Several early nominees for positions in the next Trump administration have deep Florida connections. Prominent examples include U.S. Senator Marco Rubio being tapped for Secretary of State and former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi being the nominee for U.S. Attorney General. Bondi’s nomination followed a brief cycle in which U.S. Representative Matt Gaetz from the […]
The Florida legislature has taken a series of steps in recent years to curtail abuses in Florida’s residential property insurance market. Policymakers and industry representatives typically point out that it can be several years before the full effects of statutory changes are known. This is largely because most legislative changes apply prospectively, meaning their effectiveness […]
The Florida legislative calendar typically ensures there’s no post-holiday haze as we return to work in the new year. This year’s session begins March 4, 2025, and lasts 60 days. This isn’t as early as some years— the session begins in January in even-numbered years. Still, committee meetings begin before the session starts so the […]
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has amended its Hurricane Helene emergency order and adopted a new emergency order in response to Hurricane Milton. The orders extend applicable grace periods until December 10, 2024. Hurricane Helene OIR adopted Emergency Order 400385-24 after Hurricane Helene. The order tolled the time period for policyholders in affected counties […]
The Florida Department of Services has issued Emergency Order 2024-01 resulting from Hurricane Debby’s landfall. With respect to public adjuster contracts, the Emergency Order provides that notwithstanding Section 626.854(7), a public adjuster contract based on a Hurricane Debby loss may be cancelled without penalty or obligation within 30 days of after the date of loss […]
Following Hurricane Debby, Florida Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis warned consumers about contractors using agreements designed to circumvent Florida’s prohibition against assignment of benefits (AOBs). In recent years, contractors’ widespread use of AOBs contributed to elevated losses, loss adjustment expenses and litigation in the Florida property insurance market. The Florida legislature included a prohibition […]
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) has published draft rule 69O-170.013 implementing the premium tax discount requirement adopted in the 2024 legislative session. The draft rule is substantially similar to emergency rule 69OER24-1 previously adopted by OIR. The Florida legislature granted emergency rulemaking authority to both OIR and the Department of Revenue to administer […]
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis applauded the United States Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, which overturned four decades of precedent known as the Chevron doctrine. As summarized in this firm’s July 1 post, the Chevron doctrine essentially meant that unless a congressional act was clear, courts were required to defer to […]
On June 28, the United States Supreme Court overturned the longstanding Chevron doctrine, creating a new era in federal administrative law. The Supreme Court in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo determined that the federal Administrative Procedure Act requires courts to exercise independent judgment in reviewing whether an agency acted within its statutory authority in its […]
You bid on a competitive procurement issued by an agency of the State of Florida, and the agency has issued a Notice of Intent to Award the contract to another vendor. All is not lost. Chapter 120, Florida Statutes, provides a process for unsuccessful vendors to protest the agency’s intended award. Notice of Intent To […]