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Press availability with Baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr. The City of Tampa and the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation will unveil a multi-purpose Youth Development Park to the Springhill Park Community Center in Sulphur Springs

On Wednesday, March 23rd at 1:00 PM at the Development Services Center the City of Tampa will host a mandatory technical meeting for those interested in submitting a Request for Proposal (RFP). The Nehemiah Project is working to clear the Sulphur Springs neighborhood of blight and crime by creating safe and affordable living as well as transforming the neighborhood while keeping its diverse history in mind

Mayor Buckhorn will join Wesley Burdette, owner and developer of The Warehouse Lofts, and the community to cut the ribbon on the 54-unit loft-style apartment building

The 2016 Florida Fair Housing Summit: A Call to Advance Housing Rights and Opportunities registration is now open! The one-day event will be held Thursday, April 28, 2016, in Orlando, Florida at the Rosen Centre Hotel. You don’t want to miss this exciting opportunity to learn about the latest housing trends!

Congressman John Mica hosted a ceremony here March 9, transferring the vacant 120-bed former VA community living center at the Lake Baldwin VA medical complex from the federal government to the State of Florida. The building, dedicated in 1999, was converted to clinical and office use approximately two years ago, when a newer VA community living center was opened at the VA’s new Lake Nona campus.

Tampa residents and property owners are reminded to check their timer settings on irrigation system controllers this weekend when changing from Eastern Standard to Daylight Saving Time

“Having a working smoke alarm allows residents time to get out of a burning home, and cuts the chances of dying in a residential fire in half,” said Lake County Fire Rescue Fire Marshal Capt. Michael Vitta. “Most home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes without a proper smoke alarm, which is why it is so important to install smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each sleeping area and on every level of your home, and to make sure they are working at all times.”

Today, the House Financial Services Committee passed the Flood Insurance Market Parity and Modernization Act introduced by U.S. Representatives Dennis Ross (FL-15) and Patrick E. Murphy (FL-18), both members of the committee. This bipartisan bill would encourage the development of a robust private flood insurance market that will provide homeowners more coverage options and lower costs. Having been ordered out of the committee with broad bipartisan support, the bill now is in line for consideration by the full House of Representatives.

U.S. Representatives Patrick E. Murphy (FL-18) and Curt Clawson (FL-19) introduced legislation to enact an advanced deadline for completion of repairs to the Herbert Hoover Dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee to help bring relief to our waterways that are currently in crisis. The bipartisan bill calls for an emergency appropriation of $800 million to carry out these expedited repairs so that once completed, more water can safely be stored within the lake, reducing the need for damaging discharges east and west into local estuaries.

the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure passed H.R. 1684, the Foreign Spill Protection Act, introduced by U.S. Representatives Carlos Curbelo (FL-26) and Patrick E. Murphy (FL-18). In the event of an oil spill, the legislation would require the responsible party, regardless of origin, to pay for all American cleanup costs by applying the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA) to them. Furthermore, this bipartisan bill would apply the Clean Water Act penalties on the responsible foreign party.

When a family member passes away life insurance policies can help cover things like the funeral and outstanding debts—really anything. But what if the surviving family members don’t know about the policy? Well when that happens the money stays with the insurance company earning interest. Rep. Bill Hager (R-Delray Beach) wants to see insurers getting more proactive about policies. He says just look at annuities

The Justice Department announced today that Thomas Mere, the owner and operator of Mere’s Mobile Home and Recreational Vehicle Park in North Fort Myers, Florida, has agreed to pay $40,000 to resolve allegations that he discriminated against African Americans in violation of the Fair Housing Act.  The settlement, which is in the form of a consent order, must still be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida

This morning, Florida Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater testified before the Florida House Regulatory Affairs Committee in support of HB 1041, sponsored by Representative Bill Hager, which strengthens the rights of life insurance beneficiaries. HB 1041 and its Senate companion, SB 966 sponsored by Senator Lizbeth Benacquisto, have successfully and unanimously passed all committee stops and yesterday, SB 966 passed unanimously on the Senate floor.

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) today issued the following statement regarding his participation in an amicus brief, filed in the case of West Virginia v. E.P.A.(Environmental Protection Agency) which urges the District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals to invalidate President Obama’s Clean Power Plan:

U.S. Representative Patrick E. Murphy (FL-18) sent the following letter to leadership in the Florida Legislature in support of legislation allocating Amendment 1 Land Acquisition Trust Fund dollars for Everglades restoration projects that will benefit local waterways by cleaning, storing, and moving more water south of Lake Okeechobee. Copies of the letter were sent to Florida Senate President Andy Gardiner, House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, Chairman Alan Hays, Chairman Richard Corcoran, Senate Democratic Leader Arthenia L. Joyner, House Democratic Leader Mark Pafford, Vice Chair Oscar Braynon II, Ranking Member Janet Cruz, Senator Joe Negron, and Representative Gayle Harrell.

U.S. Representative Patrick E. Murphy made the following statement applauding the recent acquisitions of new conservation easements to expand the Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge and Conservation Area by 5,300 acres, including flood protection areas and water storage lands. Murphy has been a strong supporter of this initiative to help maintain open land north of Lake Okeechobee to improve the water quality and increase water storage in the area, complementing the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP).

The Realtors Commercial Alliance of the MIAMI Association of REALTORS® (MIAMI) has elected Coral Gables Realtor Maria G. Juncadella, CCIM, MBA, as its 2016 president. She and the entire Board of Directors were installed Feb. 12 at MIAMI’s Annual Inaugural and Awards Luncheon.

U.S. Representative Patrick E. Murphy (FL-18) applauded the announcement made by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that they will increase flows from Lake Okeechobee south into Everglades National Park. Raising the water levels of the L-29 canal, which runs parallel to the Tamiami Trail, can help reduce the negative impact heavy rainfall has caused throughout the entire Everglades system, including the discharges east and west from the lake that are harming the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon on the Treasure Coast.

The Florida Attorney General’s Office today announced a multi-million dollar settlement with home builder KB HOME and its Florida subsidiaries. The Attorney General’s Office entered a stipulated consent decree and final judgment to resolve a three-year investigation of KB HOME for violations of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. KB HOME allegedly failed to make certain disclosures to home buyers regarding the construction of some of its homes and improperly denied warranty coverage to certain homeowners who were otherwise covered.

Attorney General Pam Bondi today announced that the U.S. Supreme Court ordered an immediate halt to President Barack Obama’s unlawful power plan. The Court order is in response to a legal challenge brought by a bipartisan coalition of 29 states and state agencies, including Florida. While the stay is a major victory, the states’ litigation to stop the administration’s unlawful overreach continues in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.