May 14, 2026
FDOT calls it the tallest fixed bridge of its kind south of Jacksonville — but key amenities remain unfinished, and the economic ripple for Hutchinson Island businesses is only beginning
Fort Pierce's new A1A North Causeway Bridge opens to drivers at 8 a.m. Friday, ending decades of drawbridge delays and railroad crossing conflicts that frustrated commuters, stalled emergency response...
May 17, 2026
Senate and House remain millions apart on Indian River Lagoon, Everglades, and coastal water programs critical to the Treasure Coast
The Indian River Lagoon's fate hangs in the balance of a $175 million dispute between Florida's Senate and House as budget negotiators head into the weekend without a deal on dozens of water and envir...
May 17, 2026
House and Senate committees grind through FY 2026-27 differences as Indian River State College trustees meet Tuesday in Port St. Lucie
Florida's budget special session rolls into its second week with House and Senate committees meeting daily through Friday to close the remaining gaps in the fiscal year 2026-27 spending plan — a proce...
May 17, 2026
Governor joins law enforcement chiefs near the Treasure Coast; Tallahassee budget conferees grind through 2026-2027 spending plan
Gov. Ron DeSantis will appear Wednesday morning at the Brevard County Sheriff's Office North Precinct in Titusville — roughly 60 miles north of Indian River County — alongside state law enforcement an...
May 17, 2026
Senate President expects vote right after Memorial Day; Treasure Coast lawmakers watching for local funding outcomes
Florida's budget special session appears headed for an earlier-than-expected close, with Senate President Ben Albritton saying he expects a final vote right after Memorial Day — potentially wrapping t...
May 17, 2026
More than $1 million in proposed enforcement spending targets construction, real estate, and accounting fraud statewide — with direct implications for the Treasure Coast's active property market.
Florida lawmakers are moving to spend more than $1 million cracking down on unlicensed real estate agents, construction workers, and accountants — a proposal with sharp relevance to the Treasure Coast...
May 18, 2026
The governor says he'll 'get it across the finish line' this month, but Treasure Coast homeowners still don't know what the plan actually does
Gov. Ron DeSantis is barnstorming Florida to sell a homestead property tax overhaul that could reshape tax bills for every homeowner in Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River counties — but he still hasn...
May 19, 2026
A House proposal offers state attorneys a $10,000 raise and 40 new positions — but public defenders would get $3,500 and just eight slots, a disparity critics say threatens justice system balance
Florida's budget standoff over criminal justice staffing could leave public defenders on the Treasure Coast and across the state further behind their prosecutorial counterparts — and legal professiona...
May 19, 2026
A statewide fiscal study found property taxes supply 43% of municipal general fund revenues — making sweeping reform a high-stakes gamble for local governments
Florida lawmakers are moving toward the most sweeping property tax changes in modern state history, and a prominent fiscal policy analyst says the legislation should carry a built-in expiration date b...
May 19, 2026
House proposes $10,000 raise for state attorneys, $3,500 for public defenders — a disparity that legal experts warn could hollow out indigent defense on the Treasure Coast and statewide
Florida's budget standoff over criminal justice staffing could leave the lawyers defending the poor further behind the lawyers prosecuting them — a gap that affects every courtroom in Martin, St. Luci...
May 20, 2026
Residents say 30-plus daily Brightline runs have upended sleep, classrooms, and daily life — commissioners agree to hold future hearing once federal rail official can attend
Jeff Aderman used to sleep through the night. Now, he counts horn blasts.
The Hobe Sound resident told the Martin County Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday that Brightline's passenger rail serv...
May 20, 2026
House and Senate remain deadlocked over cultural grants, with a gap of more than $11 million separating the two chambers
State arts funding that keeps Treasure Coast theaters, museums, and cultural programs alive is hanging by a thread in Tallahassee, where House and Senate negotiators remain far apart on how much Flori...
May 20, 2026
5-0 commission vote clears Kings Highway commerce center despite resident concerns over noise, stormwater
Justin Harrison grew up in the Samba and Copenhaver neighborhoods off Kings Highway. On Tuesday, he stood before the St. Lucie County Commission and asked five elected officials to remember what the r...
May 20, 2026
Unanimous vote ends fee disputes, puts closest truck on scene; philanthropist adds 6.65 acres to Hobe Sound corridor
The Martin County Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to overhaul its fire and emergency services partnership with the City of Stuart, ending a long-running dispute over response protocols and agency...
May 21, 2026
Treasure Coast residents dependent on crisis services face uncertainty as House and Senate remain billions apart on behavioral health funding
Florida's two legislative chambers inched closer Tuesday on mental health spending — but the distance between them still measures in tens of millions of dollars, with real consequences for Treasure Co...
May 21, 2026
Florida budget negotiators missed a Friday deadline on Everglades, citrus, and land deals as House and Senate remain hundreds of millions apart
Florida's special legislative session hit a wall Friday as budget negotiators failed to resolve major funding gaps for Everglades restoration — including the reservoir project most directly responsibl...
May 21, 2026
House and Senate remain deadlocked on whether to shift University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee funding as part of DeSantis-backed campus deal
A $22.47 million dispute over who pays for Gov. Ron DeSantis' plan to hand a University of South Florida campus to New College of Florida remained unresolved as Florida's special budget session entere...
May 24, 2026
Ben Butler's law enforcement coalition targets a seat where Trump won nearly 58% of the vote under a new congressional map
Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers has joined three fellow sheriffs in endorsing Republican Ben Butler for Congress, lending regional law enforcement credibility to a challenge that could flip F...
May 24, 2026
Board granted 30-day extensions across eight cases but drew the line on a 2024 case that has racked up 12 previous delays
The Indian River County Code Enforcement Board imposed a $100-per-day fine on a property owner who failed to correct violations — including use of an RV as living quarters and unpermitted structures —...
May 25, 2026
Miami labor lawyer and former senator vows to fight utility rates and insurance costs if elected — issues hitting Treasure Coast families hard
Florida's largest healthcare and service workers union has thrown its weight behind Democrat José Javier Rodríguez in the race for state Attorney General, a contest that could reshape how Tallahassee ...
