NewsNight WUCF TV

Following the recent approval of a toll road extension through the Split Oak Forest, NewsNight looks at what it means for the Florida Wildlife Corridor and conservation of our state’s protected lands. Plus, the panel discusses severe flooding in South Florida following recent heavy rains.

Governor DeSantis says the state will allocate $1.25 billion dollars in the next Florida budget to pay for teacher salary increases. It’ll be the latest in a series of compensation hikes for teachers since DeSantis took office. But tensions remain with unions who say the state continues to suffer shortages and ranks near the bottom in the nation for overall teacher pay.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issues its forecast for hurricane season which begins on June 1st with its highest ever prediction for the number of named storms. It follows the signing of a new bill removing all remaining references to “climate change” from Florida law, stripping an emphasis on renewables from the state’s energy policy, and prioritizing fossil fuels.

New rules barring local governments from implementing heat protections for workers, beyond existing state and federal regulations, come into force in Florida this summer. NewsNight looks at what the incoming legislation will mean for employees, and why some businesses support the restrictions.

In the second part of our NewsNight Conversations series on Central Florida’s water issues, experts and local officials discuss efforts to improve the resilience of coastal areas as the state ramps up spending on the work. An in-depth look at how our region can shore up its coastline to mitigate future damage from sea level rise and storms.

 In the first of a two-part NewsNight Conversations series, community members and stakeholders look at how a years-long effort to restore Florida’s treasured Indian River Lagoon is going, and the challenges remaining in rejuvenating and maintaining the waterway and its wildlife.