Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Wednesday, June 23

 

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Settlement expected in Homestead drywall case

Two companies in a class-action case over defective Chinese drywall in Homestead houses are willing to pay $6 million to settle the case.

 

Doesn’t matter if home truly is a castle; finding Florida property insurance still elusive

Five years ago, local contractor Jim Kuhnsman built a hurricane-resistant fortress in St. Petersburg for his family.

 

Video:  Florida is Most Sinkhole-Ridden State in U.S

World’s largest sinkhole is 75 miles wide

 

Crist to sign bill Tuesday that makes bicyclists use roadside bike lanes

Gov. Charlie Crist will sign House BIll 971 into law Tuesday. The bill mandates bicyclists to use designated bike lanes except for specified expectations which include when bike lane surface conditions are unsafe.

 

Florida Court Says Fishermen Can Sue Polluter; Is BP Next? 

With BP’s offshore oil gusher in the Gulf of Mexico as a backdrop, the Florida Supreme Court has ruled that commercial fishermen can sue a company that discharged pollutants into Tampa Bay for lost income and profits even though the fishermen do not actually own any property damaged by the pollution.

 

Florida Gulf property sales slide further on oil fears

This was the year, Alicia Hollis and her fellow real estate agents thought. After a nasty batch of hurricanes and the bursting of the housing bubble, this was the year that condo sales along the Florida Panhandle’s brilliant white beaches were going to rebound.

 

Florida to Navy Veterans group: Cease all operations, immediately

The activities of the U.S. Navy Veterans Association “constitute immediate, serious dangers to the public welfare,” the state of Florida says in a new order, and the group must cease operations immediately.

 

U.S. Treasury sends $418M to hard-hit Florida

Florida is in line to receive $418 million of a $1.5 billion federal fund designed to tackle foreclosures in some of the nation’s “hardest hit” areas.

 

Thousands of sterile medflies released in Boca Raton

Officials combat first substantial medfly infestation in over a decade

The Mediterranean fruit fly infestation here is being fought on foot, by truck and in the air.

 

Florida Attorney General Sues Broward County “Auto Relief” Company for Deceptive Practices

Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced his office has filed a lawsuit against a Broward County company alleging the company engaged in deceptive and unfair trade practices related to automobile loan modifications.

 

Fla. chief justice OKs electronic probate filing

The Florida Supreme Court has approved electronic document filing for probate cases in 44 of the state’s 67 counties over the past three years.

 

Blog:  FPL refuses to tell the state which former regulators work for the utility

Two major Florida utilities reported to the Public Service Commission this week which former PSC employees they have hired, how much they’re paid and other information.

 

Florida’s population growth hits a wall

For years, Florida municipalities routinely dominated the list of the Census Bureau’s fastest-growing U.S. cities.  No more.

 

New Florida law would finance energy retrofits through property taxes

A clean energy program approved by Gov. Charlie Crist is intended help property owners finance alternative energy improvements while boosting business for solar energy companies.

 

Palm Beach rock-mining rule changes weighed

A new proposal would require landowners in the Everglades Agricultural Area to seek a zoning change before they could mine their property.

Palm Beach County commissioners on Thursday will consider a year-long moratorium on rock-mining in the Everglades Agricultural Area, to give staff time to craft long-term restrictions.

 

Opposition to Amendment 4 picks up steam in North Florida

Amendment 4 – the so-called “Hometown Democracy” amendment on Florida ballots this November – has proven especially divisive in South Florida, where both the Sun-Sentinel and The Palm Beach Post have openly voiced their opposition. Recently, though, the issue has begun to heat up in North Florida.

 

TIME:  Florida Beach Access Case a New Twist in Property Battle 

When the weather gets hot, ordinary folks go to the beach – and well-heeled coastal-property owners try to keep them away. Summer is high season for fights over beach access, and the Supreme Court ventured into those choppy waters earlier this week with a major ruling in a Florida beach case. It did the right thing, but the ruling is not going to stop the fighting.

 

A diverse fundraiser signals Crist strategy

Prominent backers from both parties mingle at Siesta Key event

It was a group rarely, if ever, seen together on Florida’s political money trail.  There was Pat Neal, former executive director of the Florida Christian Coalition, mingling near Barbara A. Zdravecky, the head of Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida.

• Blog: Former Alex Sink money man helping Charlie Crist
• Blog: Crist staffer quits over fundraiser tied to Cuba travel

 

Old friends and allies urge Bud Chiles to bow out of governor’s race

Lawton “Bud” Chiles III has been an independent candidate for governor for only a few weeks, but some longtime friends and associates already are trying to persuade him to drop out.

 

Blog:  Case closed on the Boyd-Lawson dispute

Prosecutors have declined to take up an incident over the weekend where Al Lawson snatched a video camera from a campaign worker for Congressman Allen Boyd.

 

House Passes Flood Insurance Extension; Senate Must Still Vote

The House of Representatives has passed another temporary extension of the National Flood Insurance Program until Sept. 30, 2010.

 

New Hurricane Insurer Enters Hawaii Market

Hawaii Insurance Commissioner J.P. Schmidt has announced the formation of a business association between First Insurance Company of Hawai’i (FICOH) and AXIS Insurance Co.

 

Texas windstorm insurer wants 5 percent annual rate increases

Coastal homeowners covered by the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association may be hit with annual rate increases of 5 percent starting next year.

 

North Carolina insurance credits for wind-resistant homes effective May 2010

Insurance premium credits become effective next May 1 for homeowners who make their houses more resistant to windstorm damage, N.C. Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin announced Wednesday.

 

Arizona Judge Rules Against State on Injured Workers Fund Raid

A new court ruling says the Arizona Legislature’s raid of nearly $4.7 million from a special fund for injured workers was illegal.

 

Three in five firms buy U.S. terrorism insurance: Survey

Takeup rates for U.S. terrorism insurance continued to increase in 2009, according to a Wednesday report by insurance brokerage Marsh Inc.

 

Fraudulent hail loss claim spike blamed on ‘fly-by-night’ contractors

Suspected cases of insurance fraud, often by roofers and other contractors, after hail damage rose 136% from 2006 to 2009, according to a new report.

 

 

 

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