Leon and Jefferson counties have issued advisories warning residents of recent outbreaks of West Nile virus andEastern equine encephalitis virus (or "sleeping sickness") in the area. Both diseases are borne by mosquitoes, and officials are advising residents to take several common-sense precautions to avoid getting bitten. Here is the advisory in full: Leon County Health Department Release

From the Florida attorney general's office: "Attorney General Pam Bondi today announced the appointment of Timothy Osterhaus to serve as Floridas Solicitor General, the state governments top appellate lawyer. Osterhaus has served as Deputy Solicitor General for the Attorney Generals Office since 2007. In connection with his appointment, Osterhaus will be the Richard W. Ervin Eminent Scholar Chair and serve as a visiting professor of law at Florida State University College of Law."

Republican nominee Ted Yoho, of Floridas 3rdCongressional District, will announce later today a major endorsement from former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.Sunshine State News has obtained an advance copy of a press release soon to be issuedfrom Yoho's campaign.

Starting tomorrow, Sunshine State News will be publishing articles on the Ron Paul festivities preceding next week's Republican National Convention. We will have a full-time correspondent on the ground, bringing our readers firsthand coverage of bothRon Paul Festival 2012(Friday and Saturday, Florida State Fairgrounds, Tampa)and Dr. Paul's official pre-Convention Rally(Sunday, USF Sun Dome, Tampa).

Gov. Rick Scott will head out on a shrimp boat along the Bells River in Northeast Florida for his next Let's Get to Work Day. Scott will serve as a shrimp boat striker on "Captain Mikes" shrimp boat out of Yulee on Wednesday. According to the governors office, Scotts day will include filling coolers with ice at 4:45 a.m., deploying nets and traveling the Bells River.

As the new school year gets underway, Gov. Rick Scott and first lady Ann Scott will be encouraging a reading program directed at the states youngest students on Tuesday. The Scotts will join Dave Lawrence, chair of The Childrens Movement of Florida, and Carol Barnett, president of Publix Super Markets Charities, to launch ReadingPals, an early literacy initiative, on Tuesday afternoon at the LeRoy Collins Public Library in Tallahassee. The program is aimed at getting children to read to their grade level by the third grade.

Businesses and homeowners impacted by Tropical Storm Debby have two weeks to register for assistance. Applications must be received by Sept. 4 to be considered for disaster assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Small Business Administration. For information, call 800-621-FEMA (3362), or visit www.DisasterAssistance.gov or www.SBA.gov.

U.S. congressional hopeful Adam Hasner of Delray Beach has joined a growing chorus of Republicans calling for U.S. Rep. Todd Akin, D-Mo., to bow out of his U.S. Senate contest. Rep. Akin's comments were so far beyond wrong. He should step aside in #MOSEN, Hasner, who is running for a South Florida congressional seat, tweeted Monday. In an interview with KTVI-TV, Akin, asked about his pro-life position on abortion rights in instances when a woman is the victim of rape, said that instances of "legitimate rape" rarely result in pregnancy.

Gas prices have returned and surpassed last years totals, according to AAA. While August has traditionally been a time when gas prices dip, the auto club reported that the increase should continue through the month. "Last-minute summer travelers will need to increase their transportation budget, since gas prices are forecast to rise throughout the month," AAA spokeswoman Jessica Brady stated in a release. "Motorists have seen gas prices climb since July 1, and are now paying more for a gallon than they did this time last year."

When youre up for re-election, this is not the kind of headline you want to find your name under: Exclusive: FBI probed GOP trip with drinking, nudity in Israel

The GOP primary contest for the Senate District 4 seat between former Rep. Aaron Bean and Rep. Mike Weinstein, R-Jacksonville, topped $4.5 million, according to a conservative estimate by the Florida Times-Union. The contest was one of the key battles for the 2016 Senate presidency between Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart, and Sen. Jack Latvala, R-St. Petersburg.

The Daily Caller tells a fascinating story: In late July, John Hynansky a longtime friend of Vice President Joe Biden, and a major donor to Bidens campaigns as well as President Barack Obamas was awarded a $20 million taxpayer loan to build a foreign-car dealership in Ukraine.

Voters are evenly divided as to whether Paul Ryan or Joe Biden is better qualified to serve as president, according to a Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey just out.

Gov. Rick Scott will attend the Fallen Soldiers' Remembrance ceremony Saturday morning at Veterans Memorial Park in Oldsmar, outside Tampa. Organized by Toni Gross, the mother of Cpl. Frank Gross, a U.S. Army soldier from Oldsmar who was killed in Afghanistan last year, the ceremony memorializes U.S. armed forces members killed in the line of duty in the past six months. The event is set to begin at 10 a.m.

Two elementary school teachers in Gadsden County were cleared of wrongdoing when they interfered or coached student responses on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, the state Department of Education announced Friday.