Capitol to Courthouse Florida Insurance Report: Thursday, January 31
Jan 31, 2013
To go directly to the section of your choice, click on a hyperlink below. Other hyperlinks to meeting information, bills and news are noted in bold type.
Daily Florida Insurance-Related Events
3:00 p.m.–Florida Medical Malpractice Joint Underwriting Association (“FMMJUA”) Compensation Committee meeting. Key West, Florida. To view the meeting notice, click here.
3:30 p.m.–FMMJUA Audit Committee meeting. Key West, Florida. To view the meeting notice, click here.
4:00 p.m.–FMMJUA Claims and Underwriting Committee meeting. Key West, Florida. To view the meeting notice, click here.
Daily Florida Insurance-Related News
Sun Sentinel: Citizens Property Insurance executives preach moderation
Top executives for Citizens Property Insurance Corp. pledged a more moderate approach Tuesday that includes avoiding lavish travel expenses and drastic policy changes that may frustrate homeowners.
Florida Senator Smith: Senate Democrats to take hard line on property insurance overhaul
While not declaring a solid caucus opposition, Senate Minority Leader Chris Smith said Wednesday that Democrats in the upper chamber will take a strong stand against plans to raise the cap on Citizens Property Insurance Corp. rates.
Florida Marks I-75 Crash Anniversary; Tragedy Triggers Safety Measures, Lawsuits
The pre-dawn traffic moved fast on Interstate 75 through Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park outside Gainesville.
Feds targeting Medicare fraud, political corruption in probes of eye doctor, Senator Bob Menendez
The high-profile federal raid on a South Florida ophthalmologist’s office was more about potential Medicare fraud than about U.S. Senator Bob Menendez, a longtime friend of Dr. Salomon Melgen.
Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford: Expect Medicaid expansion decision soon
House Speaker Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, on Wednesday said lawmakers will decide early in the coming session whether to expand Medicaid.
Major pension change coming, legislative leaders promise
Senate President Don Gaetz and House Speaker Will Weatherford say unfunded public pension liabilities can’t be “kicked” to future sessions.
Florida House leaders unveil campaign finance reform ideas
Florida House leaders unveiled what they hope will be behavior-changing campaign finance reform Wednesday, phasing out candidate-controlled political committees and ushering in stricter reporting deadlines, more contribution accountability and campaign contribution caps of $10,000 per election.
Florida House, Senate leaders outline 5-point agenda
Strengthening ethics and campaign-finance laws and improving Florida’s universities are among the goals that Florida House and Senate leaders said Wednesday they’ve agreed to jointly pursue in the coming legislative session.
Budget hopes, expectations set for collision with reality, uncertainty
After three straight years of budget shortfalls, state economists have predicted a budget surplus for the 2013-2014 fiscal year.
Blog: Florida Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater pushing for contracting reform in 2013
Since he was first elected as Chief Financial Officer, Jeff Atwater has been advocating for reforms to the state contracting system, which spends more than $50 billion of taxpayer dollars annually.
Florida Governor Rick Scott Seeks Business Sales Tax Exemptions
You can gauge the start of spring in Tallahassee by the blooming of the azaleas and dogwoods.
Jacksonville-based Lender Processing Services will pay $120 million and tighten up its mortgage review process under a multi-state settlement announced Thursday.
Florida Governor Rick Scott to Propose $1.2 Billion More in Education Spending
Governor Rick Scott explained his proposed $1.2 billion increase in education funding Wednesday to a group of editors and reporters from across the state and said it ties directly into improving the economy and the outlook for jobs in Florida.
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA: Let’s Get to Work tops $1.1 million in January
The “Let’s Get to Work” political committee that will play an important role in Governor Rick Scott’s re-election effort has raised about $1.17 million in January, according to the group’s website.
What Sets Senate President Don Gaetz and House Speaker Will Weatherford Apart
At the end of their terms, it’s unlikely that Senate President Don Gaetz and Speaker of the House Will Weatherford will be defined by their Obamacare response or their stewardship of the environment or their leadership on changes to Florida firearms laws.
Blog: Enterprise Florida to unveil first-ever Florida business brand
Enterprise Florida, the state’s lead economic development entity will unveil Florida’s first-ever business brand following its board of directors meeting today.
Bermuda will Not Adopt Solvency II Requirements for Captives
Bermuda, the world’s leading domicile for captive insurers, will not apply Solvency II equivalency to the captive businesses domiciled there, announced the Bermuda Monetary Authority on Tuesday.
High winds put building materials to the test
The images of homes devastated by hurricanes, tornadoes and severe wind storms is heartbreaking.
Are Auto Insurers Spending Too Much to Court Customers?
Auto insurers’ spending on marketing has increased substantially over the past 10 years, but a report by the consulting firm McKinsey questions whether the industry is spending too much to attract too few customers.
Benchmarking Group Rates Allstate at the Top of Insurers Using Social Media
Unmetric, the social media benchmarking company, releases the results of its a new report detailing which insurance companies have done the best job establishing a meaningful presence on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
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