Capitol to Courthouse Florida Insurance Report: Monday, October 21
Oct 21, 2013
To go directly to the section of your choice, click on a hyperlink below. Other hyperlinks to meeting information, bills and news are noted in bold type.
Daily Florida Insurance-Related Events
9:30 a.m.–Florida Department of Financial Services’ (“DFS”) Division of Insurance Fraud (“DIF”) Proposed Rule Hearing on proposed Chapter: 69D-3 “Auto Insurance Strike Force.” Section 626.9895, F.S. authorizes the DIF to establish a direct-support organization to support the prosecution, investigation and prevention of motor vehicle insurance fraud. The DFS is also required to adopt rules prescribing the procedures by which the Auto Insurance Strike Force is governed and any conditions with which it must comply to use DFS property. To view the Hearing notice and full text of the proposed Rules below, click here.
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69D-3.001: Definitions
- 69D-3.002: Governance of Organization
- 69D-3.003: Use of Division Property or Facilities
Daily Florida Insurance-Related News
Out-of-state residents are reaping benefits of Citizens’ Insurance
Nearly 20 percent of the Citizens Insurance policyholders in Volusia and Flagler counties don’t live in Florida, recent reports show, leaving state taxpayers to help foot the bill for thousands of policies for owners who aren’t Florida residents, Chris Graham reports for The Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Former Florida Insurance Consumer Advocate State House Race Fundraising Surpasses $100,000
Sean Shaw, an attorney and former state insurance consumer advocate, has passed the $100,000 mark in campaign contributions in his bid for state Rep. Betty Reed’s House seat representing Tampa, James Rosica reports for the Tampa Tribune.
Legal challenges may lead to overhaul of auto insurance
As reforms for Florida’s no-fault car insurance law remain hung up in court, lawmakers and insurance industry officials say they expect another debate on replacing the four-decade-old system with another coverage plan, Lloyd Dunkelberger reports for Halifax Media Services.
Insurance giant among Spanish trade ties with Florida
Arriving in South Florida, visitors from Spain might feel as if they’ve never left the Iberian Peninsula. They can arrive aboard the Spanish airline Iberia, drive on a highway that a Spanish company built, stay at a hotel that Spanish investors own, take in a flamenco show, and finish the day with tapas and wine from Spain at their choice of Spanish restaurants, writes Mimi Whitfield for The Miami Herald.
Florida prison system tightens security after recapture of killers
Leaders of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and state prison system said Sunday two killers who used forged sentence-reduction documents to escape from a Panhandle prison must have “had a lot of help,” so more arrests will follow their weekend capture, Bill Cotterell reports for The Florida Current.
Blog: Election of Pasco Democrat in GOP district carries lesson for governor in 2014
The budget shutdown that wounded the Republican brand last week also inflicted pain on the GOP in Florida: The party lost a seat held for decades by Republicans, and Gov. Rick Scott was hit with a hurdle to his reelection strategy, Mary Ellen Klas writes for the Miami Herald’s “Naked Politics” blog.
As big business shies from tea party in Congress, Florida political races could benefit
Large business interests are breaking up with the tea party after the hardline, right-wing faction of the Republican Party in Congress threatened not to raise the debt ceiling, nearly forcing the U.S. government into default, The Florida Current’s Gray Rohrer reports.
Common Core tour finds willing Florida audiences
Whether Common Core State Standards will become the academic benchmark for Florida schools should become clearer in about a month, reports James Call for The Florida Current.
Texas Senator: How Can We Lower Homeowner Insurance Costs?
A Texas lawmaker has asked the state insurance department to come up with suggestions for ways to lower homeowners insurance rates in the state, reports Stephanie K. Jones for Insurance Journal.
Alabama’s Coastal Counties Getting FEMA Grant
Alabama is getting a federal grant to help homeowners in the state’s two coastal counties retrofit their homes against wind damage, reports The Associated Press.
State Farm to Build Operations Center in Georgia
The Associated Press reports that State Farm Insurance Company plans to build a national operations center in the Atlanta suburb of Dunwoody.
States Going After Employers Who Misclassify Workers as Independent Contractors
When construction slowed during the recession, some companies hired workers and wrongly designated them as independent contractors to avoid paying insurance, taxes, fair wages and overtime, reports Jim Efstathiou, Jr. for Insurance Journal.
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