WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A proposal to dramatically change Citizens Insurance is now part of a growing stack of bills at Florida's Capitol in 2025.
House Bill 13, sponsored by state Rep. Hillary Cassel of Broward County, would make Citizens Insurance available to all property owners in Florida and cover only windstorm damage.
WPTV was not able to reach Cassel on Monday for comment on the bill.
Cassel, who recently switched political parties from Democrat to Republican, has been a supporter of the idea for almost a year.
Real Estate News
These are the Florida bills targeting insurance relief next year
Former state Rep. Spencer Roach, R-Fort Myers, brought up this proposal back in February. He told a committee that the plan would be modeled after California's insurance program.
"It provided insurance for all claims and only claims related to natural disasters and left the private market to pick up the rest. The result is rates dropped like a stone," Roach said Feb. 7.
Despite the claims, the proposal went nowhere in the last session as many in Tallahassee remain skeptical of the idea.
"If we went down that road of being the wind-only provider of first resort in Florida, we would have to have about $3.2 trillion in insured value," Citizens CEO Tim Cerio told WPTV during a "Coverage Collapse" special in June."The price tag is untenable."
Matt Sczesny is determined every day to help you find solutions in Florida's coverage collapse. If you have a question or comment on homeowners insurance, you can reach out to him any time.
Read WPTV's latest "Coverage Collapse" stories below:
-
Amid uncertainty, economist highlights resilience of consumers despite tariffs
While tariffs could lead to price hikes in the short term, economist Thomas Weinandy believes strong employment levels may help consumers manage increased costs effectively.
Shein and Temu customers noticing price hikes amid Trump's tariffs
Fast fashion fans in Colorado are talking about fast price hikes on the ultra-low-cost sites Shein and Temu. Jaclyn Allen shines light on one industry that could benefit from the changes.
US consumer confidence plunges to lowest in 5 years on tariff worries
Americans' confidence in the economy slumped for the fifth straight month to the lowest level since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Airfare prices decline ahead of summer travel season
Air travelers may be in for some good news as airfare prices are set to become a bit more affordable. Here's what to know.
