Polk County News
Updated 2:34 PM ET
Polk County news from The Florida Press: the county commission, the sheriff's office, schools, courts, development and storms and weather across Polk County, including Lakeland and Winter Haven, newest first.
Business & Real Estate
Lakeland and Jacksonville top U.S. list as property taxes outpace home values in Florida metros
5 min
Technology & ScienceCentral Florida
Florida Poly unveils Astro, a piloted electric aircraft it calls the nation's first flying police vehicle
5 min
Crime & CourtsCentral Florida
Haines City police officer out of a job after DUI arrest in Orlando while driving patrol vehicle
5 min
Business & Real EstateTampa Bay
Mosaic to idle South Fort Meade phosphate operation Dec. 8, laying off 199 workers over sulfur shortage
5 min
EducationCentral Florida
More Than 300 Books Removed From Central Florida Schools as State Orders Districts to Pull More
5 min
EducationCentral Florida
Winter Haven School Bus Crash Kills 10th Grader and Jeep Driver After Car Crosses Center Line
6 min
Crime & CourtsCentral Florida
Two men charged with attempted murder in Lake Wales Mud Hole party shooting that wounded four
6 min
Crime & CourtsCentral Florida
TJ Wiggins Sentenced to Three Consecutive Life Terms for 2020 Frostproof Triple Murder
9 min
Crime & CourtsCentral Florida
Florida Set to Execute Curtis Beasley, 77, Tonight for 1995 Polk County Hammer Killing
8 min
HealthCentral Florida
Dengue Warnings Spread to Central Florida as Orange, Polk Confirm Local Cases
8 min
More Polk County news
Florida's Local Dengue Outbreak Hits 296 Cases as Hillsborough Reaches 259 and Crews Go Door to Door
Polk County Sheriff Announces 39 Arrests in a Yearlong Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Investigation
Six Years After the Frostproof Fishing Killings, a Polk County Jury Hears the Capital Case
Capital Murder Trial Opens in the 2020 Frostproof Fishing Killings
Florida Citrus Acreage Falls 21 Percent in a Year Even as Production Ticks Up
Appeals Court Clears EPA Approval of Phosphogypsum Road Test at Polk County Fertilizer Plant
Florida Prepares to Test Air Taxis at SunTrax Before the End of the Year
Eleventh Circuit Upholds EPA Approval of Mosaic Phosphogypsum Road in Polk County
Florida Bets on SunTrax as a Proving Ground for Transportation Tech
Appeals Court Upholds EPA Approval of Phosphogypsum Road Test at Mosaic's Polk County Plant
USDA Final Forecast Shows Florida Orange Crop Climbing Back Toward 13 Million Boxes
Florida to Begin Testing Electric Air Taxis This Year as State Invests in Advanced Air Mobility
Appeals Court Upholds EPA Approval of Radioactive Phosphogypsum Test Road in Polk County
USDA Final Forecast Shows Florida Orange Crop Climbing Back
DeSantis Expands SunTrax to Test Flying Cars in Florida's Transportation Future
DeSantis Says Florida Will Begin Testing Electric Air Taxis This Year
Polk County Drug Task Force Charges Winter Haven Man With Fentanyl Trafficking
Florida Orange Crop Closes Season Up 6 Percent but Far Below History
Florida Supreme Court Upholds Death Sentences in the Jermaine Foster Case
Nineteen Plead Guilty in Statewide Florida Bank Fraud Conspiracy Tied to Polk County Gang Probe
Record June Heat Strains Central Florida's Power Grid as Demand Spikes and Outages Hit Polk County
Lakeland Moves Toward One-Year Moratorium on Large Data Centers as Power Demands Mount
DeSantis Signs Five Public Safety Bills in Winter Haven, Targeting Repeat Offenders and Youth-Marketed Drugs
Polk County Reports New Measles Case as US Tally Tops 2,000 in 2026
Publix Reports Q1 2026 Sales Up 2%, Earnings Fall on Pharmacy Pricing Pressure