Florida News That Impacts You – August 14th, 2025
Bottom Line: Your daily recap of the biggest news from around the state that impacts you throughout the Palm Beaches and Treasure Coast.
- Governor DeSantis announced that over 8,700 law enforcement professionals throughout the state have now been awarded with recruitment bonuses since 2022 through the state’s Recruitment Bonus Payment Program, which awards $5,000 bonuses after taxes, to newly employed officers within the state.
- The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission unanimously approved a bear hunt for December. 187 permits will be handed out on a lottery system allowing one bear to be taken within four regions across the state. It’s the first authorized bear hunt in Florida since 2015.
- The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office has requested an operating budget of $1.1 billion for the next year – an increase of about 11% year-over-year. Sheriff Ric Bradshaw touted a 17% reduction in crime and said the increase will be used to protect the community. The request comes amid Florida’s DOGE team auditing Palm Beach County next Monday and Tuesday.
- It'll be sunny and hot again today with highs in the low 90’s, which is slightly warmer than usual for this date. A dense layer of Saharan dust is passing through the Leeward Islands and Carribean Sea enroute towards the Gulf of America with another plume just behind Tropical Storm Erin. Related...
- The National Hurricane Center is tracking two systems. A disturbance in the southwestern Gulf is unlikely to develop. Tropical Storm Erin is expected to develop into season’s first hurricane by tomorrow morning as it tracks across the Southern Atlantic developing into a major hurricane this weekend. Models generally show the system likely turning north on the approach to the Caribbean towards Bermuda but it’s worth keeping an eye on until it makes the turn.
- Gas prices rose by another four cents per gallon on Wednesday. The average price for regular unleaded in Florida is currently $3.13 per gallon. In Palm Beach County the average price is $3.27 per gallon, in Martin the average is $3.17, it’s $3.15 in St. Lucie, and in Indian River County the average is $3.15 per gallon.