Florida Insurance Council - Covering Florida Since 1962
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel Two Senate construction related bills, SB 1312 and SB 1372, that include changes to the building code adoption passed Senate Appropriations on May 1, 2017. SB 1372 deals primarily with electrical and alarm system contracting, but also contains the building code provision outlined below. HB 227 is the…
By: Greenberg Traurig, FIC Lobbyist On Thursday, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation’s (“Citizens”) Board of Governors met to approve their 2017 Risk Transfer Program (the “Program”). Citizens is required by Florida Statute to procure catastrophe reinsurance in the private marketplace. Each year, the Board of Governors meets to review the reinsurance coverage recommendations offered by its…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel Entities allowed to form a public housing authority self-insurance fund (SIF) are expanded under a bill, SB 850, approved by the Senate Rules Committee on April 28, 2017. The bill now goes to the full Senate which is expected to substitute the House bill, HB 421, for the Senate…
By: Sam Miller, FIC Consultant HB 813 Flood Insurance — by Lee Jr. (L) “This is the bill that makes flood insurance more available to the citizens of the State of Florida,” said Rep. Larry Lee, D-Fort Pearce. Lee, the House bill sponsor, spoke just before the House passed 115-0 the 2017 legislation (CS/CS/HB 813) …
By: Sam Miller, FIC Consultant (Information from FIC lobbyist Greenberg Traurig was used in this report) The Florida House April 26 approved 91-26 a package of assignment of benefits reforms, including two-way attorneys fees. This bill (HB 1421) goes to the Florida Senate which has not taken up attorneys fee reform during its AOB deliberations. …
By: Sam Miller, FIC Consultant HB 813 Flood Insurance — by Lee Jr. (L)392033 — Lee A measure (CS/CS/HB 813) continuing the Legislature’s initiatives of the last several years to promote private flood insurance in Florida should win approval of the House on April 26 and go to the Senate. It was reviewed on the…
By: Sam Miller, FIC Consultant HB 421 Public Housing Authority Insurance — by Shaw Entities allowed to form a public housing authority self-insurance fund (SIF) are expanded under a bill scheduled for approval by the full House April 26. The bill came to the House floor for the first time on April 25. There were…
By: Sam Miller, FIC Consultant HB 1421 Property Insurance Assignment Agreements — by Grant (J)Amendments Filed 702957 [PDF] Jenne(Information from FIC lobbyist Greenberg Traurig was used in this report) The Florida House rejected April 25 a one-year rate freeze on homeowners insurance rates and a 6.5 percent rate rollback next year as it prepared to…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel The House flood insurance bill (HB 813 ) passed its last committee, House Commerce, on April 19, 2017 with one amendment. The bill will now be heard on the House floor when set by the Rules Committee. The Senate companion, SB 420, also passed its last committee hearing on…
By: Greenberg Traurig, FIC Lobbyist House Commerce approved a proposed committee bill for HB 1421 by Rep. Jamie Grant (R-Tampa) and Rep. Rene Plasencia (R-Titusville) on Wednesday. The measure was approved on a vote of 21 to 8 with Democrats voting against it. Rep. Richard Stark (D-Weston) was the lone Democrat casting a favorable vote.…