FAC News Clips - July 9, 2020 -

Route Fifity

3% of Americans Moved Due to the Coronavirus Outbreak

Reports on the exodus of New Yorkers from the locked down city and about the flight of wealthy urbanites to vacation homes in remote locations make it sound as if Americans have eschewed city life in droves. But a new survey found that the coronavirus has sent only a small portion of Americans packing. Three percent of people surveyed by the Pew Research Center reported having moved permanently or temporarily due to the coronavirus pandemic, while 6% said that someone had moved into their home as a result.

Bradenton Herald

Pence says ‘early indications’ show COVID-19 prevention measures working in Florida

Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday said the White House coronavirus task force sees “early indications” that the COVID-19 outbreak in Florida is abating. Florida’s Department of Health reported 9,989 additional cases on Wednesday, making it the fourth highest single-day total on record for COVID-19 cases in the state. However, Dr. Deborah Birx, coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force, said Florida’s numbers may have been higher in the first three days of this week because of delayed reporting after the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

Politico Pro

DeSantis sends health reinforcements to Miami amid Covid-19 spike

TALLAHASSEE — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday sent emergency reinforcements to Miami-Dade County after the most populated region of the state saw the highest rate of new Covid-19 infections in two weeks. DeSantis has summoned 100 contract medical professionals — mostly nurses — to assist with a resurgence of people diagnosed with the coronavirus. He also gave Jackson Memorial Hospital permission to add 47 hospital beds to help treat new Covid-19 patients.

Miami CBS Local

Broward Issues New Emergency Order Affecting Restaurants, Vacation Rentals

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Broward Mayor Dale Holness held a brief news conference on Wednesday afternoon to announce new measures to try to slow down the spread of the coronavirus in the county. Broward restaurants will be facing new rules. The county does not want late-night party crowds treating restaurants like bars. Now they will have to close two hours earlier, at 10 p.m. and have no more than 6 people per table.

Miami Herald

Miami-Dade gets its first affordable housing plan that includes COVID-19 recovery

An ambitious new plan to address Miami-Dade’s growing housing affordability crisis is the first of its kind to incorporate the COVID-19 pandemic in its projections and solutions. The Miami-Dade Affordable Housing Framework, which was unveiled July 2, lays out a detailed plan of action to stave off the ballooning shortage of rentals and homes priced within reach of the 300,000 households — 35% of the county’s total households — that earn $35,000 or less per year.

WTXL

Tallahassee commissioners approve new affordable housing program

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — City commissioners approved a new construction loan program, making new affordable housing options available in the Capital City. Using $750,000 from the affordable housing trust fund, known as the Sadowski fund, funds are made available for single-family home project loans, payable in six to 18 weeks. Mayor John Dailey says this will address a serious need for people in the city.

Florida Politics

Florida has paid out more than $9 billion in unemployment benefits

Florida has now paid out more than $9 billion in unemployment claims, according to the Governor’s office. The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity has paid almost 1.66 million claimants as of Tuesday. A total of $9.07 billion worth of claims have been sent out, according to Helen Aguirre Ferré, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ communications director. Those paid represent about two-thirds of the 2.49 million unique claims submitted to the state, as reported by the Department of Economic Opportunity as Tuesday.

Bloomberg

States Are Abusing Preemption Powers in the Midst of a Pandemic

At a press conference in mid-June, Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts encouraged residents to wear masks. But he would stop short of requiring them. In fact, not only would the state reject a mandated mask requirement, Ricketts said he would withhold federal dollars for coronavirus from any local government that imposed its own mask requirement.  Nebraska’s is an extreme example, but it is not an isolated one. Around the same time, several other states including Texas, Florida, and Arizona said they would block local mask requirements, before eventually ceding to demands and reversing their positions.

Palm Beach Post

Editorial: COVID-19 likely to force reassessment of Florida’s already slimmed-down budget

By Florida standards, it was a flush annual spending allowance, reflecting an encouraging trend among a new generation of pragmatic Republicans who realize that not all government spending is inherently wasteful. And two cornerstones of this emerging philosophy — a $500 million lift for public school teachers’ salaries and a $625 million investment in water quality projects — survived Gov. Ron DeSantis’ billion-dollar belt tightening last week as Florida tries to gather itself after the heavy punch to state revenues from the COVID-19 pandemic.