Fla. Democrats Renew Calls to Fix Hurricane Insurance

Saying Floridians are “storming mad” about rising property insurance premiums, Democrats have renewed a call for lawmakers to do more on the issue, and warned that if they don’t, angry voters could take it out on Republican incumbents in November.

Legislators came into this year’s legislative session saying one of the biggest issues they were concerned about was the rising cost of hurricane wind insurance. Nearly every lawmaker heard that premiums were going through the roof.

Many lawmakers in the overwhelmingly Republican Legislature said that a more immediate problem was that insurance companies were fleeing the state, refusing to renew policies and that pretty soon state-backed insurance would be all that was available.

Most Republicans backed a wide-ranging proposal aimed at keeping insurance available and making it more attractive for companies to write policies in the state, with the idea that in the long run it should bring down costs. That measure was signed into law earlier this month by Gov. Jeb Bush. But even supporters acknowledged that for many, it wouldn’t provide immediate relief from higher rates.

Bush and legislative leaders warned people about expecting quick rate relief, and the governor said when he signed it that it was a tough choice, but one that had to be made.

Democrats generally opposed the plan, which passed the Legislature on the final day of the session, and have been calling for lawmakers to return to the capitol in a special session to take another shot, saying their ideas during the session were ignored.

But they also warned that people who are just now starting to get their insurance renewal bills would take it out on lawmakers who didn’t do anything to stunt the increases.

“We are in the middle of a meltdown,” said Rep. Dan Gelber, D-Miami Beach, at a news conference. “People are storming mad and they have every right to be.”

Gelber said lawmakers are hearing from angry constituents, he called it a “citizen uprising,” and said that the Legislature made the situation worse, because the measure it passed will guarantee higher rates for some Floridians.

“There’s only one group to blame,” Gelber said. “It is the Republican leadership in the Legislature.”

Bush dismissed the Democrats’ call for a special session.
“This is pure politics, election year,” Bush said.

He’s right, Democrats say. It could be about the election, but not because they’re pushing it.

“I promise you our constituents are making this a very big issue,” said Sen. Steve Geller, D-Cooper City.

Bush also said that the Democrats “had every opportunity to have suggestions.”

“Where were you during the session?” the governor said to the Democrats’ call for additional work on the issue, charging that their plan was to “do nothing, to hard and criticize and to hope it’s a good campaign issue.”

But Democratic lawmakers did make proposals during the session, and complained Wednesday that they weren’t listened to. Among their proposals was having the state directly underwrite much of the high-risk property in the state, the way the federal government insures for flood loss.

Among the other proposals Democrats made was opening up the market to foreign reinsurance companies. Reinsurers essentially insure the insurance companies, and difficulty in getting it is something insurance companies cite as a big problem.
Bush said he would be glad to listen to Democrats’ ideas, but said nobody approached him.

Still, several Republicans have acknowledged they are worried about people’s anger over higher premiums. Many have also said it’s part of leadership to take on tough issues that may not always be popular.

“I think we all worry about the political fallout,” said Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Lakeland, who sponsored the insurance bill in the House, but isn’t running for re-election. “But the political reality is that we are going to face an increase in rates in order to adequately cover the risk that we have out there.”

“When we started this process, we said it was going to be a tough decision that needed to be made,” Ross said.

The issue is definitely one being felt by a wide range of Floridians said Bill Newton, executive director of the Florida Consumer Action Network.

“You’ve got a lot of seniors on fixed incomes that didn’t budget for this, and it’s a big expense,” Newton said.

But whether it translates to political action may be a different question. First of all, it’s not a simple issue, and explaining the complexities of insurance policy doesn’t translate well to winning votes.

“Republicans have to deal with the fact that there’s a lot of dissatisfaction,” Newton said. “But can someone articulate a solution that resonates well enough to make a difference?”

The industry says rates have been kept too low to adequately cover companies’ potential losses. Ross said both parties are to blame for the crisis because the insurance commissioners who have overseen rate regulation have been from both parties over the last decade.

Scot Schraufnagel, a University of Central Florida political science professor, said people vote less than one might think based on anger over issues like high insurance rates. Most people, by far, vote based on party affiliation.

But, he said, if Democrats can successfully blame Republicans for the cost of homeowners insurance, they may be able to swing some undecided voters.

Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Legislation Hurricane Politics