Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Wednesday, December 3
Dec 3, 2008
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The 2008 hurricane season is finally over, but the quest for higher homeowners insurance rates marches on.
More homes may fall in high-risk flood zones
New digitized mapping may increase number of homeowners who need flood insurance.
With property values declining and homeowners insurance and property taxes increasingly a burden, now homeowners have something else to contemplate.
Hundreds of N. Miami Beach homes face reinspection
An unlicensed North Miami Beach building inspector has certified hundreds of sheds, roofs and fences in the last year thanks to a paperwork flub.
Hundreds of North Miami Beach residents who have had their roofs, fences or sheds inspected in the last year will have to have them inspected a second time.
Citizens Property Insurance Corp. will host a policyholder forum on Thursday in downtown Pensacola.
Florida Municipal adds 20 cities
Florida Municipal Insurance Trust, a nonprofit organization that provides workers compensation, liability, auto, property and health insurance to governmental entities within Florida, added 20 cities to its roster of clients this year.
UnitedHealth to Insure the Right to Insurance
For these economically uncertain times, the UnitedHealth Group has a “first of its kind” product: the right to buy an individual health policy at some point in the future even if you become sick.
Drug cards save residents $1.7M
A free prescription-drug discount-card program launched in Lake County two years ago by the National Association of Counties and Caremark Rx Inc. has saved local residents more than $1.7 million, Lake officials said.
Proposed rule lets conscience guide health care
Doctors could refuse procedures they deem morally objectionable. Some contend the rule would prevent patients from getting full care.
Some say it would violate patients’ rights and quality of care. Others say it would protect the moral integrity of health-care professionals.
Fla. cities rank highest in teen holiday auto fatalities
Three Florida metro areas are tops for fatal car crashes involving teen drivers around the holidays.
Lawmakers To Focus On Teen Drivers, Seat Belts
Florida lawmakers soon will consider bills that would allow law enforcement officers to pull over drivers for not wearing seat belts and to stop new teenage drivers from carting their young pals around.
Fla. called No. 1 in mortgage fraud
A national report released Tuesday said Florida leads the nation in mortgage fraud. Within the state, Tampa is second in the amount of suspicious loan activity.
Would-be senators line up for Martinez seat
Would-be successors beginning to line up as U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, elected in 2004, announced he would retire after completing his term in 2010.
U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez’s announcement Tuesday that he will not run for reelection set off a political free-for-all throughout Florida, as a slew of would-be successors began jockeying for position in the state’s marquee race in 2010.
TC Columnists Ponder: Sink, Crist, Bush the likely candidates to fill Martinez’ Senate seat?
With slumping poll numbers and growing numbers of Democratic voters in Florida, Martinez may have seen the writing on the wall in announcing he wont seek re-election in 2010.
Jeb: I am considering Senate run
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush – the younger brother of the president – is weighing a run for the Senate seat currently held by Republican Mel Martinez.
Martinez announced Tuesday that he will not seek reelection in 2010. Asked whether he was interested in running for the seat then, Bush told Politico by e-mail Tuesday night: “I am considering it.”
Sen. Don Gaetz heading Fla. Senate economy panel
A lawmaker who made his fortune in the health care business will lead a state Senate panel’s search for ways to stimulate Florida’s slumping economy.
EDITORIAL: Are Florida legislators serious about turkeys, or are they just crying wolf?
New leaders in the Florida Legislature need to make history, not just repeat it
Eating turkey on Thanksgiving Day is an American tradition.
Hoping for a miracle is lousy state policy
In most challenging situations where a major problem is the issue, do-nothing-and-hope-for-a-miracle is not an option.
Gov. Charlie Crist and the majority of the Florida Legislature have elected to take the miracle-hoping route with the state budget. Financially, our state is approaching crisis territory.
Hillsborough Seeks Changes To State Mandate Laws
With little likelihood of getting state money next year for local projects, Hillsborough County commissioners instead asked legislators Tuesday to end state mandates that tie local governments’ hands.
Alligator Alley lease far from done deal, says state
Is a one-time cash infusion worth giving up 50 years of control?
That’s the question posed Tuesday by opponents to the Florida Department of Transportation proposal to lease Alligator Alley, the 78-mile road connecting Naples and Fort Lauderdale.
Fla. commission approves car emissions limits
Tough auto emissions standards backed by Gov. Charlie Crist cleared a hurdle Tuesday when a state commission gave its approval to rules fiercely opposed by car industry lobbyists but praised by environmentalists as a way to fight global warming.
Slow down $1.34 billion sugar deal, critics urge as clock ticks toward deadline
Gov. Charlie Crist’s blockbuster plan to repair the Everglades by buying U.S. Sugar Corp.’s farmlands for $1.34 billion ran into a litany of sharp questions and criticism today – threatening to send all parties back to the negotiating table.
Tiny exotic beetles threaten Florida crops
Small, invasive beetles that kill trees in the laurel family — including avocados — are inching their way closer to South Florida.
Guacamole lovers, beware: An Asian beetle half the size of a rice grain is spreading a fungus fatal to avocados and red bay trees and is working its way south, toward 6,500 acres of avocados in Miami-Dade County.
U.S. needs national catastrophe insurance, disaster experts warn
James Lee Witt, the former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in the Clinton administration, and retired Adm. James Loy, a former deputy secretary of homeland security, said that a House of Representatives-passed bill in the current session of Congress should serve as a quick start for a bill in the new session that begins in January.
‘Crash taxes’ add hefty fees for aid
It’s bad enough to be in a car accident, but getting billed for the police and/or fire department response can make matters worse. And your insurance may not cover that.
Imagine you’re cruising down the road when you hit a patch of black ice and slide into a guardrail. A passing motorist calls 911. Soon firetrucks and police arrive.
U.S. Flood Program Rates Are Flawed, Says GAO
Rates charged homeowners and businesses by the National Flood Insurance Program are based on an outdated computer model that doesn’t accurately reflect the risk of losses from flooding, the Government Accountability Office said.
North Carolina Coastal Property Owners To Pay More For Insurance
Property owners in 18 coastal counties soon will pay more for insurance premiums through a state-sanctioned program in a decision that could help narrow any unfunded liabilities should a monster hurricane hit North Carolina.
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