Senate Bill sb1722c1

    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1722

    By the Committee on Banking and Insurance; and Senator Horne





    311-1774-01

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to surety bonds; amending s.

  3         625.071, F.S.; modifying the amount of reserve

  4         which surety insurers may maintain on bail

  5         bonds and judicial bonds in lieu of the

  6         unearned premium reserve required under s.

  7         625.051, F.S.; providing financial reporting

  8         requirements; providing an effective date.

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10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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12         Section 1.  Section 625.071, Florida Statutes, is

13  amended to read:

14         625.071  Special reserve for bail and judicial

15  bonds.--In lieu of the unearned premium reserve required on

16  surety bonds under s. 625.051, the department may require any

17  surety insurer or limited surety insurer to set up and

18  maintain a reserve on all bail bonds or other single-premium

19  bonds without definite expiration date, furnished in judicial

20  proceedings, equal to the lesser of 35 25 percent of the bail

21  premiums in force or $7 per $1,000 of bail liability. Such

22  reserve shall be reported as a liability in financial

23  statements required to be filed with the department. Each

24  insurer shall file a supplementary schedule showing bail

25  premiums in force and bail liability and the associated

26  special reserve for bail and judicial bonds with financial

27  statements required by s. 624.424. Bail premiums in force do

28  not include amounts retained by licensed bail bond agents or

29  licensed managing general agents, but may not be less than 6.5

30  percent of the total consideration received for all bail bonds

31  in force total consideration charged for such bonds as are

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    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1722
    311-1774-01




  1  outstanding as of the date of any current financial statement

  2  of the insurer.

  3         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2001.

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  5          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
  6                             SB 1722

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  8  Provides that the special reserve requirement that surety
    insurers must establish for bail bonds must be equal to the
  9  lesser of 35 percent of the bail premiums in force or $7 per
    $1,000 of bail liability. The bail premiums would not include
10  amounts retained by licensed bail bond agents, but may not be
    less that 6.5 percent of the total consideration received for
11  all bail bonds in force.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.