Tampa As Cuban Gateway It is not a question of if the United States will allow Americans unrestricted travel to Cuba; it is a question of when the United States will grant all Americans this right. When our laws change, Tampa International Airport and the Tampa Port Authority should become the primary U.S. gateways to Cuba. We need to be ready before other cities grab this opportunity. Miami, Los Angeles and New York are the only cities in the United States that currently offer nonstop flights to Cuba. ...more

March 8, 2009

A $410 billion spending bill to fund the federal government through September is drawing criticism for the more than $7.7 billion it contains in so-called "member items." That funding for favored projects of lawmakers includes hundreds of millions of dollars for the Tampa Bay area and other parts of Florida. ...more

March 5, 2009

Tampa International Airport could become the fourth U.S. airport to serve U.S.-Cuba charter flights under a request by U.S. Rep Kathy Castor, D-Tampa. ...more

February 28, 2009

Tampa International Airport could become the fourth U.S. airport to serve U.S.-Cuba charter flights under a request by U.S. Rep Kathy Castor, D-Tampa. ...more

February 27, 2009

Tucked into a $410 billion appropriations bill approved by the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday is nearly $12 million in federal funding for projects in the Tampa Bay area, including $4.2 million for Port of Tampa dredging and maintenance. The legislation, expected to be approved by the Senate and signed into law in the next few weeks, is aimed at funding government operations through this September. ...more

February 26, 2009

None of them voted in support of the $787 billion economic stimulus package. ...more

February 20, 2009

Although many details remained unclear Thursday night, early estimates are that Florida could get at least $10 billion from the $789 billion economic stimulus package agreed on by the U.S. House and Senate. ...more

February 13, 2009

Even as many details for Florida have yet to be announced, GOP Gov. Charlie Crist and Tampa Democrat Rep. Kathy Castor today applauded the $789 billion economic stimulus bill agreed upon by the U.S. House and Senate. ...more

February 12, 2009

As the Senate stimulus package stands, Florida's public school districts would miss out on nearly $650 million in construction money, according a national news organization that compared the differing bills under consideration in Congress. ...more

February 11, 2009

With an unlikely ally at his side - Republican Gov. Charlie Crist - Barack Obama made his first Florida appearance as president Tuesday to push his economic stimulus plan, the first major legislative test of his administration. ...more

February 11, 2009