Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Thursday, June 25
Jun 25, 2009
To view a complete story, click on a headline below:
Gov. Crist’s veto sends State Farm packing
State Farm officials said they have no option but to leave Florida after Gov. Charlie Crist on Wednesday vetoed legislation to let them offer unregulated property insurance rates.
Statement From PCI on Governor’s Veto of House Bill 1171
“The Florida Property and Casualty Association applauds Governor Crist’s veto of HB 1171 related to residential property insurance.”
Lawmakers should revive consumer choice
The Florida Department of Insurance Regulation has been claiming that, since 2006, 40 new property insurance writers have brought $4 billion in capital to Florida to cover homeowners in the event a heartbreaker of hurricane turns coastal properties into a rubble.
New Florida Commercial Insurer CastlePoint Assigned Ratings
A.M. Best Co. has assigned a financial strength rating of A- (Excellent) and issuer credit rating of “a-” to CastlePoint Florida Insurance Co. (CFIC) of Fort Lauderdale. The rating firm said the outlook assigned to these ratings is stable.
Former Miami Pharmacy Owner Sentenced for Defrauding Medicaid Out of Over $1.7 Million
Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced a former Miami pharmacist was sentenced in Miami-Dade County for defrauding the Florida Medicaid program out of over $1.7 million.
Gov. Crist’s bill actions on Wednesday
Governor Charlie Crist signed 28 bills into law and vetoed three bills Wednesday that passed during the 2009 legislative session.
Crist may face opposition on water bill
Florida’s water management districts are poised to act quickly if Gov. Charlie Crist signs a controversial bill that would give staff members working behind closed doors even more power to grant lucrative water rights.
Verizon, Alltel to refund mystery charges in Fla.
Verizon Wireless will pay $1.5 million to the state of Florida to settle charges that it billed customers for ring tones and other Internet products that were falsely advertised as free, Attorney General Bill McCollum said Wednesday.
Nelson inserts three earmarks into NASA spending bill
Three projects on Florida’s Space Coast would get $1.6 million in funding next year as part of an overall $18.7 billion budget for NASA approved today by a Senate spending committee.
U.S. interior secretary wants to proceed with Everglades restoration
Groups being asked to settle differences
After a decade of foot-dragging, it’s time to get moving on Everglades restoration, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said today.
Editorial: Amendment flawed way to manage growth
Florida voters will now get their say next year on the proposed state constitutional amendment with the apple-pie name, feared and loathed by business groups, planners and even some growth-control advocates.
Ernst and Young: Model Reliance Among Top Insurer Risks
Besides the financial market crisis, the top business risks multinational insurers face this year are failures to recognize model shortcomings and possible impacts from sweeping regulatory reforms, a report found.
Windstorm group plans 10% insurance hike along Texas coast
Premiums could jump 10 percent next year for thousands of coastal residents and businesses insured by the state windstorm association.
AIG takes steps to spin off 2 life insurance units, will reduce government debt by $25 billion
American International Group said Wednesday it will reduce outstanding federal loans by $25 billion by giving the government a preferred stake in two two life insurance subsidiaries that will be spun off from the insurance giant.
Report: FEMA misspent $7 million on warehouses
The Federal Emergency Management Agency ignored the law and misused millions of dollars to build two warehouses after hurricanes Katrina and Rita, according to government investigators.
Federal Reserve extends emergency funding programs
The Federal Reserve on Thursday announced extensions of and modifications to a number of its liquidity programs. Conditions in financial markets have improved in recent months, but market functioning in many areas remains impaired and seems likely to be strained for some time.
To unsubscribe from this newsletter, please send an e-mail to ccochran@cftlaw.com.