Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Friday, October 1
Oct 1, 2010
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Blog: Are Florida home insurers spending too much on overhead?
The state’s insurance regulators and consumer advocates grilled Sunshine State Insurance Thursday about its request to raise rates by an average 25 percent statewide for policies covering homes, condo units, renters and rented or vacation homes.
IRS: 2,000-plus Florida homeowners with tainted Chinese drywall can claim tax loss
Homeowners with houses affected by tainted Chinese-manufactured drywall can now claim a “casualty loss” tax deduction, the Internal Revenue Service announced.
Deadline for Florida homeowners to file Hurricane Wilma claims looms
The deadline for many Florida homeowners to file insurance claims for Hurricane Wilma is approaching.
Florida home insurers revoking discounts for hurricane-proofing
Many Florida homeowners shelled out thousands of dollars to fortify their homes against hurricanes in recent years to qualify for insurance discounts.
Florida Home Insurance Discounts Harder To Get
Like so many other South Florida homeowners, Country Walks’ Alina Blanco wages war with her budget every month. When her homeowner’s insurance bill recently went up to more than $5-thousand dollars a year, she found cheaper coverage.
Editorial: Sinkhole payouts are unfair to taxpayers
Hillsborough County keeps finding ways to waste public money. The latest is a scheme to force taxpayers countywide to pay for sinkhole-related damage to private property that water-hogging farmers caused during the winter freeze.
Insurance adjusters, appraisers took kickbacks for inflated mechanic bills, Hialeah cops say
Five Miami-Dade insurance appraisers and adjusters have been charged with racketeering and theft, accused of accepting kickbacks from Hialeah mechanics who inflated auto accident claims for work that was never done, authorities said.
News Release: Governor Crist Appoints Margaret E. Sojourner to Serve as Judge of Compensation Claims
Governor Charlie Crist today announced the appointment of Margaret E. Sojourner of Orlando as Judge of Compensation Claims.
Florida picks up more federal money tied to health care reform
The federal government has awarded Florida $1 million to study whether the state wants to develop a health insurance exchange that would allow citizens to compare prices and benefits and purchase health insurance.
Florida’s new pill mill law goes into effect today
A Florida law intended to reform pain management clinics and take aim at disreputable “pill mills” takes effect today amid questions about its effectiveness and potential loopholes that problem pain clinics could slip through.
32 new Florida laws take effect on Friday
Assault a homeless person and you could face tougher penalties similar to hate crime laws. Impersonate a soldier while soliciting donations and you could be found guilty of a felony.
Environmental Protection Agency chief averts order to testify on Everglades
Under an appellate ruling, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson won’t have to appear in federal court on Everglades issues despite a Miami judge’s order
It appears a Miami federal judge won’t get a chance to grill a top federal environmental chief on expanding pollution problems in the Everglades.
Amendment 4: Battle intensifies over state referendum on controlling growth
More than 200 construction workers and business executives joined forces Thursday in the shadows of downtown Fort Lauderdale’s high-rise development to rally against a state referendum to rein in growth.
Crist budget chief to work for Florida Senate
Incoming Florida Senate President Mike Haridopolos has hired Gov. Charlie Crist’s budget chief as staff director for the Senate Ways and Means Committee.
Former Republican Party of Florida Chairman Tom Slade selected as co-chair for Scott campaign
Jacksonville resident Tom Slade, former head of the Republican Party of Florida, has been named a co-chairman of Rick Scott’s gubernatorial campaign.
Florida candidates for governor talk up job creation but both have experience with job elimination
Florida’s leading candidates for governor boast of their savvy business experience and ability to create new jobs, but left unspoken is that each left a trail of pink slips as they blazed through the cutthroat world of corporate mega-mergers.
Al Gore rallies the faithful in Tampa for Democratic Senate candidate Kendrick Meek
Needing to corral the support of Democratic voters, and needing to do it quickly, U.S. Senate candidate Kendrick Meek called on one of the party’s most popular figures Thursday, former Vice President Al Gore.
Systemic Risk Council Holds First Meeting; Pledges Regulatory Balance
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner pledged at the first meeting of the new Financial Stability Oversight Council created by the Dodd-Frank law to “preserve the right balance” between the work of the group and existing regulatory agencies.
Schwarzenegger Signs Homeowners Insurance Disclosure Law
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed into law new rules designed to make it easier for understand their choices when purchasing homeowners insurance.
New York Agents Group Praises Coastal Reform Plan
A key trade group for insurance agents in New York is lauding a proposal by regulators to reform the coastal homeowners insurance market in the state.
Selling Insurance Across State Lines: Still A Partisan Fight
When Republican House leaders recently unveiled their “Pledge To America,” they revived an idea long popular with conservatives: legislation that would allow consumers to buy health insurance across state lines so that residents of a state with expensive health plans could find cheaper options elsewhere.
California Governor Extends Low-Cost Auto Program
To keep uninsured drivers off the road at a time when premiums are unaffordable to some, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger this week signed into law the California Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program (CLCA) for low income, good drivers.
California May Stop Paying Some Workers’ Compensation Benefits
About 2,700 injured workers in California may not receive the workers’ compensation benefits they are entitled to because the state has not yet passed its budget.
California is first to form health insurance exchange
Amid appeals from the White House and consumer health care advocates, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed two key health bills Thursday that make California the first state to begin establishing its own health insurance exchange, which could widen medical coverage for small businesses and the millions of uninsured.
McDonald’s ‘mini-med’ health plans probed by U.S. Senate
Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., opened a probe into the limited benefit “mini-med” plans that McDonald’s Corp., the world’s largest restaurant chain, offers to employees.
Insurers Benefit From Partnerships On Climate Change Data
The private sector has a stake in understanding the impact of climate change, especially as it comes to evaluating risk, the president of the Reinsurance Association of America noted during a press conference Wednesday.
Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC, the leading global risk and reinsurance specialist and part of the Marsh & McLennan Companies, was the recipient of the prestigious “Best Global Reinsurance Broking Firm for Casualty/Liability” and “Best Global Reinsurance Broking Firm for Specialty Lines” awards at Reactions magazine’s 2010 Global Awards gala event, held September 30 in New York.
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