Florida Senate Interim Report Recommends Continued Exemption for Hurricane Model Trade Secrets

In a report released today, September 24, 2009, the Florida Senate Committee on Banking and Insurance (“Committee”) has recommended continued exemption for information considered to be proprietary in nature by hurricane modelers participating in the Florida Commission on Hurricane Loss Projection Methodology’s (“Commission”) review process.  To view the Senate Report, click here.

The Report focuses on the Commission’s trade secret exemption from public disclosure, which will sunset on October 2, 2010 unless reenacted by the Florida Legislature.

In 2005, the Legislature passed a law exempting from public disclosure trade secrets used in designing and constructing hurricane loss models that are submitted by private modeling companies to the Commission, the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (“OIR”) or the Florida Insurance Consumer Advocate. Legislation also was enacted that provided a disclosure exemption for that portion of a Commission meeting or a rate proceeding at which trade secrets are discussed. As a result, Commission members, the OIR, and the Consumer Advocate now have access to specific information that previously had been denied.  With the Committee’s recommendation to maintain this trade secret exemption, access to modelers’ trade secret information by these parties would be maintained.

The Legislature is expected to consider this issue during its next regular legislative session in 2010.

Should you have any questions or comments, please contact Colodny Fass.

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