Rays stadium

The Rays are going to make a major announcement today regarding a deal to build a new stadium in downtown St. Petersburg with contributions from the team, the city of St. Petersburg, and Pinellas County. Stuart Sternberg, Rays’ principal owner, is “highly optimistic” of a deal being reached by the end of the year.

Florida House speaker

A ceremony was held in the House for Miami Republican Representative Daniel Perez who has been designated as the 2024-2026 legislative term Florida House Speaker.

Working minors

Republican Linda Chaney of St. Pete Beach filed a bill (HB 49) that would lift restrictions on the number of hours that 16 and 17-year-old youths can work in Florida. The bill says, “Minors 16 and 17 years of age may be employed, permitted, or suffered to work the same number of hours as a person who is 18 years of age or older”.

Voting registration

Faith in Florida is registering new voters in Eatonville today as they try to get ahead of a new elections law that requires residents to register to vote by mail more frequently.

Hillsborough lost cemeteries

The University of South Florida is showcasing an investigation of over 40 lost cemetery grounds in Hillsborough County. Almost half of the located sites primarily held the graves of African Americans, and Afro-Cubans, or were classified as “colored” during the segregation era. The exhibit is open to the public through January 30 in the Social Science Building on the USF Tampa Campus.

Spending bills or shutdown

Congress member Debbie Wasserman Schultz says that a potential federal government shutdown by the Republican-led House would kneecap working families and federal employees. Federal government employees face being furloughed should Congress fail to pass spending bills before October 1^st.

Information from the Florida Public Media, News Service of Florida, and Associated Press was used in this report.

The Scoop: Tampa Bay & Florida headlines by WMNF

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