The statistical date for peak hurricane season activity, Sept. 10, occurred just over a week ago. As Keys citizens continue to keep a vigilant eye on the sky, they also need to keep an eye on Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the state-owned, not-for-profit insurance entity and the Keys’ primary windstorm insurance provider.

Officials call it the “panic stop.” A driver slams on the brakes and forces the car behind into a rear-end collision. Then the driver who was hit pretends to be hurt.

A Miami federal judge blocked a new Florida law Wednesday that would have barred doctors from asking patients whether they own firearms, rejecting the state’s claim that the measure was designed to protect constitutional rights to gun ownership protected by the Second Amendment.

For a change, the next big increases in the cost of homeowners insurance won’t fall hardest on South Floridians. The issue itself, though, shows how far the state remains from solving the homeowners insurance crisis.

Central Florida businesses are bracing for a second year of increases to workers’ compensation insurance rates that would cost local businesses $17.5 million more in premiums, according to an Orlando Business Journal analysis.

Gov. Rick Scott – during an exchange with an audience member of The Economic Club of Florida – promised Tuesday to review why the state-based web vendor system MyFloridaMarketPlace charged a one percent transaction fee to those businesses that wish to work with the state.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Former state Rep. Carlos Lacasa of Miami is the pick to become the next chairman of the board that oversees the operations of the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp.

NEW PORT RICHEY – Mother Nature may be dropping some hints in the wake of Hurricane Irene that now could be a good time to create a national catastrophe fund, local leaders say.

TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Rick Scott is on a crusade to repeal more than 1,000 state rules that target everything from dwarf tossing to gambling and real estate licenses.

The Sun Sentinel is absolutely wrong to argue in a recent editorial that Hurricane Irene makes the case for national catastrophe fund legislation (“Hurricane Irene proves CAT fund needed,” Aug.30). In fact, there’s no sign that Irene — or any other disaster that has struck the United States this year — is beyond the capacity [...]

Hurricane Irene was a huge disappointment.  Cable news folks unleashed Cat 4 hyperbole, but that’s standard operating procedure and appropriate enough. With a forecast for a major hurricane raking the population center and media capital of the country you expected understatement?

Fortunately, Hurricane Irene spared the northeast United States from even worse havoc. Still, the storm killed at least 40 people. It piled up billions of dollars in damages. And it left millions of people without power.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Wind, water and fire are a few of the elements destroying large parts of the country this year. 2011 started with snowstorms in the Northeast and Midwest, followed by tornadoes in the South and wildfires all over.

Florida was spared Hurricane Irene’s wrath, but that doesn’t mean homeowners here won’t have a price to pay down the road.