Florida Senate - 2012 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1404
Barcode 577578
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: FAV .
01/26/2012 .
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The Committee on Banking and Insurance (Negron) recommended the
following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete everything after the enacting clause
4 and insert:
5 Section 1. Paragraph (d) of subsection (3) of section
6 626.2815, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (l) is
7 added to that subsection, to read:
8 626.2815 Continuing education required; application;
9 exceptions; requirements; penalties.—
10 (3)
11 (d) Any person who holds a license as a customer
12 representative, limited customer representative, title agent,
13 motor vehicle physical damage and mechanical breakdown insurance
14 agent, crop or hail and multiple-peril crop insurance agent, or
15 as an industrial fire insurance or burglary insurance agent and
16 who is not a licensed life or health insurance agent, must shall
17 be required to complete 10 hours of continuing education courses
18 every 2 years.
19 (l) Any person who holds a license as a title insurance
20 agent must complete a minimum of 10 hours of continuing
21 education courses every 2 years in title insurance and escrow
22 management specific to this state and approved by the
23 department, which shall include at least 1.5 hours of continuing
24 education on the subject matter of ethics, rules, or compliance
25 with state and federal regulations relating to title insurance
26 and closing services.
27 Section 2. Subsection (11) is added to section 626.8437,
28 Florida Statutes, to read:
29 626.8437 Grounds for denial, suspension, revocation, or
30 refusal to renew license or appointment.—The department shall
31 deny, suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew or continue the
32 license or appointment of any title insurance agent or agency,
33 and it shall suspend or revoke the eligibility to hold a license
34 or appointment of such person, if it finds that as to the
35 applicant, licensee, appointee, or any principal thereof, any
36 one or more of the following grounds exist:
37 (11) Failure to timely submit data as required by s.
38 627.782, unless a rule challenge has been filed pursuant to s.
39 120.56 as to the form or substance of data to be provided.
40 Section 3. Subsection (8) is added to section 626.8473,
41 Florida Statutes, to read:
42 626.8473 Escrow; trust fund.—
43 (8) An attorney shall deposit and maintain all funds
44 received in connection with transactions in which the attorney
45 is serving as a title or real estate settlement agent into a
46 separate trust account that is maintained exclusively for funds
47 received in connection with such transactions and permit the
48 account to be audited by its title insurers, unless maintaining
49 funds in the separate account for a particular client would
50 violate applicable rules of The Florida Bar.
51 Section 4. Section 627.777, Florida Statutes, is amended to
52 read:
53 627.777 Approval of forms.—
54 (1) A title insurer may not issue or agree to issue any
55 form of title insurance commitment, title insurance policy,
56 other contract of title insurance, or related form until it is
57 filed with and approved by the office. The office may not
58 disapprove a title guarantee or policy form on the ground that
59 it has on it a blank form for an attorney’s opinion on the
60 title.
61 (2) The office shall approve or disapprove a form filed for
62 approval within 180 days after receipt.
63 (3) When the office approves any form, it shall determine
64 if the current rate in effect applies or if the coverages
65 require the adoption of a rule pursuant to s. 627.782.
66 (4) The office may revoke approval of any form after
67 providing 180 days’ notice to the title insurer.
68 (5) An insurer may not achieve a competitive advantage over
69 any other insurer, agency, or agent as to rates or forms. If a
70 form or rate is approved for an insurer, the office shall
71 expeditiously approve the forms of other insurers who apply for
72 approval if those forms contain identical coverages, rates, and
73 deviations which have been approved under s. 627.783.
74 Section 5. Subsection (8) of section 627.782, Florida
75 Statutes, is amended to read:
76 627.782 Adoption of rates.—
77 (8) Each title insurance agency and insurer licensed to do
78 business in this state and each insurer’s direct or retail
79 business in this state shall maintain and submit information,
80 including revenue, loss, and expense data, as the office
81 determines necessary to assist in the analysis of title
82 insurance premium rates, title search costs, and the condition
83 of the title insurance industry in this state. This information
84 must be transmitted to the office annually by March 31 of the
85 year after the reporting year. The commission shall adopt rules
86 to assist in the collection and analysis of the data from the
87 title insurance industry. The commission may, by rule, require
88 licensees under this part to annually submit statistical
89 information, including loss and expense data, as the department
90 determines to be necessary to analyze premium rates, retention
91 rates, and the condition of the title insurance industry.
92 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.
93
94 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
95 And the title is amended as follows:
96 Delete everything before the enacting clause
97 and insert:
98 A bill to be entitled
99 An act relating to title insurance; amending s.
100 626.2815, F.S.; specifying continuing education
101 requirements for title insurance agents; amending s.
102 626.8437, F.S.; specifying additional grounds to deny,
103 suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew or continue the
104 license or appointment of a title insurance agent or
105 agency; amending s. 626.8473, F.S.; requiring an
106 attorney serving as a title or real estate settlement
107 agent to deposit and maintain certain funds in a
108 separate trust account and permit the account to be
109 audited by the applicable title insurer, unless
110 prohibited by the rules of The Florida Bar; amending
111 s. 627.777, F.S.; providing procedures and
112 requirements relating to the approval or disapproval
113 of title insurance forms by the Office of Insurance
114 Regulation; amending s. 627.782, F.S.; requiring title
115 insurance agencies and certain insurers to submit
116 specified information to the office to assist in the
117 analysis of title insurance premium rates, title
118 search costs, and the condition of the title insurance
119 industry; requiring the Financial Services Commission
120 to adopt rules; providing an effective date.