Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Tuesday, June 26

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The GOP trifecta: Dean, Schultz, Kelly

The three Republicans were victorious Tuesday night in the election scramble set off by former state Sen. Nancy Argenziano’s appointment to the Public Service Commission.

 

New insurance site helps shoppers compare

State regulators unveiled a new website Tuesday that should allow homeowners to shop and compare rates on home policies in all 67 Florida counties.

 

Crist: Home insurance rates haven’t fallen as much as hoped

Gov. Charlie Crist knows a new law hasn’t cut home insurance rates as much as he and consumers had expected, but he launched a new Web site Tuesday that might help homeowners comparison shop to save money.

 

State takes pass on buying extra insurance to cover huge hurricane

TALLLAHASSEE The state catastrophe fund that pays damage claims when home insurers cannot is “leaning against” buying additional backup coverage for itself, because the cost would outweigh the need, Florida’s chief financial officer said Monday.

 

Citizens’ business booms

The insurer of last resort may cover half of the state’s total property risk by year’s end.

Five years ago, Citizens Property Insurance had about 500, 000 policyholders in Florida and there were concerns it had grown too large.

 

Shutters to be replaced because Home Depot products not up to code

Some South Florida consumers who bought hurricane shutters from local Home Depot stores last year may be getting free replacements that will better protect their homes during storms.

 

Editorial:  Disaster Aid

ISSUE: Appellate judges rule against FEMA.  Count it as a win for the public.

A federal appellate court ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency to turn over the names of 1.3 million disaster relief recipients to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and other news organizations. FEMA should comply, but there’s no guarantee that agency officials will do the right thing, as they have the option of appealing the court order.

 

Insurance Roll Call For FSU Students

TALLAHASSEE – Parents of Florida State University students have a lot of homework to do this summer.

 

Democrat with Ocala ties goes for Keller’s seat

OCALA – A Democrat with Ocala ties seeks to unseat Republican incumbent Ric Keller in the 2008 contest for Florida’s 8th Congressional District.

 

Exec Says Insurers Must Stand Up To Bad Adjusters

LAS VEGAS —The chief claims executive for a major insurance company said the insurance industry needs to take a moral stand against adjusters who permit the payment of fraudulent claims.

 

Industy Targets Second Industry Funds

Twenty Second Injury Funds have been abolished throughout the nation as insurers continue the push to eliminate them as part of workers’ compensation system reforms, according to a leading expert.

 

Survey: Auto Insurance Shoppers Get Multiple Quotes

The average auto insurance customer gathers three competitive quotes while shopping for a new carrier, according to a J.D. Power and Associates survey released today.

 

Ex-Citizens President Discusses A U.S. Cat Fund

LAS VEGAS —The former president of Florida’s insurer of last resort told an industry group meeting that a national catastrophe fund would make more sense as a reinsurance program than as a primary insurer similar to the federal flood program.

 

U-Haul Trailer Practices Raise Car Accident Risk, Newspaper Reports

The nation’s largest provider of rental trailers says it is “highly conservative” about safety, but a newspaper investigation revealed that company practices have actually increased the risk of towing accidents.

 

Florida Atlantic University explores using life insurance to raise money

Boca Raton philanthropist Barry Kaye wants to help Florida Atlantic University raise $100 million through a life insurance idea that is being met with both excitement and skepticism.

 

Allstate, Scruggs Group Settle Mississippi Claims

Allstate and the Scruggs Katrina Group of attorneys announced today they had reached a settlement for hundreds of Mississippi homeowners who had Hurricane Katrina damage claims against the insurer.

 

S. Florida home sales stagnant as tax cuts take hold

Home sales in South Florida were sluggish in May and are expected to lag into the summer — despite a property tax reform package signed into law this month.

 

State could set school board salaries

School boards throughout Florida are hopeful that the coming days will bring a reprieve sought since 2002 when the Legislature started requiring members to vote for their own pay raises.

 

Companies that run prisons exonerated

Investigators said Monday there was no criminal wrongdoing in $12.7 million worth of ”questionable or excessive costs” paid to two companies that run privatized prisons.

 

Lobbyists lose bid to challenge ethics law

A Leon County judge has tossed out a lawsuit filed by two lobbyists who wanted to invalidate Florida’s sweeping 2005 lobbyist ethics law.

 

Study: ‘BRICs’ Overtake U.S. in Energy

UNITED NATIONS — The main challengers to U.S. economic power _ Brazil, Russia, India and China _ have overtaken the United States in dominating the global energy industry, according to a new study by Goldman Sachs.

 

Ex-governor says he was target of Republican plot

The Alabama Democrat, fighting a 30-year sentence, and his supporters contend that his prosecution was a political strategy led by Karl Rove.

MONTGOMERY, ALA. — As Don Siegelman, the former Democratic governor of Alabama, goes before a federal judge today to fight a recommended 30-year prison sentence, he’s telling anyone who’ll listen that his prosecution was engineered by White House strategist Karl Rove.

 

Moore likes Austrian health-care system

Michael Moore has a suggestion to help California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger bring universal health care to the nation’s largest state: Just do it the Austrian way.