the constitutionality of the law after it passed in 2018, filed a notice of appealing the ruling by Chief U.S. District […]