Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Monday, November 3
Nov 3, 2008
To view a complete story, click on a headline below:
Businesses relish drop in insurance
The insurance that commercial property owners pay on their buildings has plummeted in the past two years, providing some relief from Lee County’s battered economy.
Workers compensation attorneys say court ruling will help injured
But the insurance industry fears the state Supreme Court decision will drive up costs.
Florida’s worker compensation attorneys are hailing an Oct. 23 Florida Supreme Court decision as crucial to getting denied claims for injured workers, but insurance industry representatives say it will increase the cost of doing business for everyone in the state.
Battered Brevard beaches await $7M boost
Brevard County won $7 million in federal funding to replenish the storm-eroded beaches of Indialantic and Melbourne Beach.
Stay alert: Hurricane season hasn’t blown over yet
The tropics are quiet, but hurricanes can form in November – and even after that
The tropics are quiet. No storms are on the horizon. Hurricane season is definitely winding down.
FEMA funds may be taxpayer burden
If $17 million isn’t reimbursed to Escambia County for federal claims relating to hurricanes Ivan and Dennis, taxpayers could pick up the tab.
So far, the Federal Emergency Management Agency either has reimbursed or committed in writing to repaying about $213 million of $230 million in costs from Ivan in 2004 and Dennis in 2005, county budget manager Amy Lovoy said.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: FEMA’s flood areas faulty
In August, FEMA decreed that Estero and Bonita Springs were in the 100-year flood plain. My wife and I have lived in the Villages of Country Creek in Estero for eight years and our community has never flooded even with the heavy rains from Hurricane Fay earlier this year. Now with Estero considered to be a flood plain, residents of our community here are in shock with the added costs that will be required to have flood insurance. It will also affect the future marketability of real estate in our area – not a good thing in the current real estate environment.
ACLU: Florida’s Healthcare Professionals Say NO to Amendment 2
Sixty leading Florida health care professionals today issued a statement urging Floridians to vote “No” on proposed Amendment 2.
Medical malpractice insurance costs drop along with claims
Medical malpractice insurance has become a soft market that benefits Florida doctors seeking lower rates.
Florida Department of Elder Affairs Offers Free Health Help for Seniors
We all have seen troubling stories about elders and others scaling back on their medications in order to make ends meet. Their health and well-being ultimately suffer. One of the state Department of Elder Affairs’ goals is to take preventive measures to improve the health and quality of life for older Floridians, including offering programs that can help seniors wrestling with the high cost of medication.
Bradenton-based Freedom Bank collapses
Another Bradenton bank has collapsed.
Federal banking officials took over all deposits and assets of Freedom Bank on Friday night after the Florida Office of Financial Regulation ordered the institutions closing.
A guide to Florida’s House and Senate races
Senate District 35; House Districts 91, 97, 110, 111, 112, 113, 119.
Senate candidate calls homestead exemption mailer ‘outrageous lie’
In a last-minute attack, the Republican Party of Florida has accused state Senate candidate Fred Taylor of wanting to kill the homestead exemption.
Taylor running low-frills campaign against Fasano
A mailing from a Miami group told voters that state Sen. Mike Fasano “does some funny things with money … especially when it’s yours.”
‘Vote Local’ tactic unnerves some Republicans
Unease has struck Republican candidates for local office in Pinellas County who fear that support for Sen. Barack Obama will diminish their chances for victory Tuesday.
Political insiders in party tug of war for House District 107
Democrat Luis Garcia Jr. is facing Republican challenger Jorge Luis López in Garcia’s bid for a second term as state representative for House District 107 — a traditionally Republican-leaning district that includes South Beach and parts of Little Havana, Coral Gables, Key Biscayne and Coconut Grove.
TIME: Can Florida Avoid Election Chaos?
Like a man revisiting the scene of a bad car wreck, former Vice President Al Gore came to Palm Beach County, Fla., on Friday. Palm Beach, you may recall, is where butterfly ballots, hanging chads and other election catastrophes helped thwart Gore’s efforts to win Florida’s electoral votes – and the presidency – in 2000. That bizarre recount drama gave the White House to George W. Bush by just 537 ballots.
Browning: Florida is ready for Election Day
Secretary of state sees few snags
As an old Boy Scout, Kurt Browning knows the importance of being prepared.
Long lines cap last day of early voting
Elections officials estimated wait times as long as six hours in Broward and Miami-Dade counties, but eager voters were willing to stick it out.
They stood in line at sunup. They stood less patiently at sundown.
Florida could have history-making role in Tuesday’s election
Florida could put Obama over the top Tuesday night — or complete a stunning comeback by McCain.
Florida is going to make history Tuesday in a way nobody expected.
Congressional challengers, incumbents fight to the end for votes
Democrats believe they have their best shot ever at toppling three of South Florida’s Republican Congress members.
In their final weekend of campaigning, U.S. Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart held a picnic to mark his 15th week of walking door-to-door in southwest Broward. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart and his wife, Tia, fanned out at early voting sites, and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen courted voters in Key Biscayne and South Beach.
Sen. Aronberg fights to block Alligator Alley lease
A roadblock has been thrown in front of the state’s controversial plan to put Alligator Alley up for rent.
Fewer customers, power cutbacks squeeze utilities
After years of breakneck growth, Tampa Bay’s largest utilities suffered a reversal, losing customers as the state’s economy devolved into a recession.
FPL asking for 8% increase to cover fuel contracts
Despite falling oil prices, power company says it still needs the surcharge
While oil prices have fallen mightily over the past few months, Florida Power & Light probably won’t back off its demands for a fuel charge tacked onto customers’ monthly bills because of the previously high cost of natural gas and oil.
McCollum, AARP: Senior Citizens Should Beware of Costly “Grandchild Scheme”
Better Business Bureau reports scammers are posing as grandchildren to scam unsuspecting grandparents
Attorney General Bill McCollum and AARP today issued a consumer advisory about an emerging telephone scam that is preying on grandparents nationwide. The advisory follows the Better Business Bureau’s recent report that grandparents are being taken advantage of by Canadian con artists claiming to be their victims’ grandchildren in need of emergency cash. The grandparents believe they are helping their grandchildren out of an emergency situation, but are in fact losing thousands of dollars to the scammers.
Landlords working hard to keep tenants
During the real estate boom, losing a tenant didn’t matter so much. Any tenant, whether office, industrial or retail, could easily be replaced.
Costa Rican economist says CAFTA is a bad deal
Costa Rican economist and former presidential candidate Ottón Solís spent the spring at the University of Florida as the Bacardi Family Eminent Scholar, teaching a course on free-trade agreements in the Americas at the university’s Center for Latin American Studies.
A message from Senate Democratic Leader Steve Geller (D-Cooper City)
As the clock ticks down on the tenure of Senator Steve Geller as a member of the legislature and leader of the upper chamber’s Democrats, the Cooper City lawmaker passed along this message to (those few remaining) members of the press corps: “I’m retiring, not dying.”
Report: Cities face ‘perfect storm’ for economic decline
Allen Green’s construction business got hit early by the economic crisis now rocking the world’s economy.
Employers Holdings Acquires AmCOMP
Reno, Nev.-based Employers Holdings Inc., a Nevada-based company whose subsidiaries are specialty providers of workers’ compensation insurance specializing in small businesses, has acquired AmCOMP Inc. in a transaction valued at approximately $223.5 million, including the assumption of approximately $35.1 million in debt.
No End In Sight To Investor Lawsuits Amidst Fallout From Subprime Crisis
While investors pray for a bottom to a plunging stock market in the days or weeks ahead, experts say an end to litigation arising from issues fueling market turmoil could be years or even decades away. In the meantime, as the financial crisis widens and deepens, more potential defendants and plaintiffs are being identified for directors and officers as well as errors and omissions claims.
Ike Was Very Unusual, Says Modeling Firm
The varying and belated damage estimates after Hurricane Ike resulted from a storm that was a rarely occurring weather event, according to a catastrophe modeling company.
Mississippi Katrina Report: No Insurer Fraud Pattern
State Farm Fire & Casualty Cos. made questionable decisions in handling Hurricane Katrina claims, but a nearly two-year study found no pattern of fraud in Mississippi, according to a state agency report released Oct. 30.
To unsubscribe from this newsletter, please send an e-mail to ccochran@cftlaw.com