Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Wednesday, May 23

Click on the headline to read the complete article:

 

Let Ground Zero Rebuilding Begin: Spitzer Brokers Settlement with 7 Insurers

New York Governor Eliot Spitzer and Insurance Superintendent Eric R. Dinallo announced that they have negotiated a $2 billion settlement between Silverstein Properties and seven insurance companies covering all outstanding insurance claims arising from the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.

 

TaxWatch finds 507 “turkeys” worth $267 million in state budget

Testing student athletes for steroids, printing the state’s driver safety handbook and hundreds of local projects are among 507 questionable expenditures valued at $267 million on Florida TaxWatch’s annual “turkey” list announced Tuesday.

 

Fla. Gov. Says Primary Date Is Wedge For U.S. Cat Fund

WASHINGTON —Florida’s Republican Gov. Charles Crist said in a television interview yesterday that he intends to use his state’s move to an earlier primary election date to pressure presidential candidates into supporting a national catastrophe fund.

 

Insurance Principals Plead Guilty to Multi-Million Dollar Fraud

TALLAHASSEE, FL – Four family members pled guilty today to their participation in a Miami-based insurance fraud scam that diverted millions of dollars in insurance premiums, Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced. Paul Fraynd, president of Aries Insurance Company; his father, Marcos Fraynd; his brother, Saul Fraynd and sister Fannie Fraynd must pay $5.5 million in restitution to victims of their scheme. Additionally, the four individuals are banned from receiving any insurance-related license from Florida for 30 years. The Fraynds were prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution following a complex, four-year investigation by the Department of Financial Services’ Division of Insurance Fraud.

 

House speaker floats another tax-cut idea

TALLAHASSEE — Three months ago, Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio rolled out a plan to abolish property taxes on primary homes and replace them with a higher sales tax.

 

Trying to Find the Upside After a Scandal

For decades, the Marsh & McLennan Companies relied on word of mouth and personal relationships to maintain a client roster of the biggest corporations and to bring in new business. And it grew into the world’s largest insurance broker.

 

Editorial: Don’t encourage uninsured drivers

Legislators intent on sunsetting Florida’s no-fault auto-insurance law got more than they bargained for: They eliminated mandated auto insurance altogether.

 

Florida gas stations scramble to install required generators for hurricane season

Nine days before a new law is to take effect, requiring large gas stations near storm-evacuation routes and interstates be pre-wired for backup power generators, many South Florida fuel sellers are scrambling to comply while others remain confused about the mandates.

 

Oil Prices Rise Ahead of U.S. Fuel Data

VIENNA, Austria — Oil prices rose Wednesday despite expectations that a weekly U.S. government report to be released later in the day would show the third increase in domestic gasoline stocks in as many weeks.

 

Outlines of a deal

Final details are in flux, but the following are highlights of compromise legislation being developed by congressional leaders to pay for the Iraq war:

Cost of $120 billion, including as much as $8 billion for Democratic domestic priorities such as disaster relief for Hurricane Katrina victims and farmers hurt by drought. The measure includes about $17 billion more than President Bush initially requested; of the $17 billion, about $9 billion would go for defense-related items and veterans’ health care. The balance would be for other domestic programs.

 

21st Century Holding Board Ok’s Dividend

The board of directors of 21st Century Holding ( TCHC) of Lauderdale Lakes, an insurance holding company, has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.18 per common share payable on September 4 to shareholders of record as of August 3 at its regular quarterly meeting.

 

U.S. Hurricane Forecasters Urge Safety on Oil Stockpiles

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) – Forecasters urged the oil industry this summer to stockpile supplies away from the U.S. Gulf Coast, which they predict will be hit by hurricane-force winds, potentially sending sky-high gas prices even higher, according to hazard models released on Wednesday.

 

States Won’t Follow Fla. Insurance Moves, Says Reinsurer

NEW YORK —Florida’s legislative remedy to halt escalating homeowners’ insurance costs will not be duplicated elsewhere despite its perceived popularity there, an insurance executive predicted.

 

Forecasters tell coastal areas to expect busy hurricane season

Hurricane forecasters expect more tropical storms than normal this season, and “it just takes one to make it a bad year,” says Conrad Lautenbacher, head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.