Local ports angle for parts of $15M from Fla.

Port Manatee and the Port of Tampa have a shot at a piece of $15 million in state funding approved by the Florida Seaport Transportation and Economic Development Council.

The council, in a decision announced Oct. 2, recommended state lawmakers allocate the funding for 10 separate port projects statewide, according to the News Service of Florida. The Legislature would have to approve the request through the Florida Department of Transportation's work program for the next budget year, the news service reports.

Other ports up for a piece of funding, beyond Port Manatee in Palmetto and the Port of Tampa, include: Port Canaveral, Port Everglades, PortMiami, Port of Palm Beach, Port of Fernandina, Port of Jacksonville, Port of Key West and Port Panama City. The projects total about $520 million, according to the news service.