Mar 17, 2026
Bills sent to Gov. Ron DeSantis would honor the former president at the Treasure Coast region's main hub and impose new statewide regulations on electric bicycles.
Florida's 2025 legislative session wrapped without a state budget but sent several transportation-related bills to Gov. Ron DeSantis, including measures that would rename Palm Beach International Airp...
Mar 19, 2026
Officials allow residents to resume controlled outdoor burns for agriculture and debris under ongoing Florida Forest Service regulations.
Indian River County officials have lifted an outdoor burn ban, citing recent rainfall that improved fire-danger conditions across the county.
Residents and property owners who rely on controlled outd...
Mar 20, 2026
Treasure Coast government buildings join statewide tribute Saturday for Army Reserve Capt. Cody Khork, killed March 1 in Iranian drone strike in Kuwait.
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday ordered Florida and U.S. flags at the state Capitol and all state and local government buildings to be flown at half-staff Saturday in honor of U.S. Army Reserve Capt. Cody...
Mar 22, 2026
Bills including SB 1745 would expand K-12 school vaccine opt-outs, curb local government budgets, and mandate holds on undocumented truck drivers in Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties.
The Florida Senate is scheduled to take up a broad special-order calendar Friday that includes bills expanding vaccine exemptions for K-12 schools, restricting local government spending, and requiring...
Mar 22, 2026
City commissioners unanimously approved the citation-funded program targeting drivers 11 mph over limits, which could inspire Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties.
Fort Lauderdale's City Commission has unanimously approved a school zone speed camera program that issues citations to drivers traveling 11 or more miles per hour over the posted limit — a technology ...
Mar 22, 2026
Senate and House sessions in Tallahassee target Treasure Coast schools by expanding the guardian program to universities, tightening gang penalties and prohibiting diversity initiatives.
The Florida Legislature convenes Tuesday in Tallahassee with both chambers taking up a range of bills that would directly affect Treasure Coast schools, local governments, businesses, and public safet...
Mar 26, 2026
Political newcomer Emily Gregory won the special election for the Palm Beach-area Florida House seat, a victory national Democrats hail as momentum for 2026 midterms.
A Democrat won a special election Tuesday for a Florida state House seat covering the Palm Beach district that includes President Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, a result national Democrats say signals gro...
Mar 27, 2026
Democrat Brian Nathan's slim edge in the Treasure Coast-adjacent race may trigger a mandatory machine recount if Florida law deems it 0.5% or less amid a rounding debate.
Democrat Brian Nathan leads Republican Josie Tomkow by 405 votes in the Senate District 14 Special Election, but whether that margin is narrow enough to trigger a mandatory machine recount under Flori...
Mar 30, 2026
The measure would honor the president at the airport serving Martin and St. Lucie travelers while blocking local governments from renaming major Florida airports.
The Florida Legislature sent Gov. Ron DeSantis a bill Monday that would rename Palm Beach International Airport after President Donald Trump, a move with direct implications for the airport that serve...
Mar 30, 2026
Residents can settle overdue court fines during Operation Green Light from April 13-24 at three locations to get back on the road legally.
The Martin County Clerk of Court is hosting a two-week driver license reinstatement event beginning April 13, giving residents with suspended licenses a chance to settle overdue court fines at a disco...
Apr 01, 2026
The Trump-endorsed congressman's haul shatters records for non-incumbent candidates, pushing his total past $67 million and outpacing GOP rivals.
Republican Byron Donalds raised $22.2 million in the first quarter of 2026 for his Florida Governor's campaign, a record haul that pushes his total fundraising past $67 million since he entered the ra...
Apr 02, 2026
Oversight committee praises progress but urges faster purchases amid legal concerns on two properties and committed sales tax funds.
Martin County's environmental land acquisition program has collected more than $20 million in sales tax revenue and secured nearly 1,000 acres in fee simple ownership, the Environmental Lands Oversigh...
Apr 02, 2026
The precautionary alert affects about a dozen addresses on 15th Street after a 2-inch PVC line was struck Thursday, with repairs completed by Friday morning but water tests still pending.
The City of Vero Beach issued a precautionary boil water notice Thursday evening for roughly a dozen addresses on 15th Street after a contractor struck and broke a two-inch PVC water main, city offici...
Apr 03, 2026
Voter-backed sales tax revenue has safeguarded Treasure Coast lands from Barbie Ranch to Point Sienna Gardens, but tight budgets and boundary disputes threaten future buys.
Martin County's voter-approved conservation land program has quietly transformed nearly 2,700 acres of Treasure Coast landscape into permanently protected open space, county officials reported Tuesday...
Apr 03, 2026
Unanimous vote allows larger single-story builds for aging residents in areas with upgraded roads, sewers and drainage, pending county commissioners' approval.
A permitting mistake at a subdivision off Pigway Road may soon reshape how much house St. Lucie County homeowners can put on a suburban lot.
The St. Lucie County Planning and Zoning Commission voted ...
Apr 03, 2026
The transfer of County Road 510 and part of CR 512 to Florida's highway system ends years of delays, providing millions for critical infrastructure in the 510 corridor.
A funding bottleneck that has kept Indian River County's most ambitious road project on the drawing board for years may be cracking open. Officials confirmed Tuesday that several county roads will be ...
Apr 03, 2026
Solomon Trucking faces penalties for unpermitted land clearing, while two neighbors' crumbling pipes flood yards in Fort Pierce.
The St. Lucie County Code Enforcement Board voted Tuesday to impose $250-per-day fines on five properties in Fort Pierce, targeting a trucking company that stripped vegetation without permits and two ...
Apr 04, 2026
The unanimous vote, sparked by oversized homes in Noble Oaks Estates, allows larger footprints on qualifying lots across unincorporated areas, reshaping single-story building rules.
What began as a fix for three homes built too large in a single Martin County subdivision could rewrite building rules across every RS2 zoning district in the county.
The Martin County Planning & Zon...
Apr 04, 2026
County officials say the tech upgrade tackles confusing schedules and transfers, potentially boosting ridership across the Treasure Coast.
Indian River County's Go Line bus system is now searchable on Google Maps and Apple Maps, county transportation officials told the Technical Advisory Committee on Tuesday. The change could lower one o...
Apr 04, 2026
Penalties could hit $50,000, with an occupied Fort Pierce rental facing the maximum for an unrepaired rotting roof since December.
The St. Lucie County Code Enforcement Board levied $250-per-day fines against five properties Tuesday, with potential maximum penalties stretching as high as $50,000. In at least one case, tenants are...
Apr 04, 2026
Funded by local sales taxes, the county has acquired 996 acres outright and secured easements on 1,699 more, yet a committee member warns rising land prices demand faster action.
Martin County's environmental land acquisition program has collected $20 million in sales tax revenue and protected nearly 2,700 acres of conservation land — but at least one committee member thinks t...
Apr 06, 2026
The refusal hits home for Treasure Coast voters eyeing the 2026 GOP primary's effects on local property insurance, water quality and growth policies.
Gov. Ron DeSantis refused to endorse his own Lieutenant Governor, Jay Collins, in the Republican gubernatorial primary — declining to back Collins even when asked the question directly in Collins' hom...
Apr 07, 2026
John Panicci, with a prior theft history, stole an encryption key after working Palm Beach County polls, prompting Martin elections chief to warn that stricter checks would hike taxpayer costs.
Florida law sets no minimum background check requirement for poll workers, leaving every county elections office to write its own rules — a gap that came into sharp relief after a man with a decades-o...
Apr 07, 2026
Lt. Gov. Jay Collins warns of a one- to three-year rollout if voters approve the plan, as polls show it risks falling short of the needed threshold in Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties.
The homestead property tax elimination that Florida homeowners on the Treasure Coast have been watching with growing interest may not deliver relief quickly — or easily — if it ever arrives at all.
L...
Apr 08, 2026
Democrat's $5M total lags GOP rival's $67M war chest, but polls show single-digit gap in Florida governor's race.
With gas prices topping $4 a gallon statewide and grocery bills climbing, Democrat David Jolly is betting that Florida voters — including some on the Treasure Coast — are ready to change course in Tal...
Apr 08, 2026
The Miami-Dade entrepreneur leverages overlapping districts to challenge freshman Republican Sen. Alexis Calatayud without rebuilding his voter base from scratch.
Richard Lamondin, a Democratic entrepreneur who spent more than a year building a congressional campaign in Miami-Dade County, is expected to announce Tuesday that he is abandoning that race. Instead,...
Apr 08, 2026
The abortion rights group now supports 21 candidates statewide, highlighting Emily Gregory's 2.3-point victory in Trump territory as evidence of its early-investment strategy.
Energized by what it calls a blueprint victory, Ruth's List Florida this week endorsed five more Democratic women running for local offices across the state, growing its 2025 endorsement roster to 21 ...
Apr 08, 2026
The 16-acre site along Jungle Trail, a survivor of Hurricane Matthew, honors pioneer citrus trade after a seven-year restoration.
The fishing pier where 19th-century citrus growers once loaded oranges onto boats bound for the Flagler railroad is open to the public again — 140 years after the Jones family first homesteaded the la...
Apr 09, 2026
Florida House Speaker Daniel Perez confirmed no return to Tallahassee next week, leaving Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties in limbo on state grants for infrastructure and environmental projects.
Florida lawmakers will not return to Tallahassee next week to finish the state's overdue budget, House Speaker Daniel Perez confirmed Wednesday — leaving Treasure Coast counties without clarity on sta...
Apr 09, 2026
The Democratic gubernatorial hopeful, sole Florida candidate invited to the National Action Network Convention, leads GOP rival Byron Donalds by 9 points in a Palm Beach poll amid rising local gas and grocery costs.
David Jolly, the Democratic candidate for Florida governor, will address the National Action Network Convention in New York City on Thursday — the only Florida gubernatorial candidate invited to speak...
Apr 09, 2026
SB 1028 mandates private market quotes for malls, condos and hotels in Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties before using state-backed Citizens, aiming to cut costs.
A bill awaiting Gov. Ron DeSantis' signature could reshape how commercial properties across the Treasure Coast — from beachfront condos in Jensen Beach to strip malls in Port St. Lucie — shop for prop...
Apr 10, 2026
Peters, Speir, Pope and Gruters have raised or loaned over $180,000 combined, vying to shape water, housing and military policies affecting Treasure Coast voters.
Three Republicans are already spending real money to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan in Florida's 16th Congressional District, with the early field shaped by self-funded candidates, an anti-e...
Apr 10, 2026
The clean-water group praises the Democrat's anti-pollution record, signaling strong support for Treasure Coast voters battling Lake Okeechobee discharges and algae blooms.
A South Florida clean-water advocacy group that knows this coastline well has thrown its support behind Democrat José Javier Rodríguez in the race for Florida Attorney General as the former state lawm...
Apr 11, 2026
The sweeping SB 182, blending teacher mentoring, charter protections, cursive mandates and private school zoning, gives the governor 15 days to act on changes affecting local education.
A bill co-written by a Stuart Republican now sits on Gov. Ron DeSantis' desk, carrying provisions that could reshape how Treasure Coast charter schools handle struggling students, where private school...
Apr 11, 2026
South Florida Water Management District board meets at 9 a.m. in West Palm Beach to discuss conditions affecting local farmers, amid statewide webinar on childhood poverty and Senate roundtable on agriculture.
A webinar on childhood poverty in Florida, a water supply update from the South Florida Water Management District, and a U.S. Senate roundtable on agriculture headline a busy Thursday of government an...
Apr 11, 2026
Gloria Romero Roses raised $134,000 in the first quarter for vacant House District 113, pushing her total to $196,000, while the seat remains empty for over five months.
A Miami-Dade legislative seat has sat empty for more than five months, and the Democrat angling to fill it just posted her strongest fundraising quarter yet — even as Gov. Ron DeSantis has yet to sche...
Apr 11, 2026
The Martin-St. Lucie swing seat, held by Republicans since 2018, heats up as the lawyer targets rising insurance costs and overdevelopment for local families.
Democratic lawyer Wayne Richter pulled in more than $82,000 during his first month as a candidate in House District 85, a Martin-St. Lucie swing seat that Republicans have held since 2018 and that bot...
Apr 12, 2026
Treasure Coast counties stand to benefit as the Joint Legislative Budget Commission convenes April 17 to unlock federal grants for Miami stadium security and rural clinic aid.
Florida lawmakers are set to unlock more than $90 million in federal grant money next week — dollars that could ripple from Miami's soccer stadiums to rural clinics on the Treasure Coast — when the Jo...
Apr 12, 2026
Party leaders highlight flipping two legislative seats and recruiting 1,200 candidates since 2025, signaling potential shifts in Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties.
Florida Democrats are riding a surge of energy after flipping two state legislative seats in special elections, with party leaders pointing to record candidate recruitment as evidence the political la...
Apr 12, 2026
The former congressman spent years in Minnesota after losing his St. Petersburg home, a displacement story resonating with Treasure Coast voters hit by recent hurricanes.
Charlie Crist, the former Florida governor and congressman who spent years as one of the state's most recognizable political figures, lost his St. Petersburg home to the hurricanes that battered the G...
Apr 13, 2026
The insurance business owner enters the crowded GOP primary for HD 74 with $140K cash on hand, trailing leader Kelly Ann Walker's $300K war chest.
Jennifer Winkler, a Vero Beach native who built an insurance business from the ground up in Sarasota County, has raised $150,000 in her Republican primary bid for House District 74 — the open seat cre...
Apr 17, 2026
Lawmakers blast the Agency for Health Care Administration for not expanding children's health insurance despite unspent funds, impacting thousands of families in Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties.
Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration is sitting on a $32 million surplus in its KidCare children's health insurance program while the state has not moved to expand coverage — a gap that dre...
Apr 18, 2026
St. Augustine Republican Sam Greco raised nearly $60K in Q1 2026, signaling a dominant lead in the St. Johns County seat.
Florida House District 19's incumbent Republican Sam Greco entered the 2026 campaign cycle with a commanding financial lead, outraising his Democratic opponent by more than 73-to-1 in the first quarte...
Apr 18, 2026
The first-term lawmaker's massive fundraising edge points to an easy August primary win, with her opponent already spending most of his scant funds.
A first-term state House member from St. Johns County has built a fundraising advantage so lopsided ahead of her August primary that her challenger's entire war chest wouldn't cover a week of campaign...
Apr 19, 2026
Emily Gregory's $214K haul challenges GOP's Jon Maples in District 87 special election bordering Treasure Coast, with Tuesday's vote looming.
More than $1 million in combined cash and in-kind assistance has flowed into a Palm Beach County special election for a state House seat that Republicans are fighting to hold, with Tuesday's vote set ...
Apr 20, 2026
House Speaker Daniel Perez blames Gov. Ron DeSantis for not delivering a plan after over a year of promises, leaving the House's homestead tax elimination bill in limbo.
Treasure Coast homeowners who have watched their property tax bills climb alongside surging assessments may be waiting even longer for relief, as a public standoff between Florida's top Republican lea...
Apr 22, 2026
The 66% approval could inspire Treasure Coast leaders in Stuart, Port St. Lucie and Vero Beach to align local votes with statewide races for higher participation.
Coral Gables voters on Tuesday approved moving the city's municipal elections from April to November, a structural reform that Treasure Coast city leaders are likely to monitor as local governments he...
Apr 22, 2026
SB 1134 prohibits local diversity initiatives in Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties, with officials facing removal for non-compliance.
Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River county governments — along with every municipality and school district on the Treasure Coast — must dismantle their diversity, equity and inclusion programs by Jan....
Apr 22, 2026
Starting July 1, low-income families in Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties gain access to lessons amid 119 child drowning deaths statewide in 2025.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a law expanding Florida's free swimming lesson voucher program to children up to age 7, a change that advocates say could pull more Treasure Coast families back from the e...
Apr 23, 2026
The new measure bars Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River officials from treating campsites like occupied homes for special assessments, easing charges on regulated parks effective immediately.
Florida law now bars Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River counties from calculating certain property fees on RV parks as if each campsite were a fully occupied home — a formula critics said produced in...
Apr 23, 2026
Co-sponsored by Palm City's Rep. John Snyder, the measure effective July 1 bars Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties from net-zero targets or carbon taxes.
A bill signed Thursday by Gov. Ron DeSantis that prohibits local governments from adopting carbon-reduction policies was co-sponsored by Rep. John Snyder of Palm City, bringing the statewide preemptio...
Apr 23, 2026
Highland Beach Republican Rep. Peggy Gossett-Seidman raised $32,000 in Q1, holding $57,000 cash on hand after GOP flipped the southern Palm Beach seat in 2022.
Two Democrats filed this month to challenge Highland Beach Republican Rep. Peggy Gossett-Seidman in House District 91, a southern Palm Beach County seat the GOP flipped in 2022. The incumbent nearly d...
Apr 24, 2026
Republican incumbent Brian Mast enters April with $2.5 million cash on hand, dwarfing Democratic challenger Pia Dandiya's $1.2 million that includes a $197,000 self-loan.
Republican U.S. Rep. Brian Mast and his Democratic challenger Pia Dandiya together raised more than $1 million in the first quarter of the year, setting up what could be a well-funded fight for the co...
Apr 24, 2026
Treasure Coast families could gain veto power on minors' AI accounts as lawmakers debate SB 2D in a special session starting Tuesday, despite House resistance.
Florida lawmakers will take up a sweeping artificial intelligence consumer protection bill during a Special Session beginning Tuesday, reviving a measure that cleared the Senate earlier this year befo...
May 01, 2026
The measure requires 60% dues-paying members and 50% election participation, risking decertification for Treasure Coast educator unions starting July 1.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation Wednesday that sets stricter membership and dues thresholds for public employee unions — a change that could force teacher unions across Martin, St. Lucie,...
May 02, 2026
The bill creates a new state board to license naturopathic doctors, promising herb therapy and nutrition options for Treasure Coast residents facing primary care shortages, despite critics' warnings of unproven practices.
Florida's Legislature has passed a bill that would license naturopathic doctors in the state for the first time since 1959 — a move that could open new healthcare options for Treasure Coast residents ...
May 03, 2026
The unanimous vote targets the Village Parkway crossing with extended turn lanes, a new through lane and relocated bus stop to curb over 2,000 citations since 2020.
The Port St. Lucie City Council voted unanimously Monday to approve a $1.5 million design plan for the chronically congested intersection of Village Parkway and Tradition Parkway. The crossing has rac...
