Florida News That Impacts You – June 12th, 2026
Bottom Line: Your daily recap of the biggest news from around the state that impacts you throughout the Palm Beaches and Treasure Coast.
- Florida is the fifth most dangerous state for pedestrians according to Smart Growth America’s annual Dangerous by Design study which accounts for pedestrian safety features in communities and compares pedestrian fatality inflation across the country. The Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville region is the most dangerous in the state, according to the study – ranking 11th most dangerous nationally. Deltona-Daytona-Beach-Ormond Beach is 14th, North Port Bradenton-Sarasota is 15th, Jacksonville is 16th, and the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metro is the 17th most dangerous nationally.
- Sara Baxter’s bid for the District 22 congressional seat is over. President Trump, who previously endorsed Palm Beach County Mayor Sara Baxter for county commission, did not endorse her bid for congress but rather encouraged her to run for reelection to the county commission. In a post to Truth Social the president said: Sara Baxter is a fantastic person, and highly qualified for many top political jobs but, on a somewhat selfish basis, I would rather her stay on the Palm Beach County Commission (where so many important things are happening!), than run for Congress. Baxter then withdrew her bid for congress and is once again seeking reelection to the county commission.
- The first Trader Joe’s in West Palm Beach is set to open this morning. The company announced that the new location on Dixie Hwy and Gregory Road will hold a grand opening at 9 this morning, with regular hours and operations set to begin on Saturday. The new location marks the fourth Trader Joes store in Palm Beach County.
- It’ll be overcast and warm with a chance of thunderstorms today. Today’s highs will be in the upper 80’s – typical for this date. Similar weather is expected through the weekend. The National Hurricane Center’s map shows a disturbance near the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico with only a 10% chance of developing as it moves over Mexico this weekend. Saharan dust extends from the coast of Africa over much of the Atlantic with dust currently pushing over Cuba and the Southern Caribbean Sea and into the Gulf of America.
- The price of gas fell by 2 cents per gallon on Thursday. The average price for regular unleaded fuel is currently $3.94 per gallon statewide – 3 cents higher than a week ago. In Palm Beach County the average price is $4.12 per gallon, in Martin the average is $3.93, it’s $3.93 in St. Lucie, and in Indian River County the average is $3.96 per gallon.