Capitol to Courthouse Florida Insurance Report–Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Mar 10, 2015
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
9:00 a.m.–Florida Cabinet meeting. Agenda includes discussion on process for appointment and annual Cabinet agency leadership review, and development of agency measures for the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, among other items. To view the complete agenda, click here.
9:00 a.m.–Florida House Insurance and Banking Subcommittee meeting. To view the agenda and meeting packet, click here. Agenda includes consideration of the following bills, among others:
- HB 715 relating to Citizens Property Insurance Corporation
1:30 p.m.–Florida Senate Committee on Banking and Insurance meeting. To view the agenda and meeting packet, click here. Agenda includes consideration of the following bills, among others:
- SB 404 relating to Improvements to Real Property Damaged by Sinkhole Activity
- SB 836 relating to the Florida Insurance Guaranty Association
- SB 1094 relating to Peril of Flood
- SB 916 relating to Commercial Insurer Rate Filing Procedures
- SB 842 relating to Citizens Property Insurance Corporation Eligibility for Coverage
- SB 1060 relating to Maximum Reimbursement Allowances
- SB 1130 relating to Windstorm Premium Discounts
- SB 830 relating to Regulation of Corporation Not for Profit Self-Insurance Funds
Daily Florida Insurance-Related News
New battle brewing between Governor Scott and Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty
In a proposal that should generate talk today, Florida Governor Rick Scott wants to drop a proposal by McCarty’s Office of Insurance Regulation for specific goals in protecting consumers from illegal and unethical insurance industry practices. Scott’s seven-page list of revised benchmarks would strike out McCarty’s stated goal to “protect the public from illegal, unethical insurance products and practices” by pursuing enforcement actions in most cases.
Citizens Property Insurance Given Okay To End Surcharge Early
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has formally approved an early end to a surcharge Citizens Property Insurance customers have been paying because of damages from the last of the 2005 hurricanes. THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA reports via CBS Miami.
Florida Office of Insurance Regulation Approves Removal of up to 48,331 Policies from Citizens
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has approved the removal of up to 47,831 personal residential policies and 500 commercial residential polices from Citizens Property Insurance Corporation.
Construction Bill Could Reduce Florida Builders’ Liability
House Member Jay Fant, a Jacksonville Republican, wants to reduce “repose” – the time a home or building’s owner can sue for a latent defect — from 10 to 7 years. The First Coast News reports.
Florida Governor Rick Scott denies environmental agency banned term “climate change”
Florida Governor Rick Scott on Monday denied that administrators in his Department of Environmental Protection were banned from using the terms “global warming” or “climate change.” The Miami Herald’s Patricia Mazzei reports.
Senate panel to consider Florida Medicaid expansion proposal
A Senate committee will consider a controversial plan today that would extend federally subsidized health insurance to more than 800,000 poor Floridians – but require a waiver from the federal government to pay for it. The Miami Herald’s Kathleen McGrory reports.
Florida economists to draw up new budget forecast
Economists are scheduled to meet today to draw up the forecasts to be used by state legislators as they create this year’s budget. The Associated Press reports via the Sun-Sentinel.-
Study: Fewer than 1 in 5 Florida unemployed get benefits
A study released Monday ranks Florida among the four stingiest states in paying unemployment benefits for those who haven’t had a job for 26 weeks or less. And it’s not just because of problems with the much-maligned online CONNECT system. Tampa Bay Times’ Michael Van Sickler reports via “The Buzz” blog.
West Virginia Governor Signs Comparative Fault Legal Reform Bill
Governor Earl Ray Tomblin has signed a bill changing legal protections when multiple parties are deemed at fault in a lawsuit, Associated Press reports via Insurance Journal.
Insurance Company Denies Fire Claim Because Of Pit Bull
A woman from East Rockaway is saying her insurance company is refusing to pay her fire claim because she owns a pit bull, the Huffington Post’s “Rescue Idiot” blog reports.
How a wayward cow could change Texas’ tort reform law
Tunnell v. Andrew, which is scheduled to be heard by a Dallas County judge next month, is seen by some as a referendum on the limits of a 2003 law championed by former Governor Rick Perry that heavily regulated medical malpractice lawsuits, including by capping damages for pain and suffering. The San Antonio Express News reports via Advisen.com.
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