Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Friday, March 20
Mar 20, 2009
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OIR Approves $2.5 Billion Citizens HRA Bond Issue
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation issued an Order on Friday approving the issuance of High-Risk Account Senior Secured Bonds, Series 2009, by Citizens Property Insurance Corporation in an aggregate principal amount not exceeding $2,500,000,000.
Feds approve Hudson County storm shelter to house 1,000
Federal officials have given final approval for a 36,000-square-foot hurricane shelter to be built in Hudson.
Liability bill backed by Disney World and SeaWorld advances
A bill backed by Walt Disney World, SeaWorld Orlando and others in the tourism industry that would ensure parents can sign pre-injury waivers on behalf of their children cleared its first legislative hurdle Thursday, with the House Insurance, Business and Financial Affairs Policy Committee approving the legislation; the bill is opposed by the state’s trial lawyers.
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA: Panel hears of possible Medicaid cuts
Hospitals and nursing homes would take the biggest hit under a list of options unveiled Thursday by Agency for Health Care Administration officials who outlined $338 million in general revenue cuts as part of an “exercise” to cut 10 percent from their overall Medicaid budget for the upcoming fiscal year.
Proposed Florida law would crack down on illicit pest-control companies
Department of Agriculture concerned about pre-treatments at new construction sites to prevent subterranean termites.
Florida consumer officials are pressing the Legislature to pass a new law that they say will help them get tough on rogue pest control companies that repeatedly defraud their customers.
Crist freezes 15% of state spending
Governor will hold back $800 million from state agencies until the new fiscal year.
As Florida’s finances continue to unravel, Gov. Charlie Crist on Thursday froze 15 percent of state spending for the rest of this budget year.
Florida to get $91 million to stabilize housing market
The federal government has approved nearly $731 million in funding for 48 states, including $91 million for Florida to help stabilize housing markets hit hard by foreclosures.
Legislature, Crist on collision course over budget cuts, taxes
Florida Senate leaders may be on a collision course with Gov. Charlie Crist and the House as lawmakers begin preparing a new state budget next week facing a deficit in the range of $3 billion.
Florida pension plan report was rosy, but fund wasn’t
The people who run Florida’s giant public employee pension plan recently distributed a report reassuring hundreds of thousands of workers that their retirement fund was financially healthy and running a surplus.
Florida Democrats blast AG Bill McCollum’s public service ads
Unlike McCollum, two other statewide officeholders who ran public service announcements last year did not appear in them and sought competitive bids.
Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum appears in nearly every frame of a 30-second, widely run commercial warning parents and children about sex offenders online.
Florida‘s new U.S. Rep. Kosmas tries to avoid liberal label
U.S. Rep. Suzanne Kosmas, D- New Smyrna Beach, has done little decorating since she moved into her office about two months ago. The walls are bare, and her desk is barren – save for a copy of “Know Your Power,” the 2008 political memoir by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
South Florida I-595 toll-lane construction will snarl traffic for years
Interstate 595, the 13-mile, east-west expressway that connects central Broward County to Interstate 75, is set to undergo major changes as part of the costliest road and bridge project in state history.
Senate panel backs Florida bill to boost development
Builders and developers could soon find it easier to build in cities across Florida.
Florida lawmakers to take up Seminole gambling pact
The debate over the Seminole gambling compact rekindled Friday when a panel of House lawmakers hears about its economic effects.
Editorial: Panel should OK Crist’s gaming deal with Seminole Tribe
This deal’s straightforward: In negotiations with state government over a gaming compact, Florida’s Seminole Indian Tribe asks for exclusive rights to house-banked card games in exchange for a cut of the profits.
Storing 2000 ballots costs Florida $153,000 a year
The state’s flailing economy resurrected the disputed 2000 election Thursday during Senate budget discussions.
Insurers Must Disclose Climate-Change Exposure
Insurance companies must start disclosing how climate change is likely to affect their businesses, state insurance regulators decided Tuesday.
PCI Lobbies For Texas Legislature Action On Wind Pool Funding
Dozens of insurance trade group members spent a day lobbying Texas legislators yesterday urging them to find a proper solution to bankroll the state’s badly depleted windstorm pool that acts as insurer of last resort for coastal properties.
AIG Insurance unit sues Countrywide over loan losses, wants policies canceled
A unit of embattled insurer American International Group Inc. filed suit against mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. in California federal court Thursday, alleging Countrywide misrepresented the health of loans that the company insured, resulting in massive losses.
Worry Grows Over Insurers As Ratings Slip
More Companies Weakened By Bad Investment Choices; Shenandoah Sales Moratorium
While consumers have been fretting about the safety of their policies at large, publicly traded insurers, some smaller, less-watched companies have been running into trouble too.
Mississippi‘s Olive Branch to Contest FEMA Flood Maps
Olive Branch, Mississippi officials have agreed to hire a firm to help the city challenge Federal Emergency Management Agency maps that identify a number of homes as being in flood zones.
More Iowa Flood-Damaged Homes Face Demolition with FEMA OK
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has given Cedar Rapids approval to proceed with the demolition of about 300 flood-damaged homes, specifying that those homes still qualify for buyouts at their values before last June’s flooding; that issue has delayed action for months.
Report: Insurers Boost California Economy by $28.2B
California has a $1.7 trillion economy that ranks it as a global financial power, and the insurance industry aids in this effort, says a new industry report.
Blue Cross offering agents incentive
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is offering commissions of up to 20 percent to insurance agents who enroll consumers “with no major ongoing health conditions” in a new line of individual insurance plans set to launch March 30.
Insurers Push Prevention To Prune Costs and Claims
Insurers are learning that prevention is better than cure. It keeps costs and claims in check, shields corporate profits and costumers like it too.
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