Posted on 06/01/2006 2:25:06 AM PDT by Caipirabob
TALLAHASSEE -- Floridians will pay a 1 percent assessment on property and casualty insurance policies for a decade to repay a bond sale of up to $1.5 billion that was approved Wednesday to replenish the state's Hurricane Insurance Catastrophe Fund.
The sale of tax-free bonds to cover losses from last year's storms was unanimously authorized by the fund's board of directors, which includes Gov. Jeb Bush, just a day before the start of the new hurricane season.
Consumers will save money despite the 1 percent assessment because insurance companies can expect to save about $2.5 billion by obtaining reinsurance from the fund instead of having to buy it on the open market, said Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher.
(Excerpt) Read more at sun-sentinel.com ...
Yeahhhh...that's the ticket! We'll tax them more so they can save money...
Uhhng!
How many people believe those savings will be passed onto the consumer. Will they print the article where Tom Gallagher says 2 years down the road "Well golly, we thought the insurance companies would surely pass on the savings to the consumer..."
Well, whatever. Never trust a government that intends to save you money by taxing you. That's all I gots to say about that...yep...
Posted for your interest and discussion, and so I could have my "little rant" which you are free to ignore. Have at it.
Yeah, it's a "temporary" tax. Surrrrre it is!
You're right, the homeowner won't save any money. But if this isn't done, you ain't going to buy any homeowner's insurance.
1.5 billion dollars wouldn't pay for a freakin' thunderstorm, let alone a hurricane.
"But if this isn't done, you ain't going to buy any homeowner's insurance."
The insurance companies used to be nationwide. When Andrew hit they changed to state based companies. The insurance companies are still making money hand over fist. Do the math and you gotta wonder where the money goes.
I also have to wonder why I have to pay more so that those people who can afford to live on the beach can pay reduced rates.
Well, the past couple of years, it's not just the coast that got hit with the hurricane damage. Look at Charley, and Jeanne...they ripped a good one, right through the middle of the state. A lot of the damage was in Polk and Orange counties, pleaces that were far inland, so I think Florida is vulnerable to "loss" no matter where you live.
I'm in the Tampa Bay area, we have had very little damage the past two seasons (knock on wood) compared to some of the inland areas.
Different states have different insurance regulations and requirements for doing business. State governments deserve a lot of blame for making doing business so darn hard to do.
Do the math and you gotta wonder where the money goes.
As for where the money goes, where do you think the billions are going to come from to pay out for disasters if not from policy holders?
"I'm in the Tampa Bay area, we have had very little damage the past two seasons (knock on wood) compared to some of the inland areas."
So am I and to a large degree the damage was to older building which are not nearly as strong as newer buildings.
"As for where the money goes, where do you think the billions are going to come from to pay out for disasters if not from policy holders?"
The money comes from the insurance policies the insurance companies buy to cover their risk.
The insurance industry is one of the very few guarenteed to make money. If they start cutting into profits they just refuse to pay the claims or declare bankruptcy. I know many people who were paid 15-30 cents on the dollar for damage sustained in the hurricanes 2 years ago.
So am I and to a large degree the damage was to older building which are not nearly as strong as newer buildings.
So am I. And what I have noticed is we are very vunerable to the flooding issue. Tampa General hospital would have been under water to the 2nd floor had Charley come into the bay. Much of South Tampa would have been affected. I know people who have lived in that area for many years and they are now moving to higher ground. They are now awakened to the risks and are getting out of Dodge.
The new contruction codes will help reduce the wind damage, but the flooding from a direct hit in Hillsborough and Pinelles would be devastating. The loss of life might be hugh too, based on the ho-hum attitude displayed by many Floridians who refuse to make preparations and to evacuate from threatened areas when ordered to do so.
Leni
"I also have to wonder why I have to pay more so that those people who can afford to live on the beach can pay reduced rates."
Bares repeating.
If you want to live a short life, then investigate the abuses of this extra tax and thoroughly expose the people who are accountable for it. Who audits these people, and what's their cut for keeping mum? What newspaper is going to run a story detailing the corruption?
Move out of a hurricane zone. Problem solved.
We put an addition on a couple of years ago. Because the addition was more than 1/4 of our total square footage, city code (or county, I'm not sure which) made us bring the entire house up to Miami/Dade code.
New roof, all new windows, doors, electric panel, etc. It doubled the cost of our addition, but I'm glad when hurricane season rolls around. We have hurricane straps and roof straps that we didn't have before, and the windows and doors have a much high wind rating than our old ones. (of course the plywood is ready and waiting, so the window wind rating really doesn't come into play during a hurricane.)
Even our Wally Watt has a wind rating of 130 mph, LOL.
So you're proposing evacuating the entire Gulf Coast from Galveston to Key West (actually the entire state of Florida because the inland areas have been receiving as much damage as the coasts), and the Atlantic coast as well, from Miami to Atlantic City?
Then we could start evacuating the earthquake zones, and the flood plains of the Mississippi and other major rivers, areas prone to wildfires, the mudslide areas, anywhere where tornadoes have hit, etc.
Truth is, there's just no place in the world where one can escape the possibility of a "natural disaster."
Let's see....growth is always good for the economy according to the poli's, right??
Therefore, if the economy is better because of more growth and and more concrete with the same drainage systems in place, then there's not a concern for flooding because the economy is better and there's no need to add additional taxes to the property owners because all the additional growth has covered that from additional property tax revenues, right??
Of course, with the additional income from the bogus hurricane tax, there will be countless new government panels, studies, scams, skims, etc., to study best how to spend that 'new' money and that will suck up all that additional revenue to those in 'the in' of government to create more useless information and charts from the comfort of there taxpayer's sponsored retreats at some resort.
Not a dime will be spent improving drainage or possibly adding emergency pump stations for such an event would occur. That would take a new bond referendum to get that done.
Got some moon dust on a vampire bat I'll sell ya. Interested??
Not at all, people should live where they want to. But if they choose to live there then they should be prepared to pay the price in the form of higher insurance and taxes. No doubt some of my tax dollars have gone to pay for hurrican relief and that doesn't bother me much. But this is a tax to build up the Florida state disaster reserve. Who else other than the people of Florida should pay it? And if the people don't want to pay it then move out of state.
I saw a double rainbow on the way to work this morning in tropical south florida.......
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