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



                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                           Bill No. CS for SB 1126

    Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only)

                            CHAMBER ACTION
              Senate                               House
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  4  ______________________________________________________________

  5                                           ORIGINAL STAMP BELOW

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10  ______________________________________________________________

11  Representative(s) Alexander offered the following:

12

13         Amendment (with directory language and title

14  amendments) 

15         On page 20, between lines 8 and 9

16

17  insert:

18         (f)  The State Board of Administration shall appoint a

19  nine-member advisory council that consists of an actuary, a

20  meteorologist, a representative of home builders, a

21  representative of insurers, a representative of insurance

22  agents, a representative of real estate brokers, and three

23  consumers to provide the board with information and advice in

24  connection with its duties as the board of trustees of the

25  association.  Each member of the board shall be responsible

26  for appointing one of the consumer members, and the board as a

27  whole shall appoint the six other members.  Members of the

28  advisory council shall serve at the pleasure of the board and

29  are eligible for per diem and travel expenses under s.

30  112.061.  Expenses of the advisory council shall be treated as

31  expenses of the association.

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    File original & 9 copies    03/19/02
    hthe001                     09:27 pm         01126-0066-972183




                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                           Bill No. CS for SB 1126

    Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only)





  1         (g)  For budgetary and for purposes of the

  2  Administrative Procedure Act, the association is not a state

  3  agency and its employees are not state employees.  In order

  4  for the state to make a financial contribution to the

  5  association, the association shall be considered a political

  6  subdivision of the state for purposes of s. 199.183(1) and,

  7  beginning July 1, 2003, shall be exempt from the insurance

  8  premium tax and the corporate income tax.  In lieu of

  9  remitting such taxes, the association shall retain any moneys

10  that would have been paid as insurance premium taxes or

11  corporate income taxes for payment of future claims by

12  policyholders.

13         (h)1.  The intent of the Legislature, in enacting the

14  2002 amendments to this subsection, is that the Florida

15  Windstorm Underwriting Facility function as a state program to

16  provide residential insurance against natural disasters in the

17  highest-risk areas of the state, and that such program operate

18  under the direction and control of the State Board of

19  Administration in its capacity as a board of trustees.  It is

20  the further intent of the Legislature that the association

21  operate exclusively for the purpose of protecting and

22  advancing the state's interests in maintaining insurance

23  capacity and orderly development in areas which have the

24  highest potential for catastrophic hurricane losses.

25         2.  The State Board of Administration shall, as soon as

26  practicable after the effective date of the 2002 amendments to

27  this subsection, request an expedited opinion from the United

28  States Internal Revenue Service as to the tax-exempt status of

29  revenues collected under this subsection and the tax-free

30  status of bonds issued under this subsection.

31         (i)  Each fiscal year, the Legislature shall

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                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                           Bill No. CS for SB 1126

    Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only)





  1  appropriate from the amounts added to the surplus of the

  2  association in the prior fiscal year an amount no less than 5

  3  percent of such addition to surplus and no more than 10

  4  percent of such addition to the surplus for the purpose of

  5  providing funding for local governments, state agencies,

  6  public and private educational institutions, and nonprofit

  7  organizations to support programs intended to improve

  8  hurricane preparedness, reduce potential losses in the event

  9  of a hurricane, provide research into means to reduce such

10  losses, educate or inform the public as to means to reduce

11  hurricane losses, assist the public in determining the

12  appropriateness of particular upgrades to structures or in the

13  financing of such upgrades, or protect local infrastructure

14  from potential damage from a hurricane.  Moneys shall first be

15  available for appropriation under this paragraph in fiscal

16  year 2003-2004.

17         (j)  The association and the duties of the board of

18  trustees under this subsection may be terminated only by law.

19  Upon termination of the association, all assets of the

20  association shall revert to the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe

21  Fund.

22         (k)  It is the intent of the Legislature that the

23  association continue to implement the phase-in of the rate

24  plan of the Florida Windstorm Underwriting Association that

25  was in effect on January 1, 2002.  The Legislature recognizes

26  that the continued implementation of the phase-in as

27  originally scheduled will create hardship for some

28  policyholders, and therefore the association shall continue

29  implementation of the rate plan subject to the following

30  limitations:

31         1.  With respect to any personal lines residential

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    File original & 9 copies    03/19/02
    hthe001                     09:27 pm         01126-0066-972183




                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                           Bill No. CS for SB 1126

    Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only)





  1  policy covering a structure the insured value of which is

  2  $150,000 or more, the maximum rate change in any one year is

  3  15 percent; and

  4         2.  With respect to any personal lines residential

  5  policy covering a structure the insured value of which is less

  6  than $150,000, the maximum rate change in any one year is 10

  7  percent.

  8

  9

10  == D I R E C T O R Y   L A N G U A G E   A M E N D M E N T ==

11  And the directory language is amended as follows:

12         On page 1, line 22 after "amended"

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14  insert:  , and paragraphs (f), (g), (h), (i), (j), and (k) are

15  added to subsection (2) of said section,

16

17

18  ================ T I T L E   A M E N D M E N T ===============

19  And the title is amended as follows:

20         On page 1, line 8 after the semicolon

21

22  insert:

23         providing alternative sources of coverage;

24         providing for an advisory council; providing

25         that for certain purposes the association is

26         not a state agency, board, or commission;

27         providing for a state financial contribution to

28         the association through tax exemptions;

29         providing purpose and intent; requiring the

30         board to seek an expedited ruling from the

31         Internal Revenue Service; providing for an

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                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                           Bill No. CS for SB 1126

    Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only)





  1         annual appropriation of a portion of the

  2         surplus of the association for the purpose of

  3         hurricane loss mitigation; providing that the

  4         association may be terminated only by law;

  5         providing for reversion of the funds of the

  6         association upon termination; providing for

  7         continued phase-in of the rate plan of the

  8         association; providing limitations on the

  9         phase-in;

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    File original & 9 copies    03/19/02
    hthe001                     09:27 pm         01126-0066-972183