Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Tuesday, March 23
Mar 23, 2010
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Lauderdale Lakes-based 21st Century plans to buy Tampa-based HomeWise Insurance
21st Century Holding Co. has signed an agreement in principle to acquire HomeWise Insurance Co and HomeWise Management Co.
Broward resident files lawsuit after losing windstorm coverage
Carla Gemmati, a resident at the Lake Pointe Condominium in Oakland Park, saw her mortgage almost double from $975 to $1,700 in December.
Montgomery Insurance Looks to Grow Florida Commercial Lines Business
Montgomery Insurance, a Liberty Mutual Group regional operation, says it is implementing a commercial lines growth plan in Florida with its independent insurance agents.
Column: Small insurance companies could leave Florida residents at risk
How risky is your property insurer?
If you’re with a small company, chances are, very.
Editorial: Don’t deregulate Florida insurers
Reject bill that lets insurers raise rates without oversight
A bad property insurance bill that passed the Florida Legislature in 2009 but was vetoed by Gov. Charlie Crist has raised its ugly head again.
Opinion: What about a drywall cluster?
If residents of The Acreage are frustrated because of the uncertainty about finding a cause of the cancer cluster in their community, imagine the frustration of South Floridians who have defective Chinese drywall in their homes.
Shaky alliance helps advance compromise Florida parental-waiver bill
A rare deal between business groups and trial lawyers has helped keep intact a top legislative priority of the tourism industry: to let parents sign legal waivers when their children participate in activities like horseback riding and boating.
Red light camera tickets, and excuses, get a hearing in Tampa
One man blamed trees blocking his view of a traffic light. A woman said she couldn’t see because of the tall truck in front of her. Several people told Hillsborough County’s special magistrate that they weren’t behind the wheel.
Column: A bailout for Florida bail bonds agents?
When Jayston Graham told me he had to lay off five employees, it seemed like bad news.
Florida, 12 other states sue on health care plan
Attorneys general from 13 states sued the federal government Tuesday, claiming the landmark health care overhaul bill is unconstitutional just seven minutes after President Barack Obama signed it into law.
- Blog: Charlie Crist backs Bill McCollum’s health challenge
- Florida opt-out proposal might not last
- Blog: Florida Agency for Health Care Administration–Health care reform will cost Florida $1 billion
- Seniors in Florida will feel impact, phased in over time
Blog: Florida legislature eyes Medicaid Reform, Part B
Senate President-designate Mike Haridopolos and House Speaker-designate Dean Cannon, among other conservatives in the Legislature, think they can save $27 million by expanding a controversial Medicaid reform plan passed in 2005 from Broward County and the Jacksonville region to 19 additional counties, including Metro Orlando.
Florida Department of Health bill called ‘dangerous’
Florida’s public health experts spent their days off this weekend mobilizing to fight what they consider a “dangerous” bill that would shrink the Florida Department of Health and abolish its public-education role in disease prevention.
Alachua County may ease eligibility rules for CHOICES
About 2,600 are enrolled in program, according to the most recent count.
When the sales tax referendum to fund Alachua County’s CHOICES health services program passed by a mere 85 votes in the August 2004 primary, the expectation was that the tax would raise $7 million a year during its seven-year lifespan and make health care affordable and accessible for about 14,000 uninsured workers in the county.
Blog: Florida Senate proposed budget outspends House by $1.5 billion
The Senate budget published tonight spends $68.6 billion which is: 2.1 percent more than the House’s $67.2 billion proposal, 3.1 percent more than the $66.5 billion budget and 0.8 percent less than Gov. Charlie Crist’s recommendation.
Dig Florida Revenue Hole Deeper; Cause More Cuts in Services
At the same time that Florida faces a potential $3.2 billion shortfall, the legislature is considering tax breaks that could further depress revenues by more than $500 million, require deeper cuts to programs helping Floridians struggling during the recession, and do little if anything to create jobs, FCFEP said today.
In Tallahassee today, focus is education
The 40-member Senate will take up the heart of the education policy agenda, including changes to the teacher tenure system, an expansion of a tax credit school voucher program, and asking voters to relax the provisions of the class-size amendment they approved eight years ago.
Fast-paced Florida GOP campaign concludes Tuesday at polls
Republicans will choose from five candidates to face Democratic candidate on April 13 in quest to replace Ray Sansom.
Regulators take over Tampa’s GunnAllen Financial
Was it the nasty recession or the firm’s history of shooting for the moon? Whatever the root cause, securities regulators stepped in Monday to close the Tampa brokerage GunnAllen Financial for failing to maintain required levels of capital.
University board withdraws from suit against Florida Legislature
The Board of Governors agreed Monday to withdraw from a lawsuit against the Florida Legislature over which body can set university tuition and other governance issues.
Florida House panel OKs foreclosure bill
A House committee gave swift approval Monday to Rep. Tom Grady’s “user-friendly” foreclosure bill, which he said will protect homeowners who fall on hard times and unclog courts flooded by a wave of bad mortgages.
- Some Florida homeowners facing the prospect of repeated foreclosures
- More Florida homeowners are opting for ‘strategic defaults’
Contract for printing Florida driver’s handbook resurfaces in bill, catches flak
The rocky relationship between the state and an entrepreneur who scored an exclusive deal to publish the official driver safety handbook may not be over.
Study: China trade costs Florida 101,600 jobs
The U.S. is hemorrhaging millions of jobs as a result of the nation’s growing trade deficit, largely with China, according to a new report by the Economic Policy Institute.
JetBlue chooses New York over Orlando for new headquarters
Orlando’s bid for the airline’s new headquarters falls short as carrier chooses ‘creative’ offer from the Big Apple.
McCarran-Ferguson Repeal Excluded from Health Care Legislation
David A. Sampson, president and CEO of the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, issued the following statement in response to the United States House of Representatives’ passage of landmark health care legislation that excludes provisions to repeal the McCarran-Ferguson Act: “The landmark health care legislation does not include a repeal of the limited antitrust delegation for insurance.
PCI Urges Congress to Favor Consumers and Pass Access to Repair Parts Act
In testimony before the U.S. Congress yesterday, the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America expressed support for H.R. 3059, the “Access to Repair Parts Act” and highlighted how consumers benefit from greater availability and competition in the automotive collision repair parts market.
Chubb wins round in asbestos cover fight with Travelers
Chubb Indemnity Insurance Co. can sue Travelers Insurance Cos. for allegedly concealing a policyholder’s asbestos problems, despite an agreement protecting Travelers from future asbestos lawsuits, an appeals court has found.
RMS To Create Models For Asia Capital Reinsurance Group
Risk Management Solutions and Asia Capital Reinsurance Group announced an agreement for RMS to work with ACR to develop catastrophe risk models for the Asian market.
Insurance Frauds Spike in New York
What do a pizza maker, insurance underwriter and a podiatrist have in common? In New York, at least, they were among the 499 people convicted of insurance fraud last year, according to the state’s insurance department, amid a troubling spike in that particular crime.
U.S. Prosecutors Targeting Senior Executives in Foreign Bribery Cases
A top U.S. Justice Department official said that prosecutors will increasingly pursue individual prosecutions — senior executives included — under the U.S. anti-bribery statute.
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