CNN: Santa Rosa County One Of USA’s Best Places To Live
August 13, 2013
Santa Rosa County has been named as number 10 of 25 counties in the nation in CNN Money’s “Where the Jobs are – Best Places to Live – America’s Best Small Towns”.
Counties were selected based on low levels of unemployment and high rates of job and population growth now and in the future as determined by a combination of census data and proprietary projections.
Only counties where each Best Place within it was also experiencing job and population growth, and where unemployment was below the national average, were considered. No more than two counties within a state could qualify. Midway, Navarre and Pace are listed as county towns as they are in CNN Money’s “Best Places” database based on a combination of Census data and projections as well.
To read the CNN Money article, click here.
Escambia, Santa Rosa Home Sales Up
August 13, 2013
Florida’s housing market gained strength in second quarter 2013 with more closed sales, higher median prices, more pending sales and a shrinking supply of homes for sale compared to the same quarter in 2012, according to the latest housing data released by Florida Realtors.
In Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, sales of exiting single-family homes were at 1,512, up 7.3 percent during the second quarter of the year at an average price of $155,600. There were 260 townhouse and condo sales, up 18.2 percent. Average condo and townhouse prices fell 26.6 percent to $179,900 on average during Q2.
Statewide closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 63,173 in 2Q 2013, up 14.7 percent compared to the year-ago figure, according to data from Florida Realtors. Closed sales typically occur 30 to 90 days after sales contracts are written. The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes in 2Q 2013 was $170,000, up 14.1 percent from the same quarter a year ago.
Looking at Florida’s year-to-year comparison for sales of townhouse-condos, a total of 31,829 units sold statewide in the second quarter, up 7.9 percent from the same three-month period in 2012.
Insurance Boss: Cost Drop Does Not Immediately Lower Premiums
August 13, 2013
A drop in reinsurance costs may not be immediately reaching Florida’s policyholders for a variety of reasons, including property insurers buying more coverage to brace against the risk of bigger storms, the state insurance commissioner has told state Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater.
Rates might eventually show a downward trend as property insurance companies submit new filings to the state Office of Insurance Regulation. But for lawmakers already considering changes that could be imposed next year on the insurance industry, a lack of lower rates appearing across the board is disappointing.
“For years what we have seen are insurance companies raising their rates, claiming that reinsurance rates were one of the big items that they had to raise rates for,” said Rep. Ray Rodrigues, R-Estero. “It seems like if the ratepayers have to pay when reinsurance is going up, they ought to see some benefit now that reinsurance is coming down.”
Reinsurance is backup insurance for insurance companies. Insurers in the past often have pointed to high reinsurance costs as a rationale for increasing consumers’ rates.
Last Wednesday, Atwater asked Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty (pictured) to explain why property insurers haven’t reduced premiums at a time when reinsurance costs have dropped worldwide on average 15 percent to 20 percent.
McCarty wrote Atwater on Friday that insurance companies might be increasing the amount of reinsurance they purchase rather than reducing rates and that not enough time may have passed for the lower reinsurance costs to result in lower customer premiums. Also, he wrote that reinsurance only accounts for a portion of a homeowner’s rate filing, some companies have tried to spread out of the cost of reinsurance over a number of years to lessen one-time hikes on policyholders and that not every insurance company is seeing a drop in reinsurance costs.
“In fact, several Florida property insurance companies are being required by their rating agencies to buy more reinsurance than they initially planned to purchase,” McCarty wrote.
McCarty added that some insurers have indicated an intention to reduce rates in some territories based on the 2013 reinsurance costs. But others “may purchase more reinsurance rather than reducing rates and the purchase of more reinsurance based on, or up to, a 1-in-250-year event is allowed by the rating law to be included in the premiums,” McCarty continued.
The cost of reinsurance from the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund — basically a public pool that provides insurance for insurance companies — is among the rates that have increased.
McCarty sent a similar response July 2 to Rodrigues, who on June 24 had asked, “from a practical standpoint, will long-suffering Floridians begin to see rates stabilize and decrease in many cases based on reinsurance savings?”
Lisa Miller, a former deputy insurance commissioner who now lobbies for insurers, expects the lower reinsurance costs to eventually ease policy rates. Also, she said the additional reinsurance that companies have to purchase will protect policyholders.
“Reinsurance rates just went down, so changing rates, whether up or down, is not a fast process,” Miller said in an email. “The mechanics of determining where and how to adjust the rates and meeting legal requirements for adequate lead time to consumers makes it unlikely that it can be done in less than nine months!”
by The News Service of Florida
Lawmakers To Be Polled On Stand Your Ground Special Session
August 13, 2013
The Florida Secretary of State’s office will begin polling members of the Legislature to find out if there is enough support to hold a special session to decide the fate of the state’s controversial “stand your ground” law.
Vastly outnumbered Democrats have a week to convince enough Republicans lawmakers to support the special session.
House Minority Leader Perry Thurston, D-Fort Lauderdale, announced late Monday that Democrats had gathered the 32 written requests necessary to trigger a poll of lawmakers. If three-fifths of the Legislature agrees — something that would require a total of 96 lawmakers to go along — the House and Senate would return to Tallahassee to debate the law.
“I commend those members who have joined me in my request for a special session,” Thurston said in a statement issued by his office. “While the House speaker has indicated that the Legislature may hold a hearing later this year on certain policies, including stand your ground, I strongly believe that a special session is the best way to justly address the concerns of our constituents.”
Legislators will now be sent a poll from the state agency that they have until 11:59 p.m. on Aug. 19, to sign and return. The proposal is an effort to circumvent the opposition to a special session by Scott and Republican legislative leaders.
The process, allowed in state statutes, has never been used before to call a special session.
The poll was hailed by the Dream Defenders, the Hialeah-based group that has staged an around-the-clock protest since July 16 against the law, which grants legal immunity to people who use deadly force if they reasonably believe their lives are in danger.
“Because of this poll, we will be able to see where each of our legislators stand on having the special session that the [people] are demanding,” the organization tweeted Monday.
The group began its sit-in at Gov. Rick Scott’s office after George Zimmerman was acquitted of murder in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. While Zimmerman’s defense team did not use the “stand your ground” law, Martin’s death drew nationwide attention to the policy.
House Speaker Will Weatherford, who has directed a subcommittee to hold a hearing on the law this fall, said Monday that he hoped both sides will accept the results.
“Once this poll concludes, the question of a special session will be final,” Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, said in an email. “I trust our protesters will accept the results and return the Capitol back to normal business. It’s time.”
Thirty-three of the state’s 58 Democratic lawmakers have filed petitions with the Florida Department of State requesting a special session on “stand your ground.” But even if every Democrat in the Legislature were to support a session — no sure bet given a few rural or moderate members of the caucus — another 38 Republicans would still have to back the idea.
Most Republicans have resisted changing the law. While Weatherford announced a hearing on the self-defense law, House Criminal Justice Subcommittee Chairman Matt Gaetz, R-Fort Walton Beach, has vowed not to change “one damn comma.”
Meanwhile, in a sign of the resistance to changing the law in Florida, three Republicans signed on to a letter slamming U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., for asking corporate sponsors of a conservative organization whether they support the law. Some liberals blame the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, for the spread of “stand your ground” laws across the nation.
“The contents of your letter are eerily similar to the questions asked by the Internal Revenue Service of other citizen groups the IRS deemed as politically conservative,” the letter says. “Questions such as the individual donors, purposes of organizational events and contents of meetings are clearly a violation of the First and Tenth Amendments and the general jurisdiction of a federal office holder.”
The letter was signed by state Rep. John Wood, R-Winter Haven, and Sens. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla, and Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland. In all, ALEC said, “nearly 300 state legislators” from across the country signed the letter.
by Brandon Larrabee and Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Five Months Later, No Hurry From Scott On Lt. Gov Replacement
August 13, 2013
Five months have passed since Florida last had a lieutenant governor, but Gov. Rick Scott appears to be in no hurry to change the situation.
During a visit to West Palm Beach on Monday, the five-month anniversary of former Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll’s resignation, Scott was asked about the lack of a second-in-line and running mate. Scott signaled that he hasn’t even decided what he wants in a No. 2.
“We’re still working on the criteria and I’m working with Adam Hollingsworth, my chief of staff, on that,” Scott said, according to the politics blog of The Palm Beach Post. “My biggest focus every day is to keep jobs going.”
Scott said in early July that he had tapped Hollingsworth to prepare for a search, but there have been few if any public statements since then about the vacancy.
Carroll resigned March 12 amid revelations that a company she co-owned, 3N & JC Corporation, had provided consulting services for Allied Veterans of the World, which was at the center of an investigation into illegal gambling and other crimes in the Internet café industry. Carroll has not been charged in connection with the case and has denied any wrongdoing.
For now, if Scott were unable to fulfill his duties for some reason, Attorney General Pam Bondi would take over as governor.
Democrats have hammered Scott for failing to appoint a lieutenant governor in the months after Carroll’s resignation, most recently slamming the administration after a public records request on the search in June turned up nothing.
But the Florida Constitution and state law do not appear to provide any deadline for Scott’s decision. The Constitution simply says that “[t]here shall be a lieutenant governor,” then says the governor will decide the lieutenant governor’s role. State law only says that “the Governor shall appoint a successor” when the office opens up.
The position has no real responsibilities beyond whatever work the governor asks the lieutenant governor to do, something that has led critics to argue that the office should be done away with.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
It’s Going To Be A Sweet Year – Teachers Return To School
August 12, 2013
Monday was back to school for thousands of Escambia County School District teachers and staff as they prepare for the return of students on August 19. At Molino Park Elementary School, second grade teachers Jennifer Solchenberger (pictured left) and Gena Daniels (right) prepared a bulletin board Monday morning to let students know “It’s Going To Be A Sweet Year” at the school. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Improvements Designed To Eliminate Highway 29 Flooding, Closures
August 12, 2013
The Florida Department of Transportation has made drainage improvements on Highway 29 in Gonzalez designed to eliminate flooding like shut down the roadway in June.
North and south bound Highway 29 just north of East Kingsfield Road were closed June 10 for over eight hours after just a few inches of rain. The incident left state highway officials, engineers and lawmakers scrambling for answers as to how a relatively normal heavy rainfall could paralyze the major north-south hurricane evacuation route from Pensacola.
“If this were a hurricane and four inches of rain had closed the highway, it would be a major cause for concern,” Ian Satter, spokesman for the Florida Department of Transportation said. He said Highway 29 and its associated drainage system are designed to handle heavy rainfall and remain open. State officials responded to the flooding across Highway 29 near Pensacola Salvage before the water receded to study the problem.
“It is essential that Highway 29 remain clear and open. This is especially important during hurricane season because of the fact that Highway 29 is part of the evacuation route from the coast,” State Rep. Clay Ingram said.
Drainage improvements were made between the west side of Highway 29 and parallel railroad tracks in order to alleviate future problems.
Pictured top and inset: Flooding closed this section of Highway 29 for eight hours back in June. Pictured below: Drainage system improvements designed to eliminate the future flooding. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Library Branches To Present ‘Astronomy For Everyone’ Programs
August 12, 2013
How does our little blue marble called Earth fit into the grand scheme of things? Dr. Kevin Manning, award-winning astrophysicist and former NASA consultant, will visit West Florida Library branches to present “Astronomy for Everyone”.
This exciting 90-minute program is designed to teach audiences of all ages about the size and scale of the universe, the stars, and other celestial wonders through hands-on activities and assorted visuals.
Manning’s schedule is as follows:
- Tuesday, August 13 – 1:30 pm – Tryon Branch
- Tuesday , August 13 – 4:30 pm – Westside Branch
- Wednesday, August 14 – 3:30 pm – Century Branch
- Thursday, August 15 – 10:30 am – Southwest Branch
- Thursday, August 15 – 6:00pm – Main Library
The Main Library presentation on August 15 is geared toward adults, while the other programs are for all ages.
Do Not Call, Telemarketers Top List of Florida Consumer Complaints
August 12, 2013
The top three complaints received last month at the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services were regarding the statewide Do Not Call List, telemarketing and real estate brokers/salespersons, according to Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam.
The agency received 5,385 written complaints in July. In addition, there were 26,435 calls and 625 emails requesting consumer assistance and information. The top three calls to the agency’s 1-800-HELP-FLA hotline were related to the Do Not Call list, solicitation of contributions from charities and landlord/tenant issues.
In the past month, the department has responded to many consumer concerns and taken action against several individuals or businesses operating outside of Florida law. During the month of July, the agency:
- Registered 5,176 businesses.
- Initiated 141 investigations.
- Arrested 20 individuals.
- Recovered $281,196 on behalf of Florida consumers.
- Added 15,512 telephone numbers to Florida’s Do Not Call List. Currently, there are more than 512,000 numbers on the list.
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is the state’s clearinghouse for consumer complaints, protection and information. The call center is staffed with trained analysts who can respond to questions about programs and regulations under the department’s purview, provide information on a wide variety of topics or direct callers to the appropriate government agency.
Consumers who believe fraud has taken place can contact the department’s consumer protection and information hotline at 1-800-HELP-FLA (435-7352) or online at www.FreshFromFlorida.com.
Florida Project Tax Revenues Still On Modest Upswing
August 12, 2013
Economic forecasters Friday gave state lawmakers $435.4 million more to work with in the budget year that begins in July 2014, predicting that a slow but steady economic recovery will continue to increase tax revenues.
The increased projections included an additional $177.8 million for the current fiscal year, which runs until June 30. Because the current year’s budget is already set, that money would carry over until next year. The economists also added $257.6 million of extra revenue to next year’s forecast.
In all, lawmakers would have $29.3 billion in general revenue to spend if they were to start working on crafting a spending plan immediately, about $2 billion more than in the current year.
While general revenue makes up less than half of the state’s budget, lawmakers generally have a much freer hand with how they distribute it than other funding.
But lawmakers aren’t scheduled to take up the budget again until next spring’s legislative session, and other revenue forecasts are expected in the interim, meaning it will likely take awhile before the full budget picture is known. And in any case, a projected surplus or shortfall taking into account high-priority spending on items like education and health care isn’t expected to be released until next month.
The economic conference held Friday was the latest in a string of similar meetings that have predicted improvement in tax collections as the state continues to emerge from the economic recession. But that recovery has also not measured up to the explosive periods of state growth that often preceded the downturn, making the changes in the predictions less dramatic regardless of which way the numbers are going.
“Finally, we’ve entered a period where everything is still gradual compared to past recoveries, but it is clearly on a steady upward path,” said Amy Baker, coordinator for the Legislature’s Office of Economic and Demographic Research. “And so we’re able to see that and predict that much better. The big financial shocks that we’ve been having aren’t there in this most recent data.”
Outside factors are likely to push Friday’s numbers in one direction or another. Automatic cuts to federal spending are expected to continue to add a slight drag to the economy unless President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans reach a deal to replace those cuts.
At the same time, the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as “Obamacare,” could add to the estimate by increasing income from the state’s insurance premium tax — as more people get health insurance, and premiums for some other Floridians potentially rise — and from other medical fees.
In statements issued after the final numbers were agreed to, the budget chiefs for the state House and Senate emphasized how cautious they were in their optimism.
“An increase in the general revenue projection gives us reason to be hopeful we can avoid drastic cuts in the coming budget year; however, as our economy grows, we must avoid adding costs that will quickly consume any modest increase in revenues,” said Senate Appropriations Chairman Joe Negron, R-Stuart.
Meanwhile, House Appropriations Chairman Seth McKeel, R-Lakeland, was already signaling where he would like to see at least some of the money go.
“With the news of these positive estimates, we are hopeful that we will have the opportunity to provide a significant tax break for Florida businesses to continue to improve the job-creation climate in our state and benefit Florida families,” he said.
By Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida