Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Friday, September 26

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Two Allstate insurers to cut homeowners

Two Allstate companies will stop writing homeowners policies in Florida.

Independent agents who write policies for Encompass Floridian Insurance and Encompass Floridian Indemnity were told this week that these two companies will no longer write homeowners insurance in Florida.

Old-roof replacement policy needed, Citizens tells forum

Some homes just aren’t insurable, officials of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. told an audience of about 30 at the state-sponsored insurer’s first-ever community forum in Palm Beach County.

Federal aid available in Alachua after Tropical Storm Fay

Federal aid due to Tropical Storm Fay is being expanded to several Florida counties, including Alachua, the Federal Emergency Management Agency reported this week.

CEO of The Travelers Companies, Inc.: Let’s work together to resolve insurance crisis

Now, Hurricanes Ike, Hannah and Gustav remind us of our continued vulnerability and the urgent need to work together to resolve this crisis.

Wall of Wind seeks better standards for construction

Florida International University is preparing to unveil a new and improved Wall of Wind that it hopes will wow the insurance and construction industries.

Stricter rules, ‘secret shoppers’ greet Medicare sales season

Insurance agents that enroll Medicare beneficiaries into drug and HMO-style plans are being warned that the rules have changed to protect against marketing abuses and that government agents ‘secret shoppers’ — will be watching.

Governor Crist Meets with BlackRock, Briefed on Status of Florida’s Investment Funds

Taxpayers’ investments sound in spite of Wall Street’s recent fluctuations

Governor Charlie Crist, a Trustee for the State Board of Administration (SBA), today met with leaders of BlackRock Financial to discuss the status of Florida’s investment funds.  BlackRock manages $7.7 billion in Florida investments, including $3.3 billion in SBA funds.

Sen. Alexander Loud in Criticizing Public Spending

A Republican senator has engaged in an unusually aggressive public offensive against his own party’s leadership this summer, criticizing state spending on matters as large as Gov. Charlie Crist’s plan to save the Everglades to details as small as unauthorized raises for toll collectors.

Senator Gaetz to Citizens Chairman: Be Prepared to Testify if Office Upgrade Proceeds

Senator Don Gaetz recently sent a letter to Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (“Citizens”) Chairman James Malone stating his concerns about Citizens’ planned office relocation and upgrade.

CFO Sink Promotes Workplace Safety With Free Workers’ Compensation Classes

Free workers’ compensation classes to help business owners, employers and contractors create a safe working environment

Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, who oversees the Department of Financial Services and the Division of Workers’ Compensation, announced today that the department will begin offering free classes to help employers and contractors better protect their most valuable assets – their employees.

Florida’s budget may be cut again

Even after $7-billion in spending cuts, raids on cash reserves and salary freezes for state workers, the Florida budget is not back in the black: Another $800-million in red ink must be erased this year.

Study Shows Increase in Treatments per Workers’ Comp Claims

The National Council on Compensation Insurance, headquartered in Florida, posted a new research study regarding a continuing increase in treatments per workers compensation claims.

Florida-based FPIC Discloses Investments in Financial Service Companies

FPIC Insurance Group Inc., based in Jacksonville, Florida, together with its consolidated subsidiaries, released information regarding certain investments in financial service companies reportedly experiencing credit-related issues.

Florida’s Lassiter-Ware Recognized for Best Practices, Golden 100

Central Florida-based Lassiter-Ware Insurance was named a best practices agency for 2008, ranking among the top performers in the annual best practices study conducted by the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America and Reagan Consulting.

Developer wants casinos in Miami Beach, downtown Miami

The developer of a massive project in downtown Miami is quietly considering a campaign to amend Florida’s Constitution to allow Las Vegas-style casinos in the city and open the door for a similar casino at Miami Beach’s famed Fontainebleau Hotel.

3 Republican legislators in Florida face challenges

They’ve got clout and campaign cash. Their names – Jeff Atwater, Adam Hasner, Ellyn Bogdanoff – signify power in the state capital.

Democrat replaces candidate who dropped out of Florida House race

Prominent Spring Hill attorney Jason Melton announced his candidacy for the state Legislature Thursday, replacing Joseph Puglia on the Democratic ticket.

More suits, allegations in Buchanan-Jennings race

The campaign to re-elect U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan says it has discovered a link between Democratic rival Christine Jennings and one of the 10 lawsuits filed against the freshman congressman in recent months.

Challenges to Diaz-Balarts draw national attention

The stakes are high as Democrats challenge Miami Republicans in what is turning into an increasingly contentious campaign being closely watched on the national level by both parties.

With little more than a month to go before their first serious reelection challenge goes to voters, Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart have launched TV ads that accuse one Democratic challenger of corruption and the other of backing an $88 million utility-rate hike.

Campaigns spend big bucks for wave of Central Florida TV ads

From the presidency to the state Legislature, candidates are spending big money to reach Central Florida TV viewers — a key market in a coveted battleground state.

Cancer-stricken State Rep. Stan Mayfield in hospice in Vero Beach

State Rep. Stan Mayfield, recently elected tax collector for Indian River County, is under hospice care because his cancer has returned.

Opponents of bailout deal state case in Orlando

Holding signs and chanting, “No Bush, no bailout,” protesters in downtown Orlando on Thursday evening urged rush-hour passers-by to ask members of Congress to vote against the proposed $700 billion Wall Street bailout.

Growth management amendment wording deemed vague

The Florida Supreme Court says the state’s revised statement on how much a proposed growth management amendment might cost taxpayers is still vague and misleading.

State Senators demand transparency in Alligator Alley lease talks

Florida Sens. Dave Aronberg, D-Greenacres and Burt Saunders, R-Naples, will hold a press conference on Friday to discuss enforcing transparency in the Florida Department of Transportation’s plans to lease Alligator Alley.

Little agreement at ‘water congress’ on how to conserve

Water wars like the fight over St. Johns River withdrawals will only grow unless Florida learns to manage its water better, experts and policymakers meeting Thursday said.

Economic growth slows dramatically in SW Florida

Southwest Florida has fallen in the rankings for growth in economic output.

House Passes Disaster Tax Relief Bill

The U.S. House voted to pass legislation by Reps. Ron Kind and Charlie Rangel that would provide tax relief to people and businesses affected by natural disasters.

Texas to Get Most of Disaster Aid in Spending Bill

Democratic Congressman Chet Edwards said the House will pass a year-end spending bill that will designate most of about $23 billion in disaster recovery aid for Hurricane Ike.

PCI Opposed NAIC’s Advancement of the Market Conduct Annual Statement Proposal

The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) is troubled by the direction the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) is taking on the Market Conduct Annual Statement Proposal, which was approved Wednesday at the Joint Executive (EX) Committee Plenary session during the Fall National Meeting.

State Regulators Blast Federal Regulation Advocates Over AIG

State insurance commissioners have lashed out at members of Congress who are blaming state regulation for the problems of American International Group (AIG) and using the AIG crisis to bolster their advocacy for federal regulation.

New York Insurance Regulator to Oversee AIG Asset Sales

New York State Insurance Superintendent Eric Dinallo, who heads a national panel of state regulators overseeing possible sales of assets by American International Group (AIG), has asked an investment advisory firm to help out.

NAIC Hires Firm To Supervise Sale of AIG Units

A National Association of Insurance Commissioners working group said it has hired Centerview Partners Holdings L.L.C. to help it oversee the insurance subsidiaries of American International Group Inc.

NAIC Ideas On AIG, OFC Are Flawed Says Think Tank

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners has come under fire from a non-profit think tank for its contention that the problems of American International Group are an argument against federal insurance regulation.

Build Smart With Passive Protection Systems, Safety Institute CEO Says

To hear Julie Rochman tell it, she’d like every community in the United States to be resilient in the face of natural disasters. Rochman, president and CEO of the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) and former head of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, says IBHS’s aim is to make sure “citizens across the country, whether they’re on the coast or they are inland,” know what to do and have passive protection systems in place to resist natural disasters.

FEMA Delays Flood Insurance Rule for Illinoisans Near River

Illinois residents and businesses in the St. Louis metropolitan area will not yet be forced to pay more for flood insurance than counterparts on the Missouri side of the Mississippi River, the Federal Emergency Management Agency decided.

Texas Commissioner to Insurers: Don’t Jump the Gun on Raising Rates

Texas Insurance Commissioner Mike Geeslin told lawmakers at a hearing on Sept. 24 that compared with previous years, property/casualty insurance companies’ loss ratios will likely be worse “for this calendar year and the first three quarters of 2009,” due to losses from Hurricane Ike and other 2008 storms. But he said dire warnings that rates will likely skyrocket due to carrier losses this year are “overstatement.”

Texas Windpool Not Denying Claims on a Blanket Basis, Spokesman Says

A spokesman for the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association says rumors that the association will deny Hurricane Ike claims on a blanket basis are unfounded, untrue and completely misleading.

California Governor Signs Insurance Bills

With a Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2008, deadline to sign or veto bills fast approaching in Califorrnia, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has taken action on several bills this week.

California Can Issue Fines for Insurance Code Violations

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed a bill establishing a citation program for minor violations of the Insurance Code.