Former state senator Jeff Brandes says a lack of legislative leadership is making it impossible to solve Florida’s ongoing property insurance crisis.
Brandes, speaking on WMNF WaveMakers with Janet & Tom, said term limits mean legislative leaders like Senate presidents and House speakers are in their positions for only two years, not enough time to develop and implement a long-term strategy to fix anything.
“Everything is tactical, there is no strategy,” said Brandes, who now heads a non-profit think tank called the Florida Policy Project. “Nobody can tell you the long-term strategy, Republican or Democrat, because it doesn’t exist.” Saying we want to lower the cost of property insurance is not a strategy, Brandes said, “that’s a hope.”
Brandes said his nonprofit Florida Policy Project, which issued a study on the insurance crisis six months ago, is trying to provide the kind of detailed fact-based research legislators need to develop new strategies for property insurance, transportation, criminal justice and housing. He considers himself a libertarian and favors market-based solutions but believes there’s a big role for federal, state and local governments to help.
Solutions to the property insurance crisis put forward by the Project include giving government assistance to property owners in flood-prone areas so they can improve their homes to meet current flood and wind mitigation standards, Brandes said. In addition, zoning should be changed to allow more units on a property so owners can generate revenue to help pay for the necessary improvements, he said, a solution that also addresses issues with affordable housing. To lessen the reliance on the state-backed non-profit Citizens Insurance, the largest property insurance company in the state, Florida government should offer incentives to grow the pool of providers, such as matching funds for start-ups.
A top priority for the Project this legislative session is to establish Centers of Excellence at Florida’s research universities to work on public policy issues like insurance and affordable housing.
Hear the entire conversation by clicking the link below, going to the WaveMakers archives or by searching for WMNF WaveMakers wherever you listen to podcasts.
