Capital to the Courthouse Headliners: Wednesday, November 10
Nov 10, 2010
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Homeowners CEO discusses acquisition plans
Homeowners Choice Inc. wants a bigger chunk of the property and casualty insurance market.
Insurance claims for Florida sinkhole damage spike
Florida homeowners are filing damage claims from sinkholes at a rapidly growing rate with claims this year totaling one-third more than the previous four years combined.
South Florida water managers weigh costly consequences of sea level rise
For millions of South Floridians, life on a peninsula means melting icecaps in Greenland aren’t just something for polar bears to worry about.
Florida bedbug complaints rising
An increase in the number of bedbug complaints in Florida has prompted the agriculture and consumer services commissioner and state surgeon general to remind Floridians to hire licensed pest control companies to help control breakouts of bedbugs in homes and businesses
Blog: Senate prez keeps budget chair, makes Republican Party of Florida head rules chief
Senate President-designate Mike Haridopolos tapped John Thrasher, head of the Republican Party of Florida, as chairman of the powerful Senate Rules committee and is keeping J.D. Alexander as budget chief.
Bennett named Florida Senate president pro tempore
Incoming Florida Senate President Mike Haridopolos has named his two top lieutenants.
Blog: Alexander keeps budget reins, Gaetz gets tasked with redistricting
Incoming Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, just announced that J.D. Alexander, R-Lake Wales, would keep the reins as budget chairman, Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, would become rules chair, and Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, would chair the Senate’s reapportionment committee.
Blog: Rod Smith for Florida Democratic Party Chair?
Former Sen. Rod Smith, the recently defeated Democratic Lt. Gov candidate and a 2006 failed gubernatorial candidate, looks like he is pulling together strong support to replace Karen Thurman, outgoing Florida Democratic Party chairwoman, who saw one of the worst-ever defeats of her party at the polls Nov. 2.
Blog: Scott sets one-year lobbying ban for transition team, taps Sunshine director
Governor-elect Rick Scott has established a one-year lobbying ban for any member of his transition team and designated the state’s current Sunshine Laws guru to serve as his open government coordinator.
Editorial: Florida Legislative session likely to aid special interests
On Nov. 16, the day they’re sworn in as Florida’s legislative leaders, Rep. Dean Cannon and Sen. Mike Haridopolos plan to get to work. They’ll hold a one-day special session to override some vetoes issued by Gov. Charlie Crist.
Incoming Florida House freshmen get an introduction to Capitol protocol
One of the largest freshmen House classes in recent history has a steep learning curve and an accelerated schedule, the newcomers learned this morning.
Bad bill will be Scott’s first test
It’s still to be seen how Gov.-elect Rick Scott, the former bane of the Republican Party of Florida, will mesh with his newly acquired allies in the Legislature.
LeMieux Considers 2012 Senate Run
U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, appointed to his job in mid-2009, said Tuesday he is alarmed by soaring federal spending and it might prompt him to run for the Senate seat held by Democrat Bill Nelson in 2012.
A $150,000 investment from former Rep. Robert Wexler’s campaign fund has drawn the attention of the FBI
Months before popular Democrat Robert Wexler abruptly quit Congress last year, federal agents interviewed two South Florida businessmen about his campaign’s unconventional $150,000 investment in a real estate venture.
Late Filings of Surplus Lines Policies Draw Fines in Texas
If enforcement actions taken by the Texas Department of Insurance this year in response to late filing of surplus lines insurance policies with the state stamping office were meant to capture the attention of managing general agents doing business in the state, that effort has been successful.
Allstate to Fight Denial of Mississippi Rate Hike
Allstate Property and Casualty Insurance Co. wants a public hearing on the Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney’s denial of its request for a 44 percent home insurance rate hike.
South Carolina’s Myrtle Beach Suing Hotels for Risking City’s Flood Insurance Coverage
The city of Myrtle Beach is suing 11 hotels to make them remove their swimming pool enclosures.
Workers’ Compensation Fees Would Cost New York Drivers, Insurers Warn
Proposed 30 percent increases in what medical providers in New York are paid for treating workers’ compensation injuries could have unintended consequences for the state’s motorists, an industry group has warned.
REUTERS SPECIAL REPORT-Can this committee save the world from bankers?
It’s also examining ways to coordinate the supervision of financial institutions internationally – so banks can’t arbitrage the rules between countries.