Tax cuts and social security
Florida has one of the highest numbers of people receiving Social Security benefits each month.
More than eight out of every 10 Floridians who are 65 and older get a Security Security check.
President Donald Trump had pledged to end federal income taxes on Social Security benefits. His new tax and spending law instead provides a new tax deduction if you're at least 65 years old.
We looked at how the bill may impact current and future retirees and answered some of your questions about the changes.
Guest:
- Louis Jacobson, chief correspondent for PolitiFact.
New college accreditor
Florida is moving ahead with an effort to change a century-old system on assessing colleges and universities.
Last week, the Florida Board of Governors approved creating a new accreditation agency called the Commission for Public Higher Education.
It still needs to be approved by the U.S. Department of Education.
The state expects public universities in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas A&M University to join the group.
Guest:
- Douglas Soule, WUSF's state government reporter.
Flash flooding
Much of the state experienced heavy rainfall throughout the week with some regions experiencing flash flooding.
As we head into the weekend, temperatures—and more importantly, heat index values—are expected to soar.
Guest:
- Megan Borowski, meteorologist with the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network.
Weekly news briefing
Gov. Ron DeSantis this week named Republican State Senator Blaise Ingoglia of Sarasota to be the state's chief financial officer.
Tens of millions of dollars of federal funding for public schools in Florida is frozen and school districts are cutting programs as a new year school approaches.
As districts scramble their budgets for the school year to come, a group of incoming 6th graders at a private school may be on their phones a lot less when they're not in school.
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