Lawmakers hope Scott 'flip-flops' on policyholder bill

By JIM TURNER
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE, October 5, 2015.......... Two House Democrats hope Gov. Rick Scott will "flip" his position from earlier this year when he vetoed a bill intended to give policyholders more options as the state seeks to move homeowners out of Citizens Property Insurance Corp.

Rep. Jose Javier Rodriguez of Miami and Rep. Dwight Dudley of St. Petersburg filed a Citizens proposal (HB 289) on Friday that is a near word-for-word match with the vetoed measure. The bill is filed for the 2016 legislative session, which starts in January.

"When we look at other very important issues, the governor has taken positions all over the map," Rodriguez said during a news conference Monday. "We're hoping he flip-flops on this issue too."

Rodriguez, later saying he would like the governor to simply "flip" the position, said he reached out to Scott's office on Friday seeking a commitment not to veto the measure and for clarity on governor's opposition to the earlier bill, which was approved unanimously by the Senate and House in the spring.

Both Democrats expressed optimism for their measure, despite Dudley saying they also got a call Monday morning from a Citizens official seeking to "head this off."

A Citizens spokesman disputed the nature of Monday's contact with the lawmakers.

Asked about the bill, Scott spokeswoman Jeri Bustamante responded Monday that "Gov. Scott will review any legislation that makes it to his desk."

In vetoing the proposal this spring, Scott said it "undermines progress" in shifting policies into the private insurance market and "perpetuates reliance on Citizens."

Citizens has reduced its number of policies from a high of 1.5 million in 2012, when Scott pushed to scale back the agency by moving more homeowners into private coverage, to now around 586,000. The effort has included using what is known as a "takeout" process, which allows private firms to offer to take the least-risky policies from Citizens. Also, the effort includes using an electronic clearinghouse to shop policies to private firms.

The bill Scott vetoed had drawn support from the state-backed insurer and insurance consumer-advocacy groups. It was pushed through the legislative process by Rep. Michael Bileca, R-Miami, and Sen. Anitere Flores, R-Miami. Both lawmakers said after the veto they intended to work on the proposal in the 2016 session.

Citizens spokesman Michael Peltier said Rodriguez and Dudley were advised Monday that agency officials would be available this week to address any questions.

Peltier added that the insurer this year revised the timing and language of "encouragement letters," which are sent to policyholders advising them before a "takeout" offer is sent from a private firm.

"We determined that there was concern that Citizens customers were throwing out solicitations from private companies, just not being aware they were actual offers," Peltier said. "We thought that by putting ours out first, they'd be familiar with us because we were their carrier and be more willing to open the letter."