Florida News That Impacts You – August 19th, 2025
Bottom Line: Your daily recap of the biggest news from around the state that impacts you throughout the Palm Beaches and Treasure Coast.
- Florida produced another record quarter for tourism in the second quarter. According to Visit Florida, 34.4 million people visited the state during the second quarter led by a greater than 11% increase in overseas visitors to the state.
- Florida’s DOGE audit team continues its scheduled two-day audit of Palm Beach County today. In a letter to the County, auditors outlined nine specific areas of interest they’ll focus on as Palm Beach County’s spending has grown 15% faster than adjusted population and inflation growth over the past five years.
- Governor DeSantis has tapped State Representative Mike Caruso to be Palm Beach County’s new Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller to replace Joe Abruzzo who recently became Palm Beach County’s administrator.
- Rain chances are higher today with highs in the low 90’s, which is slightly warmer than usual for this date. A thin layer of Saharan dust is over South Florida and Cuba currently, with a thicker plume east of Erin making its way across the central Atlantic.
- The National Hurricane Center is tracking three systems. Hurricane Erin is a category 3 hurricane with top sustained winds of 115 mph moving NW at 7 MPH west of the Bahamas. Current forecasting doesn’t include a landfall for Erin and minimal impacts are expected for Florida’s coastline. A disturbance in the southern mid-Atlantic has a 60% chance of development and is another system to watch throughout the week as it approaches the Leeward Islands. Another tropical wave has developed off the coast of Africa and has a 30% chance of development as it heads towards the southern mid-Atlantic.
- Gas prices fell three cents per gallon on Monday. The average price for regular unleaded in Florida is currently $3.04 per gallon. In Palm Beach County the average price is $3.19 per gallon, in Martin the average is $3.02, it’s $3.05 in St. Lucie, and in Indian River County the average is $3.02 per gallon.