COURT: CITIZENS CAN FACE BAD-FAITH LAWSUIT
In a case stemming from hurricane damage in 2004, an appeals court ruled Thursday that the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. can face a “bad faith” lawsuit because of the way it handled a claim. A three-judge panel of the 1st District Court of Appeal reversed a decision by Escambia County Circuit Judge Terry Terrell that said Citizens was immune from such a lawsuit filed by the Perdido Sun Condominium Association. The appeals court, however, asked the Florida Supreme Court to take up the issue, a process known as certifying a question to the justices. The dispute started when Perdido Sun was unhappy with the amount of Citizens’ payment of a claim and filed a breach of contract lawsuit to get additional money. The condominium association ultimately won that lawsuit and filed another case under a law dealing with insurers failing to settle claims in good faith. The circuit judge dismissed the case, but appeals-court judges overturned that decision Thursday and sent the case back. “Citizens’ immunity does not extend to the ‘willful tort’ of failing to attempt in good faith to settle claims as provided by (state law),” said the ruling, written by Judge Nikki Ann Clark and joined by judges James R. Wolf and William A. Van Nortwick.
DEMS: SCOTT HAS FAILED TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP ON UNEMPLOYMENT WEBSITE
Florida Democrats criticized Gov. Rick Scott for failing to provide leadership or take ownership over the state’s troubled $63 million unemployment website. “In over three months, Rick Scott has failed to make fixing the system a priority,” said House Minority Leader Perry Thurston, D-Fort Lauderdale, in a conference call Thursday with Rep. Lori Berman, D-Lantana, Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Allison Tant and reporters. “Rick Scott has never set a deadline or a goal for fixing the system.” Berman estimated that $20 million in claims have been delayed because of the new system. Republican Party of Florida Chairman Lenny Curry quickly called the comments from the Democrats “specious attacks.” Asked about the system on Tuesday, Scott said the state Department of Economic Opportunity, which oversees the new Connect website, “will make sure it works.” Scott then added that his goal is to get people working to “make sure that no one has to rely on any system to give them unemployment benefits.” Department of Economic Opportunity Executive Director Jesse Panuccio has placed most of the blame for the problems at the hands of Minnesota-based Deloitte Consulting, which built the system. Deloitte — which has faced questions over the rollout of multimillion-dollar websites in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and California — has said the Connect system “has surpassed the performance of the unsustainable systems it replaced.” Connect, rolled out Oct. 15, has been in the works since 2009 to replace a 30-year-old system jobless Floridians used to claim their weekly benefits, monitor accounts and request information. The department provides up to $275 weekly to more than 200,000 unemployed Floridians. After officials from the U.S. Department of Labor reviewed the website last week at the request of U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., the state agency announced on Saturday that benefit payments would start to be sent to people whose continuing claims have been held up for “adjudication” for more than seven days. Panuccio estimated on Jan. 15 that up to 60,000 cases have been flagged for review, up from about 48,000 when Connect went live on Oct. 15.
CONSERVATION AMENDMENT REACHES BALLOT
When Florida voters go to the polls in November, they will see a proposed constitutional amendment that seeks to set aside money for land-conservation projects. The Florida Department of State has formally certified a ballot measure proposed by a group called “Florida’s Water and Land Legacy.” The group announced last week that it had surpassed the 683,149 petition signatures needed to get on the Nov. 4 ballot. Also, it earlier got the wording of the proposal approved by the state Supreme Court. “Florida is home to one-of-a-kind natural waters and lands and voters now have an opportunity to make a commitment to conservation that will last for generations of Floridians to come,†campaign chairman Will Abberger, who also is director of conservation finance for The Trust for Public Land, said in a prepared statement Thursday. The proposal will appear as Amendment No. 1 on the ballot. It would set aside a portion of the state’s documentary stamp tax revenues — fees paid when real estate is sold — for 20 years to acquire conservation and recreation lands, manage existing lands, protect lands that are critical for water supply and restore degraded natural systems.
SEBELIUS TO DISCUSS HEALTH PLAN IN JAX
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will make an appearance Friday in Jacksonville as she continues trying to get more people enrolled in health coverage under the federal Affordable Care Act. Sebelius is scheduled to make an announcement at 10:10 a.m. at the Bob Hayes Sports Complex Legends Center. She will be joined by state Rep. Mia Jones, a Jacksonville Democrat who has been heavily involved in health-care issues in Tallahassee.
–source: The News Service of Florida