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“Transportation programs are too critical to our economy to be delayed any longer. Indisputably, getting a Surface Transportation Reauthorization bill done on time and with a substantive funding source will boost our economy, and contribute to fixing our aging bridges, roads, highways, and the operation of our transit systems.

April is Fair Housing Month, and to commemorate the 1968 passage of the federal Fair Housing Act—which prohibits discrimination in housing—civil rights, nonprofit and government agencies, will come together to sponsor the Florida Fair Housing Summit in Orlando on Friday, April 24, 2015. The event is open to the public and will be held at the Orlando World Center Marriott, 8701 World Center Drive, Orlando 32821

Participants are required to attend all three classes, which will address frequently asked questions and problems in the home landscape. The series is being offered to give participants both classroom and hands-on training on how to calibrate a fertilizer spreader, install a micro-irrigation system, and select plant materials. Participants will receive micro-irrigation supplies and a Plant Selection and Landscape Design Guide.

The Lake County Solid Waste Division, in partnership with the Leesburg Police Department, is encouraging Lake County residents to dispose of unwanted household hazardous materials and medications in a safe and environmentally conscious way at an upcoming collection event

The MIAMI Association of REALTORS is pleased to announce Miami native Christina Pappas as the 2015 chairman of the MIAMI’s Young Professionals Network Leadership Board. The YPN board was recently installed at MIAMI’s Annual Inaugural and Awards Luncheon.

The University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Extension in Lake County is providing three free webinars to help residents improve their finances. The live online sessions will provide information on steps to boost overall finances, understand the financial aspects of home ownership and manage credit.

Knight Foundation, Direct Energy and The Miami Foundation support will allow consumers, businesses and local government to experience the future of cities. Smart City Startups, the two-day urban tech conference, highlighting the startups, people, and ideas that are transforming cities, will return to Miami for its second year, with support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and The Miami Foundation.

More than half, 51.5 percent, of U.S. homes have a prepared emergency evacuation kit, according to new metropolitan area-level American Housing Survey statistics released jointly today by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau.

Pressed by a Pacific Legal Foundation lawsuit, county regulators in Florida have agreed to settlement terms concerning the property rights of the husband and wife owners of a popular Hobe Sound restaurant. The Martin County Commission has agreed to allow Robert and Anita Breinig, owners of the Flash Beach Grille, to expand their business without facing punishing fines or any further government meddling.

Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater remains focused on raising awareness about the impact that insurance fraud has on Floridians as Fraud Prevention Month comes to a close. The overall cost of insurance fraud, estimated at more than $80 billion nationwide annually, not only damages insurance companies’ abilities to remain competitive and to provide low rates, but also poses a fiscal drain to law-abiding consumers.

Governor Rick Scott announced Jan. 26 proposed funding for three new state veterans nursing homes as part of the 2015-2016 “KEEP FLORIDA WORKING” budget. One of the new homes, the Ardie R. Copas State Veterans’ Nursing Home, has already been approved by the Florida Cabinet to be located in St. Lucie County. The location for the other two new homes will be considered by the Florida Cabinet upon approval.

The Lake County Solid Waste Division is encouraging Lake County residents to dispose of toxic materials in a safe and environmentally sensitive way at an upcoming Household Hazardous Waste Collection event. The county’s Household Hazardous Waste Mobile Unit will be on site from 9 a.m. – noon on Thursday, April 2 at the Clermont Convenience Center located at 10435 Log House Road, Clermont

More than 500 consumers will receive approximately $500,000 in restitution under a settlement agreement between Attorney General Pam Bondi and several Florida metal building companies. This week, the Attorney General’s Office reached an Assurance of Voluntary Compliance with U.S. Metal Buildings Corp., U.S. Building Systems Corp. d/b/a U.S. Buildings; International Buildings, LLC; and their principals.

Miami single-family home sales registered double-digit growth in February, and all residential median sale prices continued their more than three years of gains, according to a new report by the 35,000-member MIAMI Association of REALTORS® (MIAMI) and the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system.

The Sadowski Housing Coalition today applauded the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development for including full funding for the State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) Program and State Apartment Incentive Loan (SAIL) Program in their Fiscal Year 2015-16 budget proposal. Specifically, the subcommittee’s budget proposal recommends that $153.6 million is allocated to SHIP, which includes $4 million to provide services to homeless persons, and $102.4 million is allocated to SAIL.

Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit announced the arrests of four individuals for allegedly recruiting the homeless to bilk Medicaid out of at least $215,000. According to the investigation, Christina Benson, owner of Tranquility Healthcare Solutions in Orlando, billed Medicaid for services for homeless men and women who were recruited by her associates to pose as patients.

The Department of Financial Services’ Division of State Fire Marshal today announced the arrest of a Broward County man in connection with a series of fire alarm control panel thefts in Broward County. Michael Moser allegedly stole alarm panels from several condominium and apartment complexes, leaving residents without life-saving fire alarm notification systems in the event of a fire

Congresswoman Frederica Wilson (FL-24) issued the following statement on the 50th anniversary of the historic Selma to Montgomery march that took place on March 7, 1965. “The historic march from Selma to Montgomery was a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement that led to the passage of the landmark Voting Rights Act that same year.

John Keppler’s last memory of his father was drinking a Guiness with him on St. Patrick’s Day at the Golden Lion Cafe in Flagler Beach in 2002. Four days later, his father, John Keppler, a volunteer firefighter for Flagler County, died in the line of duty at age 54.

The Florida Department of Financial Services today announced the recent arrest of former title agent Lana Dargai of Estero for stealing more than $705,000 in client funds intended for real estate transactions. As a result of her fraudulent actions, the underwriter for the funds was forced to cover the losses.