Florida Senate - 2013                          SENATOR AMENDMENT
       Bill No. CS for CS for SB 468
       
       
       
       
       
       
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                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
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                Floor: 2/AD/2R         .                                
             04/24/2013 10:31 AM       .                                
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       Senator Sobel moved the following:
       
    1         Senate Substitute for Amendment (202090) (with title
    2  amendment)
    3  
    4         Before line 28
    5  insert:
    6         Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (6) of section
    7  215.555, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
    8         215.555 Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund.—
    9         (6) REVENUE BONDS.—
   10         (b) Emergency assessments—
   11         1. If the board determines that the amount of revenue
   12  produced under subsection (5) is insufficient to fund the
   13  obligations, costs, and expenses of the fund and the
   14  corporation, including repayment of revenue bonds and that
   15  portion of the debt service coverage not met by reimbursement
   16  premiums, the board shall direct the Office of Insurance
   17  Regulation to levy, by order, an emergency assessment on direct
   18  premiums for all property and casualty lines of business in this
   19  state, including property and casualty business of surplus lines
   20  insurers regulated under part VIII of chapter 626, but not
   21  including any workers’ compensation premiums or medical
   22  malpractice premiums. As used in this subsection, the term
   23  “property and casualty business” includes all lines of business
   24  identified on Form 2, Exhibit of Premiums and Losses, in the
   25  annual statement required of authorized insurers by s. 624.424
   26  and any rule adopted under this section, except for those lines
   27  identified as accident and health insurance and except for
   28  policies written under the National Flood Insurance Program. The
   29  assessment shall be specified as a percentage of direct written
   30  premium and is subject to annual adjustments by the board in
   31  order to meet debt obligations. The same percentage applies
   32  shall apply to all policies in lines of business subject to the
   33  assessment issued or renewed during the 12-month period
   34  beginning on the effective date of the assessment.
   35         2. A premium is not subject to an annual assessment under
   36  this paragraph in excess of 6 percent of premium with respect to
   37  obligations arising out of losses attributable to any one
   38  contract year, and a premium is not subject to an aggregate
   39  annual assessment under this paragraph in excess of 10 percent
   40  of premium. An annual assessment under this paragraph continues
   41  shall continue as long as the revenue bonds issued with respect
   42  to which the assessment was imposed are outstanding, including
   43  any bonds the proceeds of which were used to refund the revenue
   44  bonds, unless adequate provision has been made for the payment
   45  of the bonds under the documents authorizing issuance of the
   46  bonds.
   47         3. Emergency assessments shall be collected from
   48  policyholders. Emergency assessments shall be remitted by
   49  insurers as a percentage of direct written premium for the
   50  preceding calendar quarter as specified in the order from the
   51  Office of Insurance Regulation. The office shall verify the
   52  accurate and timely collection and remittance of emergency
   53  assessments and shall report the information to the board in a
   54  form and at a time specified by the board. Each insurer
   55  collecting assessments shall provide the information with
   56  respect to premiums and collections as may be required by the
   57  office to enable the office to monitor and verify compliance
   58  with this paragraph.
   59         4. With respect to assessments of surplus lines premiums,
   60  each surplus lines agent shall collect the assessment at the
   61  same time as the agent collects the surplus lines tax required
   62  by s. 626.932, and the surplus lines agent shall remit the
   63  assessment to the Florida Surplus Lines Service Office created
   64  by s. 626.921 at the same time as the agent remits the surplus
   65  lines tax to the Florida Surplus Lines Service Office. The
   66  emergency assessment on each insured procuring coverage and
   67  filing under s. 626.938 shall be remitted by the insured to the
   68  Florida Surplus Lines Service Office at the time the insured
   69  pays the surplus lines tax to the Florida Surplus Lines Service
   70  Office. The Florida Surplus Lines Service Office shall remit the
   71  collected assessments to the fund or corporation as provided in
   72  the order levied by the Office of Insurance Regulation. The
   73  Florida Surplus Lines Service Office shall verify the proper
   74  application of such emergency assessments and shall assist the
   75  board in ensuring the accurate and timely collection and
   76  remittance of assessments as required by the board. The Florida
   77  Surplus Lines Service Office shall annually calculate the
   78  aggregate written premium on property and casualty business,
   79  other than workers’ compensation and medical malpractice,
   80  procured through surplus lines agents and insureds procuring
   81  coverage and filing under s. 626.938 and shall report the
   82  information to the board in a form and at a time specified by
   83  the board.
   84         5. Any assessment authority not used for a particular
   85  contract year may be used for a subsequent contract year. If,
   86  for a subsequent contract year, the board determines that the
   87  amount of revenue produced under subsection (5) is insufficient
   88  to fund the obligations, costs, and expenses of the fund and the
   89  corporation, including repayment of revenue bonds and that
   90  portion of the debt service coverage not met by reimbursement
   91  premiums, the board shall direct the Office of Insurance
   92  Regulation to levy an emergency assessment up to an amount not
   93  exceeding the amount of unused assessment authority from a
   94  previous contract year or years, plus an additional 4 percent
   95  provided that the assessments in the aggregate do not exceed the
   96  limits specified in subparagraph 2.
   97         6. The assessments otherwise payable to the corporation
   98  under this paragraph shall be paid to the fund unless and until
   99  the Office of Insurance Regulation and the Florida Surplus Lines
  100  Service Office have received a notice from the corporation and
  101  the fund a notice, which shall be conclusive and upon which they
  102  may rely without further inquiry, that the corporation has
  103  issued bonds and the fund has no agreements in effect with local
  104  governments under paragraph (c). On or after the date of the
  105  notice and until the date the corporation has no bonds
  106  outstanding, the fund shall have no right, title, or interest in
  107  or to the assessments, except as provided in the fund’s
  108  agreement with the corporation.
  109         7. Emergency assessments are not premium and are not
  110  subject to the premium tax, to the surplus lines tax, to any
  111  fees, or to any commissions. An insurer is liable for all
  112  assessments that it collects and must treat the failure of an
  113  insured to pay an assessment as a failure to pay the premium. An
  114  insurer is not liable for uncollectible assessments.
  115         8. If When an insurer is required to return an unearned
  116  premium, it shall also return any collected assessment
  117  attributable to the unearned premium. A credit adjustment to the
  118  collected assessment may be made by the insurer with regard to
  119  future remittances that are payable to the fund or corporation,
  120  but the insurer is not entitled to a refund.
  121         9. If When a surplus lines insured or an insured who has
  122  procured coverage and filed under s. 626.938 is entitled to the
  123  return of an unearned premium, the Florida Surplus Lines Service
  124  Office shall provide a credit or refund to the agent or such
  125  insured for the collected assessment attributable to the
  126  unearned premium before prior to remitting the emergency
  127  assessment collected to the fund or corporation.
  128         10. The exemption of medical malpractice insurance premiums
  129  from emergency assessments under this paragraph is repealed May
  130  31, 2016 2013, and medical malpractice insurance premiums shall
  131  be subject to emergency assessments attributable to loss events
  132  occurring in the contract years commencing on June 1, 2016 2013.
  133  
  134  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  135         And the title is amended as follows:
  136         Delete line 3
  137  and insert:
  138         rates, fees, and forms; amending s. 215.555, F.S.;
  139         postponing the date that repeals the Florida Hurricane
  140         Catastrophe Fund emergency assessment exemption for
  141         medical malpractice insurance premiums; amending s.
  142         627.062, F.S.; exempting