Article
Courtesy of Channel 5 WPTV News
By
Forrest Saunders
Published February 16, 2024
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TALLAHASSEE — As Floridians struggle with the highest property insurance
premiums in the country, lawmakers at the state Capitol are making progress
on bills they think will help — though not directly.
The My Safe Florida Home program cleared another
committee stop on Tuesday. Rep. Chip LaMarca, R-Lighthouse
Point, is carrying the plan. If signed, it refills the
program's coffers with about $225 million, more than twice
what the Senate is looking at.
With seniors and low-income homes prioritized, eligible can
get up to $10,000 in grant dollars to harden homes against
severe weather. And a stronger house might mean lower
premiums, lawmakers hope.
"In order for us to get serious about driving costs down in
insurance, we have to make sure that the insurance companies
are insuring a good product," LaMarca said. "The first year
— we saw the results were about $1,000 plus, $1,024 per home
in reduction of insurance."
Lawmakers also moved forward with a $25
million pilot version of the program for permanent condo
residents and their associations. Rep. Christine Hunschofsky,
D-Coconut Creek, helped craft the bill, which continues to
receive unanimous support.
"Condominium owners — they are homeowners too," Hunschofsky.
"We're talking about homesteaded condo owners," she said.
"We’re just giving them access to the same grant program
that single-family homeowners have access to." |
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As Floridians struggle with the highest property
insurance premiums in the country, lawmakers at the state Capitol
are making progress on bills they think will help — though not
directly.
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The House and Senate will still need to iron out differences between their
ideas before the final gavel next month. One wrinkle raising eyebrows is
whether both chambers will back the governor's plan to freeze taxes and fees
for homeowner's insurance for a year. The Florida House looks to have a
different idea — targeting taxes on commercial leases but a spokesman for
House Speaker Rep. Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, said in a statement there is
plenty of work left to do on the budget.
"At this stage in the Session, there are always differences between our
initial proposal and what the Senate and Governor each put forward,
respectively," Andres Malave, the communications director for Renner said.
"Our tax package will be discussed on Wednesday and will build on the
historic cuts we were able to deliver last year. We have consistently
focused on putting money back in the hands of taxpayers and is committed to
delivering a balanced budget addressing all of Florida's key priorities."
Officials familiar with the negotiations told us on background they believed
differences would be resolved with everyone leaving the bargaining table
happy — but will have to wait and see about that as the session enters its
final weeks.
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