Capitol to Courthouse Florida Insurance Report: Tuesday, January 3
Jan 3, 2012
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
(CANCELED) 10:00 a.m.–Florida Surplus Lines Service Office National Clearinghouse Committee meeting. To view the meeting notice, click here.
Part 1 of a 3-part Series: Sinkholes become Florida’s latest insurance disaster
It’s the Great Florida Sinkhole Lottery and the payouts are big in Hernando County.
Dubious sinkhole repairs raise costs and questions of fraud
The engineer who was supposed to monitor the job rarely if ever showed up.
Sinkhole claims in Hernando neighborhood driven by psychology more than geology
Neil Rasmussen, enjoying a pool-side cigar on a recent balmy evening, said so many of his neighbors in the Pristine Place subdivision had collected insurance settlements for sinkhole damage, he thought he would give it a try, too.
In other states, sinkhole claims don’t bust the budget
To anyone living in Florida’s “sinkhole alley,” these headlines might sound familiar: “Huge hole opens behind house.”
University of Miami study: Hurricanes can trigger quakes
Florida is used to dealing with most of the effects of powerful hurricanes – blasting winds, storm surge, twister-like vortexes.
Legal challenges take aim at accident victim referral services such as 1-800-Ask-Gary
It might be hard for Gary Kompothecras to top 2010, when his representatives secured naming rights to Tampa’s big outdoor concert arena – the 1-800-Ask-Gary Amphitheater.
Editorial: Tinkering with bad faith puts citizens rights at risk
Granted, the nation has too much costly litigation, but citizens also should watch closely whenever lawmakers begin monkeying with their rights.
Get used to it, South Florida – pipes are breaking and it’s only going to get worse
The hectic nature of Christmas Eve – last-minute presents to buy, family to entertain, meals to cook – can be a mountain of stress.
Redistricting maps get year-end changes
Reapportionment Committee chairman Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, said there is “nothing earth-shattering” in either of the proposed committee substitutes, but that the new measures include input from people, including supervisors of elections, who offered suggestions for making the boundaries smoother.
New Florida laws go into effect Sunday
There are new laws and other changes that go into effect Sunday.
Brevard County and Florida will be key in days, weeks ahead
Iowa takes the first stab today at paring down the field of Republican presidential candidates, and Merritt Island resident Billy Propst believes the outcome will prove pivotal in Florida, where Republicans head to the polls January 31 to select their GOP nominee.
Editorial: 2012 will be one of the most politically active years Florida has experienced
Hang onto your horses. Floridians are in for a wild ride this year in one of the most politically active years the state has ever known.
Blog: In new report, Florida Governor Rick Scott’s economic-development arm gives itself good grades
A new report on Florida’s corporate tax-breaks says the state is facing stiffer competition to lure companies to expand, and the hundreds of millions in tax dollars given to businesses to create jobs in recent years have been largely successful.
Blog: Can Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam get Florida’s energy efforts on track?
Florida policymakers have squabbled for years over ways to develop more energy alternatives, with nukes, solar plants, offshore oil-drilling, biomass and coal all getting their turn in the legislative grinder.
Casino, Gaming Commission Bill Given ‘Long Shot’ for House Approval
The depth of a budget that may have 2 billion fewer dollars than a year ago, along with the once-a-decade redistricting of political seats across the state, makes the gambling bill now before the Legislature a “long shot,” House Speaker Dean Cannon said.
Florida story of the year: Shuttles shut down
The end of the space shuttle program after more than three decades of flights to low-earth orbit launched past Governor Rick Scott’s shakeup of state government and the Casey Anthony trial as Florida’s top story of 2011, according to a poll of newspaper editors conducted by The Associated Press.
With the Florida primary only a month away, House Speaker Dean Cannon says his focus right now is on his final regular legislative session rather than making endorsements.
12 Florida Stories to Watch in 2012
Instead of rounding up the week’s news, which again was in short supply this week – we look forward to next year with a roundup of the stories we think may be the biggest next year in state government and politics.
Guy Carpenter Analyzes 2011 Catastrophes; $108 Billion in Losses
Reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter has examined the past year’s natural catastrophes, which it describes as “an unusually eventful year for the (re)insurance sector.”
Six years Later, Katrina Victims Fight FEMA Debts
When the Federal Emergency Management Agency mailed out 83,000 debt notices this year to victims of Hurricane Katrina and other 2005 storms, one of the letters showed up in David Bellinger’s mailbox.
Military Radar Technology to Be Used to Detect Potholes in Louisiana
Radar used in the stealth bomber and to find roadside bombs in Afghanistan and Iraq is moving into the sewers of Louisiana.
Two states bucking Medicaid privatization trend
On Sunday, Connecticut ends its 15-year history with managed care organizations because, state officials say, they did not fulfill their promises.
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