Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Thursday, June 7

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Rally planned at speaker’s office

Consumers, attorneys and doctors will rally outside the Coral Gables office of House Speaker Marco Rubio Thursday.

 

Hospitals fear loss of PIP

With nearly 21 percent of Floridians under age 65 lacking health insurance, hospitals and doctors fear they would be stuck with millions of dollars in unpaid bills from accident victims if Florida’s no-fault auto insurance law expires.

 

House to Hold Hearings on Hurricane Insurance Practices Next Week

Congress is planning further exploration of the federal government’s flood program and private insurance practices following the hurricanes of 2005, including the settlement of wind vs. water claims.

 

Wasserman-Schultz and Hastings named national co-chairs for Hillary Clinton

U.S. Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, of Weston, and Alcee Hastings, of Miramar, were appointed national campaign co-chairs on Thursday for U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s Democratic presidential effort.

 

‘Highest and best use’ delayed until next year

TALLAHASSEE — House Speaker Marco Rubio had bad news for small businesses Wednesday, saying plans to limit a taxing practice that can give huge tax bills to modest businesses in prime locations would be put off until next year.

 

Insurance industry split over legislation to address risks posed by terrorist attacks 

The thorny question of how to cover the losses from a dirty bomb or other doomsday scenario has been holding up a House bill to renew the federal backstop for terrorism insurance.

 

Scientists’ research disputes surge in hurricane activity

A surge in major Atlantic hurricanes over the past decade — often cited as evidence of increasing global warming — may not be a surge at all but a return to normal storm patterns, according to a new study.

  

Virtual fires could be wake-up call

Interactive simulations will help predict the movements of wildfires, beginning with Volusia.

With wildfires a recurring threat across the state, University of Central Florida researchers are developing a virtual-reality program to educate the public about the risk to their properties and communities.

   

70 percent of voters strongly approve of Crist, state survey says

TALLAHASSEE · The honeymoon continues for Gov. Charlie Crist, still wildly popular with Florida voters who see him as far more principled than most politicians, according to a new statewide poll.

 

Prudential shutting equity unit

Prudential Financial Inc., the second-largest U.S. life insurer, will shut down its 420-person stock research and trading unit, one of the last traces of its failed attempt to become a financial supermarket.

 

Dade housing leader in overbilling probe

Cynthia Curry, hired last year by Miami-Dade County to turn around its scandal-plagued housing agency, is under criminal investigation for alleged overbilling in connection with a contract her consulting company held for work at Miami International Airport several years ago.

 

CFO Sink Bans Insurance Agent For Exploiting Elderly Jewish Florida Consumers

DELRAY BEACH–Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink has revoked the license of a south Florida agent and permanently banned him from the insurance business in Florida for using his insurance license to exploit elderly Jewish Floridians.

 

Insurance Rate reform: Troubled Florida market still attractive

In the tug of war between Gov. Charlie Crist and the insurance industry over reforms enacted in January, many homeowners and businesses felt like the rope.

  

Citizens asks for time limit on claim disputes

Facing criticism for thousands of 2004 and 2005 hurricane claims still open, Citizens Property Insurance seeks to rein in the lawyers and freelance adjusters it alleges are whipping up disputes in order to pocket large fees.

 

Counties get FEMA windfall

$12.1 million for Escambia; Santa Rosa to get $8.9 million

Escambia and Santa Rosa counties received some unexpected money this week from the federal government for hurricane recovery.

 

Dade voters may get new shot at slots

Slot machines could be back on the ballot in Miami-Dade County on Jan. 29, joining the presidential primary and Florida property tax cuts in a crowded field of questions headed to voters.

  

Student loan abuse by private companies described to Congress

WASHINGTON · Rampant abuses by lenders have followed a boom in higher-priced college loans not guaranteed by the government, and lax federal oversight has made the situation worse, New York’s attorney general said Wednesday.

 

AIR Factors Business Interruption into Hurricane Model

AIR Worldwide Corp. updated its hurricane modeling software enabling enhanced methodology for estimating business interruption losses.

 

Dean poised to attack ad’s creators

Stung by attacks from what he called “people in the shadows,” former Rep. Charlie Dean, R-Inverness, said he’ll push for felony charges in the future against operators of political action committees that fail to disclose details of their contributions and expenditures.

 

Online-predator sting yields 50 arrests in Central Florida

In the first 151 days of the year, a concentrated effort to target online sexual predators resulted in 126 people arrested statewide.

 

Will Florida be a nuclear powerhouse?

Industry officials anticipate a surge in applications here and in 2 other states.

Nuclear power’s comeback from national disfavor likely will start with construction of plants in Florida and two other states in the coming decade, the chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Wednesday at a conference in Orlando.

  

Economix:  Health Care as if Costs Didn’t Matter

In a saner world, the place where you live wouldn’t have much effect on how doctors treated your back problems. In our world, it can make all the difference.

  

Opportunity in a Lawmaker’s Fall

Resignations in Ethics Cases Open Coveted Committee Seats

Indictments and corruption scandals can mean one member of Congress’s demise but become another’s bounty, with key vacancies created on prized committees when ethics probes force lawmakers to step aside.

 

Nagin raising cash but mum on plans

Just a year after he won a second term, speculation is swirling that Mayor Ray Nagin is looking for another job – perhaps governor or congressman.

 

Holocaust survivors say archives ignored

U.S. Holocaust survivors expressed dismay on Thursday that documents found in Vienna were not used to help settle insurance claims by descendants of Jews whose families had property seized by the Nazis.