Former state Sen. Jeff Brandes says a lack of legislative leadership makes it impossible to solve Florida’s current property insurance crisis.
Brandes, speaking on WMNF WaveMakers with Janet and Tom, said term limits mean legislative leaders like Senate presidents and House speakers are only in office for two years, not enough time to develop and implement a long-term strategy to fix anything.
“It’s all tactics, there’s no strategy,” said Brandes, who now runs a nonprofit think tank called the Florida Policy Project. “No one can tell you what the long-term strategy is, whether it’s Republican or Democratic, because it doesn’t exist.” Saying we want to reduce the cost of property insurance isn’t a strategy, Brandes said, “it’s a hope.”
Brandes said his nonprofit Florida Policy Project, which released a study on the insurance crisis six months ago, is trying to provide the type of detailed, fact-based research that lawmakers need to develop policies. new strategies in property insurance, transportation, criminal justice and housing. He considers himself a libertarian and favors market-based solutions, but believes that federal, state, and local governments have an important role to play.
Solutions to the property insurance crisis proposed by the project include government assistance to property owners in flood-prone areas so they can upgrade their homes to meet current flood mitigation standards and wind, Brandes said. Additionally, zoning should be changed to allow more units on a property so owners can generate revenue to help fund needed improvements, he said, a solution that also addresses affordable housing issues . To reduce reliance on state-supported nonprofit Citizens Insurance, the state’s largest property insurance company, the Florida government should provide incentives to increase the number providers, such as matching funds for start-ups.
One of the project’s top priorities this legislative session is to establish centers of excellence at Florida’s research universities to work on public policy issues such as insurance and affordable housing.
Listen to the full conversation by clicking the link below, going to the WaveMakers archives, or searching for WMNF WaveMakers wherever you listen to podcasts.