Florida Details

Climate

Most of Florida has a humid subtropical climate; the climate of far South Florida and the Keys verges on tropical. These climates are characteristic of "hot and hotter" seasons, with warm, relatively dry winters and autumns (the dry season) and hot, wet springs and especially the summers (the wet season).

Hurricanes pose a threat during the summer and fall. Florida saw a slew of destruction in 2004 when it was hit by a record four hurricanes. Hurricanes Charley (August 13), Frances (September 4-5), Ivan (September 16), and Jeanne (September 25-26) cumulatively cost forty-two billion dollars to the state. Florida was also the site of the most costly single weather disaster in U.S. history, Hurricane Andrew, which cost twenty-five billion dollars when it struck on August 12, 1992. Among a long list of other infamous hurricane strikes were the Miami Hurricane of 1926, the Lake Okeechobee Hurricane of 1928, the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935, Hurricane Donna in 1960 and Hurricane Opal in 1995. Many other smaller hurricanes have hit or brushed Florida, and many more hurricanes will hit in the future.

Economy

Florida's economy is heavily based on tourism. Warm weather most of the year and hundreds of miles of beach provide a thriving vacation spot for travelers from around the world. The large Walt Disney World theme park and resort complex, located near Orlando, drives the economy of that area, along with more recent entries into the theme park arena such as the Universal Orlando Resort. The great amount of sales tax revenue is what allows the state to be one of the few to not levy a personal income tax. Other major industries include citrus fruit and juice production, banking, and phosphate mining. With the arrival of the space program at Kennedy Space Center in the 1960s, Florida has attracted a large number of aerospace and military industries to the state. Florida did not have any state minimum wage laws until November 2, 2004, when voters passed a Constitutional Amendment requiring inflationary increases to the minimum wage every six months.

Religion

Religiously, Florida is mostly Protestant, but with a growing Roman Catholic community due to Hispanic immigration.

v Protestant – 60%
v Roman Catholic – 23%
v Other Christian – 2%
v Other Religions – 4% (mostly Jewish)
v Non-Religious – 8%

The three largest Protestant denominations in Florida are: Baptist (22% of the total state population), Methodist (8%), Presbyterian (4%)

Also See:

Florida Music