U.S. House Panel to Bring Homeowners Insurance Crisis Hearing to Florida

June 26, 2009

A subcommitee of the U.S. House of Representatives that is looking into trouble spots in the country's homeowner insurance market is coming to Florida in July.

House Financial Services Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Dennis Moore, D.-Kan., announced that the subcommittee will hold a field hearing in West Palm Beach, Florida, titled "The Homeowners' Insurance Crisis: Solutions for Homeowners, Communities and Taxpayers," to review the crisis related to the availability and affordability of homeowners' insurance around the country.

Rep. Ron Klein, who represents Florida's 22nd District and is a member of the subcommittee, will also be participating in the hearing. Klein has called for federal involvement to help ease the rising cost of property insurance due to natural catastrophes.

Klein has introduced the Homeowners' Defense Act of 2009 (H.R. 2555), which would allow states that choose to participate in a national catastrophe insurance pool to spread the risk of natural disasters.

"Whether it is a hurricane in Florida, an earthquake in California, a wildfire in Arizona or a tornado in Kansas, there is no reason why we can't spread the risk across states and natural disasters in order to bring down prices for homeowners," Klein said when introducing his bill last month. "At its heart, this bill is designed to make sure insurance is doing what it is supposed to do: spread the risk."

The subcommittee will examine insurance industry coverage of catastrophic natural disasters, the withdrawal of insurance companies from offering policies in coastal areas, rising homeowners' insurance premiums and the resulting economic impact on state and local governments, as well as possible solutions to the homeowners' insurance crisis.

The hearing has been scheduled for July 2, 10 a.m. at the Commission Chambers, City Center, in West Palm Beach.

Moore said that witnesses will be announced at a later date.