Things To Do In SW Florida

By Alex Brown, Stateline.org

For the first time in decades, America needs to produce more electricity.

In many places, a sharp uptick in power demand has been driven by data centers, the industrial buildings that house huge banks of computer servers and support our increasingly digital society.

State lawmakers have long sought to attract such operations with generous tax breaks and incentives. But now, some are concerned that the infrastructure needed to add all those data centers to the electric grid will drive up residents’ utility bills. The growing use of artificial intelligence, which requires massive amounts of computing power, has added to that worry.

“We’re going to have tremendous stress from AI,” said New Jersey state Sen. Bob Smith, a Democrat who chairs the Environment and Energy Committee. “We have a crisis coming our way in electric rates. These outrageous increases are going to be put on the citizens. Why should they bear the rate increases?”

Smith has authored a bill that would require new AI data centers in New Jersey to arrange to supply their power from new, clean energy sources, if other states in the region enact similar measures. read more

Chapter 7

Central Florida individuals and businesses that have filed for liquidation under Chapter 7 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code include:

Sulsona’s Tools Distributor Corp., 902 Halifax Drive, Kissimmee. Filed: April 8. Assets: $6,329. Liabilities: $85,225. Major creditors: Matco Tools, Stow, Ohio, $83,063; Florida Department of Revenue Orlando Service Center, Orlando, $2,162. Creditors meeting: May 9.

Chapter 11

Central Florida individuals and businesses that have filed for reorganization and protection from creditors under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code include:

First Way Inc., 9640 Sidney Hayes Road, Orlando. Filed: April 4. Assets: $0-$50,000. Liabilities: $1,000,001-$10 million. Major creditors: BMO Harris Bank, Irving, Texas, $119,663; Capital Premium Financing LLC, Draper, Utah, $104,863; National Union Fire Insurance Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., $47,301. Creditors meeting: May 5.

Lake Bennett Village-Ocoee LLC, 5237 Isleworth County Club Drive, Windermere. Filed: April 7. Assets: $32,750,000. Liabilities: $27,422,210. Major creditors: Not available. Creditors meeting: May 5. read more

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE, AP Technology Writer

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google has been branded an abusive monopolist by a federal judge for the second time in less than a year, this time for illegally exploiting some of its online marketing technology to boost the profits fueling an internet empire currently worth $1.8 trillion.

The ruling issued Thursday by U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Virginia comes on the heels of a separate decision in August that concluded Google’s namesake search engine has been illegally leveraging its dominance to stifle competition and innovation.

After the U.S. Justice Department targeted Google’s ubiquitous search engine during President Donald Trump’s first administration, the same agency went after the company’s lucrative digital advertising network in 2023 during President Joe Biden’s ensuing administration in an attempt to undercut the power that Google has amassed since its inception in a Silicon Valley garage in 1998.

Although antitrust regulators prevailed both times, the battle is likely to continue for several more years as Google tries to overturn the two monopoly decisions in appeals while forging ahead in the new and highly lucrative technological frontier of artificial intelligence. read more

By ALEX VEIGA, AP Business Writer

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage in the U.S. climbed to its highest level in eight weeks, a setback for home shoppers in the midst of the spring homebuying season.

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  Recent Central Florida bankruptcies

The rate rose to 6.83% from 6.62% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 7.1%.

Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, also rose. The average rate increased to 6.03% from 5.82% last week. It’s still down from 6.39% a year ago, Freddie Mac said.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, including global demand for U.S. Treasurys, the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions and bond market investors’ expectations for future inflation. read more

By TOM MURPHY, Associated Press Health Writer

UnitedHealth chopped its 2025 forecast after being surprised by rising care use from its Medicare Advantage customers in a worse-than-expected first quarter.

Shares of the health care giant tumbled early Thursday, and the report rattled insurance stocks across the sector.

UnitedHealth said a jump in care use came in far above what the company planned for 2025 and became apparent as the quarter ended. The jump was particularly notable in doctor and outpatient services, which don’t involve overnight hospital stays.

The company’s UnitedHealthcare insurance business is the nation’s largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans, with about 8.2 million people enrolled. Those plans are privately run versions of the federal government program mostly for people ages 65 and older.

UnitedHealth also said Medicare Advantage funding cuts enacted by former President Joe Biden’s administration also hurt.

The company’s fast-growing Optum Health business, which provides provides an array of care, also turned in revenue and earnings well below expectations, Leerink Partners analyst Whit Mayo said in a research note. read more