Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Friday, September 19
Sep 19, 2008
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Citizens Insurance slow to pay, and lowballs settlements, critics charge
Years after damage from hurricanes, 2,000 households still have unresolved damage claims against state-run Citizens insurance
Although the hurricanes of 2004 and 2005 are but a fading memory, Citizens Property Insurance Corp. still has almost 2,000 unresolved homeowner damage claims in Florida.
FEMA in final days of local operations
A disaster-recovery center in Tallahassee closes today, but a mobile center opening today in Jefferson County will be open until Monday.
Crashes may come with bill in Town of Davie
At-fault drivers would be billed nearly $1,000 for costs associated with responding to car accidents under a plan embraced by the Town Council Wednesday.
Driver’s license proof to stiffen
After Oct. 1, applicants must meet federal documentation
Florida drivers will begin the transformation from state license to a controversial nationally compliant card next month.
Courts should warn Fla. traffic offenders
Judges are urged to warn habitual traffic offenders that guilty or no contest pleas could lead to the loss of their licenses – even though such warnings aren’t yet required, a divided Florida Supreme Court said Thursday.
Crist urges health-care conferees to follow Florida model
Gov. Charlie Crist welcomed 250 public and private-sector officials from around the country Thursday to a one-day conference aimed at repairing the health-care system, urging the crowd to stop using the issue as a political football and start working as a team.
Meeting details Florida’s health care plan
Cover Florida comes up during conference on improving insurance.
Gov. Charlie Crist touted Florida’s low-cost health insurance program Thursday as a model for a nationwide fix for rising medical premiums – though the program hasn’t started here yet.
Crist: Low-cost health plan to benefit 3.9 million Floridians
Gov. Charlie Crist said today Florida’s discount-drug card and a new program for stripped-down health insurance plans negotiated by the state for poor people are examples of what bipartisan cooperation can produce when politicians put their egos aside.
Experts debate shape of health reform
A meeting in Orlando brought together conservative and liberal politicians, doctors and economists to find a fix for America’s healthcare system.
Use tax credits to pay for health insurance policies? Cover everyone one way or another, including through insurance that federal employees get? Can there be any common agreement about how to reform healthcare in America?
Financially squeezed Medicare plan halts enrollment: 18,000 Florida Members Impacted
Under pressure from the state and federal government, MD Medicare Choice, a Medicare health plan that has 18,000 Florida members, has stopped enrolling.
For many South Floridians, the big question during hurricane season is: What’s it like?
Every storm is different, but one way to answer that question is to explore hurricane history. Here you’ll find profiles of storms that South Florida will never forget. For each storm, we’ve gathered storm data, photos and the front page of the Fort Lauderdale News or Sun-Sentinel, from which we’ve reproduced a news article on the storm.
Justices: No vote needed for redevelopment bonds
In a stunning double flip-flop, the Florida Supreme Court ruled Thursday that it made a mistake a year ago by requiring voter approval for billions of dollars worth of roads, buildings and other local redevelopment projects.
- Click here to read the ruling.
McCollum to National Indian Gaming Commission: Order Illegal Gaming to End
Attorney General Bill McCollum today sent a letter to the Honorable Philip N. Hogen, Chairman of the National Indian Gaming Commission, requesting that Chairman Hogen order the Seminole Tribe of Florida to immediately cease the illegal class III gaming activities in Florida.
McCollum says $37-million fraud case Florida’s most dramatic yet
Banks that loaned $37-million in 2006 without verifying borrowers’ income are partly to blame for what “probably is the most dramatic mortgage fraud case that we have filed so far,” Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum said Thursday.
Fla. officials get 2,600 gas gouging complaints
Florida’s Attorney General’s Office says it has received more than 2,600 complaints about gasoline price gouging.
Federal officials: No charges likely against Foley
After an exhaustive two-year investigation, former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley isn’t expected to face charges for sending salacious messages to underage pages, two federal law enforcement officials have told The Associated Press.
Politicians debate how state budget cuts will affect seniors, children
A dozen state legislators and candidates for office engaged in a sharp debate today over how Florida should meet its obligations to seniors and children during unprecedented drop in revenue.
Mahoney votes from one address, lives elsewhere
Another member of Palm Beach County’s congressional delegation is in a political flap over where he lives.
Florida Dynasty Stands to Profit as State Buys Rival
In June, Gov. Charlie Crist announced that Florida would buy one of the state’s two big sugar enterprises, the United States Sugar Corp. He billed the purchase as a “jump-start” in the environmental restoration of the Everglades, which cane growers are accused of polluting with fertilizer runoff.
Final report out on FPL’s Sunshine Energy Program
A member of Florida’s Public Service Commission blasted Florida Power & Light’s defunct green energy program, the company’s web site, the contractor hired to manage the program and even a government lab that ranked the program one of the best in the nation.
Democrats, GOP join to oppose vandalism
They often disagree politically, but Sarasota County’s Democratic and Republican parties have found something to unite against: Politically motivated vandalism and harassment.
Air clear in homes by Raytheon
The air inside homes near the Raytheon plant appears to be free of the three main toxic chemicals spreading beneath the Azalea neighborhood near Tyrone Square Mall, state health officials said Thursday.
House Bill Would Extend Flood Insurance Program 7 Months
The troubled U.S. flood insurance program would be temporarily extended for seven months under legislation introduced in Congress Thursday, buying time for lawmakers to work out deep disagreements over reforming the debt-burdened program.
COMMENTARY: State Regulators–Insurer Groups Must ‘Stick to Facts’ on AIG
National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) President and Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger today issued the following statement regarding American International Group (AIG):
COMMENTARY: Some See Spitzer Role in AIG Crisis
Lost by many in the week’s financial markets’ nightmare were ghosts of Wall Street past.
Former SEC Head Donaldson Calls for Regulatory Overhaul
Former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman William Donaldson said the United States needs a regulatory overhaul, similar to changes made to the system after the Great Depression.
COMMENTARY: Why Wind Should Not Be Added to Flood Policy
Reuters reports that Representative Barney Frank (D – Mass.) has introduced a bill to extend the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) seven months beyond the scheduled September 30, 2008, expiration date to allow lawmakers to iron out “deep disagreements.”
Storm Surge Not Covered in Texas Windstorm Association Policies
A Texas consumer group took issue with the state-chartered windstorm insurance association over its refusal to pay coastal residents for storm surge damage in Hurricane Ike.
Texas law keeps rebuilding after Ike in limbo
Hundreds of people whose beachfront homes were wrecked by Hurricane Ike may be barred from rebuilding under a little-noticed Texas law. And even those whose houses were spared could end up seeing them condemned by the state.
Louisiana Citizens rate increases delayed
Board wants time to study proposal
New members of the board of the state-run property insurer of last resort voted Thursday to delay raising homeowners’ premiums by up to 14 percent statewide, saying they have not had enough time to review the increases proposed by their staff.
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