Gulf of Mexico

One of the bills changes dozens of state laws. The other mandates that agencies update “geographic materials” as well as school instructional materials to include the new name.

The Republican-controlled chamber passed two bills along party lines to carry out President Donald Trump’s directive to rename what has been known as the Gulf of Mexico for centuries.

Legislation under consideration would rename the Gulf of Mexico in 52 sections of state laws. A separate bill would require schools to begin acquiring instructional and library materials that reflect the change.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission announced it's adopting President Donald Trump’s executive order to change the name for the Gulf of Mexico on maps, documents and other materials.

Republican Sen. Nick DiCeglie filed a 70-page bill Tuesday to update all references to the body of water. that borders the state's west coast. A similar bill was introduced in the state House.

Mapmakers and teachers are rethinking what to call the body of water between Mexico, the U.S. and Cuba after President Trump ordered it renamed from the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has already embraced the change. He cited the name in an executive order this week attributing inclement winter weather to “low pressure moving across the Gulf of America.”

President Joe Biden is moving to ban new offshore oil and gas drilling in most U.S. coastal waters, an effort to block possible action by the incoming Trump administration to expand offshore drilling.

Many parts of the Florida coast remain not surveyed, with existing nautical charts relying on outdated and low-resolution data.

The Rice's whale is one of the Gulf of Mexico’s largest and most mysterious animals, and is found nowhere else on Earth. NOAA Fisheries is set to publish a new critical habitat designation for the species.

Gulf sturgeon face increasing human-made challenges. Pollution has expanded in the Suwannee River and climate change is contributing to swings between high and low water levels. Florida’s prehistoric fish are surviving as they have for eons, scientists say. But they’re not invincible.

This year's zone is over 6,700 square miles. The average over the past five years is about 4,300.