Things To Do In SW Florida

For many years, the Pension Retirement Center (PRC), a nonprofit organization has provided services at no cost related to individual retirement plans. The center has encouraged the development of a database of information about benefits that employees are entitled to from previous retirement plans. As a result of the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022, the Department of Labor created such a database.

If you believe you are entitled to assets in a retirement plan from prior employment, it is to your advantage to access this “lost and found” database.

Currently, the database, known as RSLF, is provided information by retirement plan administrators and authorized third parties, such as plan record keepers. The administrators should file, at least annually, but they are encouraged to file more frequently, such as quarterly.

The information filed should identify the separated vested participants who are age 65 or older and may be owed benefits. It can also contain information regarding survivor benefits. read more

In an effort to keep alive their bid to resurrect the availability of so-called “one-way attorneys fees” in lawsuits against insurers, the Florida House adopted a bill that added their proposal to an unrelated Senate bill on Friday.

But if the House had hoped the amended bill would slip by the Senate, proponents of reforms that reduced insurers’ legal costs are urging senators to reject it when it comes back to them in the coming days.

“I hope the Senate will do the right thing and be the adults in the room,” said Stacey Giulianti, chief legal officer at Boca Raton-based Florida Peninsula Insurance.

The effort to restore the right of plaintiffs to claim attorneys fees in lawsuits against insurers has overshadowed dozens of other insurance-related bills introduced for the session, leaving only a handful with minor impacts poised for enactment.

Until the late bid emerged, the Senate seemed content to ignore bills that would require insurers to once again pay fees incurred by policyholders who sue them. read more

Frustrated by what they see as high costs and low ridership, Seminole County officials plan to cut most Lynx bus routes and launch a micro-transit service that dispatches small vans to homes and offices to shuttle riders around the county.

The plan would leave running the most heavily used routes closest to the Orange County border but would cancel the others that county officials say often have mostly empty buses.

According to details unveiled at a county meeting this week, Seminole would hire a private company by Oct. 1 to provide on-demand, door-to-door van service for most of the county — except in the eastern rural area where Lynx doesn’t provide service.

Seminole Commissioners have long blasted Orlando-based Lynx — which runs buses in Seminole, Orange and Osceola counties — as inefficient and not worth the $17 million cost this year.

But some longtime Seminole Lynx riders wonder if replacing many routes with a door-to-door, on-demand service would be efficient and dependable.

On a recent morning, Paul Pilkington waited to transfer to a second bus at a Lynx stop in Fern Park. He frequently uses Lynx for medical appointments, taking buses to get from his home near Longwood to Orlando because he can’t afford a car. read more

Billionaire and two-time traveler to space Jared Isaacman could soon get the full Senate’s attention for his nomination by President Donald Trump to be the next head of NASA.

Isaacman testified April 9 before the Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation and written responses to questions from Republican and Democratic members were published Thursday.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas and committee chairman, set a 10 a.m. session for Wednesday during which members could vote on Isaacman’s nomination and send it to the Senate floor for consideration.

Members from both sides of the aisle raised concerns about proposed budget cuts, especially to science missions, and pressed Isaacman for commitments to prioritize the moon over Mars.

His responses tiptoed around some issues, such as how involved SpaceX founder Elon Musk may have been in Trump’s decision to nominate Isaacman, as well avoiding any outright financial promises.

Isaacman twice flew as a customer of SpaceX, first with the Inspiration4 mission in 2021 on what was the first all-civilian orbital spaceflight. Last year he was on the Polaris Dawn mission during which he and a SpaceX employee performed the first commercial spacewalk. read more

TALLAHASSEE — The Florida House approved a major overhaul of hotel taxes on Friday, a change that could have far-reaching ramifications for Orlando and the region’s tourism industry.

The House’s plan would transform the tourist development tax, mandating that 75% of revenue go to property tax relief starting in 2026. County leaders could spend the remaining portion on any civic need they choose, flexibility that has been sought by some local officials in recent years.

The shakeup still needs approval from the Senate and the governor to take effect, and, while they are all touting tax relief, they are at odds over how to cut Floridians’ tax bills.

The changes would apply statewide, but they would be particularly felt in Orlando, the world’s theme park capital and a mega-tourism destination.

Orange County collected about $360 million in hotel taxes last year from a 6% levy on hotel room and short-term rental nights. Historically, the revenues have been spent on the marketing organization Visit Orlando, building and expanding the convention center and sports and arts venues. read more