Youth and Family empowerment expo to be held Nov. 16
SPRING HILL — Hernando County Housing and Supportive Services and the Hernando County School District will host a Youth and Family Empowerment Expo from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 16, at Great Life Church, 14494 Cortez Blvd.
The expo is aimed at young people who are in foster care or aging out of it, and at youths and families who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Organizers say the goal is to help them build stability and self-sufficiency.
Breakout sessions will cover independent living, careers and post-secondary education, mental health and child welfare. More than 30 local resource organizations will be on hand, and free food and clothing will be available.
For more information, call Hernando County Housing and Supportive Services at 352-540-4338.
Manatees on the move as waters cool
November is Manatee Awareness Month, when Florida’s manatees begin moving to warmer waters for the winter. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is asking boaters to give the slow-moving mammals space, slow down and keep watch for them.
“Manatees rely on warm water sites to survive the winter, seeking refuge at Florida’s springs, power plant discharge areas and other warm water sites when water temperatures drop below 68 degrees Fahrenheit,” said Ashley LaVere, the FWC’s manatee management program coordinator. “Boaters and personal watercraft users may be more likely to encounter manatees as they make their way to their winter habitats, so awareness of how to keep manatees safe while on the water is key.”
Boat strikes are a major threat to manatees. Manatee protection zones, marked by waterway signs, require boaters and personal watercraft users to slow down in or avoid certain areas. FWC officers patrol state waters, informing boaters of speed zones and issuing citations when necessary. Maps of the zones are available at MyFWC.com/MPZ.
Residents can support the FWC’s manatee research, rescue and management work by buying a Florida manatee license plate or donating $5 for a collectible FWC manatee decal. Both are available at county tax collector’s offices.
Brooksville manufacturer refunding tariff charges to customers
BROOKSVILLE — ProMation Engineering, which designs and distributes industrial electric quarter-turn actuators, is refunding customers the tariff charges they paid after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in February that the duties, imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, were unlawful.
When the duties took effect in April 2025, the company billed them as a separate line item on each sale rather than raising prices, and it tracked the charges by customer in case the tariffs didn’t last. That record now allows it to pay the money back.
“From the beginning, we wanted our customers to know exactly what additional costs they were paying,” said Delphine Buck, the company’s operations manager. “We tracked those charges from the start, so now we are in a position to return a refund to the customers who paid them. We believe that is the right thing to do.”
ProMation is contacting customers directly to issue credits for duties charged on purchases between April 15, 2025, and Feb. 20, 2026.
“We expect our customers to collectively recover well over $100,000,” said Dean Geraci, the company’s general manager.
Customers with questions can contact Buck at 352-544-8436 or info@promationei.com.
DeSantis awards $100 million for springs, water supply projects
CRYSTAL RIVER — Gov. Ron DeSantis has awarded $100 million to 45 projects aimed at restoring Florida’s springs, expanding alternative water supplies and promoting conservation.
“These strategic investments will build on the progress we’ve made in protecting our natural resources and improving water quality in communities across Florida, so that we can leave this state to God better than we found it,” DeSantis said during the announcement in Crystal River.
Half the money, $50 million, goes to 23 springs restoration projects, including wastewater upgrades expected to cut nitrogen pollution by more than 55,000 pounds a year. Among them is a $3 million award for a Citrus County septic-to-sewer conversion that will benefit Chassahowitzka-Homosassa Springs and Kings Bay and Crystal River Springs.
The awards come through the state’s Springs Restoration and Alternative Water Supply grant programs. A full list of projects selected for fiscal year 2026-27 is available at ProtectingFloridaTogether.gov/Grants.
Bay area lawmakers seek higher pay tier for federal workers
WASHINGTON — U.S. Reps. Gus Bilirakis, R-Palm Harbor, Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, and Darren Soto, D-Kissimmee, have introduced bipartisan legislation that would create separate federal locality pay areas for the Tampa and Orlando metro regions, allowing civilian federal agencies to offer more competitive salaries.
“Our civilian federal employees care for our veterans, support our military, and help protect our nation. Yet Tampa Bay’s outdated pay designation makes it harder to recruit and retain the skilled professionals who carry out these essential missions,” Bilirakis said. “At MacDill Air Force Base, home to U.S. Special Operations Command and U.S. Central Command, workforce shortages can have real consequences for military readiness and national security.”
The Locality Pay Adjustment Act (H.R. 10898) has been referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
Seminar for grandparents raising grandchildren set for Nov. 20
SPRING HILL — United Way of Hernando County and Hernando County Schools will hold their annual Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Seminar from 9 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. Friday, Nov. 20, at 10515 Northcliffe Blvd.
The free seminar will offer four sessions:
Mental and behavioral health: Recognizing warning signs and starting the conversation with children.
Curriculum: Understanding school expectations and educational resources to support grandchildren’s academic success.
Legal: Guidance on guardianship and family law.
Technology: Digital literacy, online safety and artificial intelligence.
The day also will include roundtable discussions, a keynote speaker, community resource providers, activities and raffles. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.
Registration is required. Grandparents, kinship caregivers and other family members can sign up at UnitedWayHernando.org/GRG2026 or call 352-688-2026.