Capitol to Courthouse Florida Insurance Report: Tuesday, May 6
May 6, 2014
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Daily Florida Insurance-Related Events
There are no insurance-related events scheduled today.
Daily Florida Insurance-Related News
White House climate assessment to be released today puts South Florida at high risk
President Obama will release a new assessment on climate change today that says South Florida is vulnerable to sea rise, extreme heat and other dangers, the Miami Herald’s Jenny Staletovich reports.
- National Climate Assessment and Development Advisory Committee Meets This Morning to Approve Report
- Shawn Harrison Snags Endorsement from Will Weatherford
- Will Weatherford Endorses Danny Burgess
Scott asks for federal assistance for Panhandle
Florida Governor Rick Scott is asking for federal assistance in the recovery of Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, which sustained heavy damage during a major rainstorm last week. The Associated Press reports via the Tampa Tribune.
Former Tampa Mayor, Insurance Magnate Bill Poe dead at 82
The Poe Financial Group operated three insurance companies – Southern Family Insurance, Atlantic Preferred and Florida Preferred Insurance – with about 283,000 policy holders across the state, Kevin Wiatrowski reports for the Tampa Tribune.
The Counterintuitive Argument for Uber
Uber garnered some substantial support during this year’s Florida Legislative Session and didn’t give up in the face of strong pushback by Mears Transportation and other taxi allies. Senator Jeff Brandes and State Representative Jamie Grant were champions for the issue to the end, and no doubt, will continue their efforts to bring more transportation options to Tampa Bay, Miami, and beyond, SaintPetersBlog.com’s Peter Schorsch explains.
Free Life-Insurance Offer To Florida Teachers Scrutinized
Thousands of Florida teachers recently got a tantalizing offer: free life insurance, paid for by a group of rich investors they had never met, the Wall Street Journal’s Leslie Scism reports.
Florida bill to raise international allocation pension max to 50%
The Florida Legislature plans to send to Gov. Rick Scott a bill to enable the Florida State Board of Administration to raise its international investment allocation in pensions to 50%, Barry R. Burr reports for Pensions & Investments.
By the numbers: Fewest bills passed in more than a decade
The 264 bills passed by the Legislature this year is the lowest total since at least 2001, The Florida Current’s Gray Rohrer explains.
Florida Speaker Weatherford exits public stage, says he’ll be back
As he looks ahead to an uncertain future, Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford wants to be remembered as a compassionate conservative who promoted the hopes of the working class with measures like lower auto tag fees for all and in-state tuition for undocumented children, Michael Van Sickler reports for the Tampa Bay Times.
Scott starts “victory tour;” Democrats call it “phony”
As Florida Governor Rick Scott launched a week-long swing to promote the Legislature’s tax and fee cuts and freeze on tuition, Democrats fired back, calling Scott’s claims of victory “insulting” and “as phony as his misleading TV ads.” Tampa Bay Times’ Steve Bousquet reports via the “Naked Politics” blog.
School tax increase equals other tax cuts
While the new budget cuts some taxes, it includes an increase of almost as much, $400 million, in the property taxes the state requires local governments to impose to help fund public schools, Tampa Tribune’s William March reports.
Florida Department of Children and Families’ chief promises new transparency on child deaths
Just days after the Miami Herald reported that the Department of Children and Families had shut down the the flow of information about a string of child deaths under its watch, the agency’s new secretary has released a memo that promises to share more information with the public, the Miami Herald’s Mary Ellen Klas reports via the Tampa Bay Times.
Five Questions for Open Government Expert Barbara Petersen
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA’s Margie Menzel interviews Barbara Petersen, a national expert on open-government issues. This year, Florida’s Legislature passed a record number of new exemptions to the public-record law and the open-meetings law.
Jim Greer Biography May Be Delayed
Readers hoping to kick off their summer by picking up the tell-all biography of former Republican Party of Florida chairman Jim Greer may be sorely disappointed, as the book could be delayed an extra five weeks to coincide with Greer’s July release from prison, Allison Nielsen reports for SunshineStateNews.com.
Draft House TRIA Bill is “About to Get Ugly”
Stakeholders seeking reauthorization of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act held an emergency meeting yesterday to discuss next steps in the wake of an alarming draft House bill that would effectively phase out the program over three years, National Underwriter’s Arthur Postal reports for PropertyCasualty360.com.
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