Florida Insurance Council - Covering Florida Since 1962
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel The Senate Judiciary Committee approved SB 1582 on February 4, 2020. The bill deals with asbestos trust claims. The Senate bill is different from the House bill on key aspects, as noted below. The House bill (HB 741) has already cleared all its committees and is waiting for…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel The OIR backed credit for reinsurance bill that incorporates substantive provisions from the 2017 Covered Agreement between the U.S. and the European Union (EU) passed its second committee in the House on February 4, 2020. It was not amended and did not have opposition. The bills enact the…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel On February 4, 2020, the House Government Operations and Technology Appropriations Committee passed a bill to increase the salary of the Judges of Compensation Claims (JCCs) to that of county court judges. The bill was not amended and had no debate. It has two committees left. HB 1049…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel HB 1297 makes changes to the drug-free workplace programs in Chapters 112 and 440, F.S. to align Florida’s drug free workplace law with the federal drug free workplace law. The bill was approved by its first House committee of reference on February 4, 2020 with a strike all amendment…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel On February 4, 2020, the second Senate committee of reference approved SB 474, a bill deregulating numerous professions and occupations. The bill includes changes to the membership of the Florida Building Commission which may be important to the property insurance industry. Although numerous amendments were adopted to the…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel A property insurance bill containing harmful changes for property insurers and surplus lines insurers passed the House Insurance and Banking Subcommittee on February 4, 2020 without amendment. One of the most onerous changes made by HB 1357 creates a private cause of action for an insurer violation of the…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel With many members calling for continued discussion about third party bad faith reform and no definite promise from the bill sponsor to amend the bill to add bad faith, the House Insurance and Banking Subcommittee approved HB 771, the PIP repeal bill, during its meeting on February 4, 2020.…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel HB 1205 deals with disclosures from health care providers to patients when the cash price for a covered medical service is cheaper than the patient’s cost sharing obligation under health insurance. The bill is one of a large number of House health care reform bills designed to further Speaker…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel Bills regulating electric bikes (e-bikes) and essentially treating them like bikes that are pedaled passed committees in the House and Senate on February 3, 2020 despite concerns about bikes going up to 28 mph being used on pedestrian walkways. The House bill, HB 971, was not amended. The Senate…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel A bill to revamp the construction defect process cleared its first House committee on January 29, 2020 on a party line 9-4 vote with Republicans voting “yes” and Democrats voting “no.” The bill has two committees left. The Senate companion has not been heard in committee. A strike all…