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All News

2021 Session Concludes, No-fault/PIP Repeal Wins Final Passage

Friday, April 30, 2021, 3:00pm, Tallahassee – Moments ago at 2:40 p.m. the final ceremonial handkerchief was dropped marking the official end to Florida’s annual legislative session – but not before the House gave its final vote of approval to the plan to repeal and replace Florida’s decades-old no-fault auto insurance system. By a vote of 100 to 16, just a half an hour earlier and without any floor debate whatsoever, the House gave their approval to CS/CS/SB 54. 

The bill next heads to the governor’s desk for his action. If approved, Florida drivers will be required to carry mandatory bodily injury coverage (MBI) beginning in January, 2022, in lieu of the current requirement for no-fault/PIP coverage. Insurers will also be required to offer medical payments coverage of at least $5,000 through a mandatory offer process which also grants drivers optional acceptance.

Senate Approves No-Fault Repeal and It Goes Back to House

Friday, April 30, 2021, Tallahassee – Moments ago, with less than 14 hours remaining in this year’s annual legislative session, the Florida Senate voted 37-3 approving a plan (SB 54) to repeal and replace Florida’s no-fault auto insurance with a new requirement that drivers carry mandatory bodily injury coverage (MBI). The measure now goes back to the House for that chamber’s final consideration, likely to occur later today. Given that body’s 99 to 11 previous approval of the plan on April 26th, their final vote will likely assure the measure will head to the Governor’s desk for his approval or veto.

URGENT CALL TO ACTION: House Passes PIP Repeal, Action Moves Back to Senate

Contact your Senator now to voice your opposition to No-Fault Repeal.
 
Monday, April 26, 2021, 2:00pm, Tallahassee – Moments ago the Florida House gave their final approval to their latest version of a plan to repeal and replace Florida’s No-fault/PIP auto insurance system with a mandatory bodily injury (MBI) coverage requirement. With just four days remaining in this year’s session, in just five minutes and with no debate whatsoever, the House approved Senate Bill 54 by a vote of 99 to 11. This latest bill was amended on Friday in the House to more closely represent the House’s original plan. Their action means that the House replaced the Senate’s mandatory MedPay with the House plan’s mandatory offer of MedPay.
 
This latest version now moves back to the Senate, where Senators will have the option of accepting the House plan, rejecting it, or adopting further amendments. NOW is the time to contact your Senator to express your opposition to the repeal.  Time is crucial as the Senate could potentially take up the bill at any time, due to end-of-session rules.

CALL TO ACTION: Voice Your Opposition to PIP Repeal.

Now is the time to add your voice as a citizen of Florida.
 
Friday, April 23, 2021, Tallahassee – With just one week remaining in this year’s annual lawmaking sojourn, the issue of repealing and replacing Florida’s No-fault/PIP auto insurance system with a mandatory bodily injury (MBI)coverage requirement is still very much alive in the state legislature. Two proposals remain in play with the Senate having given final approval to their version last week. The House moments ago – within a record 7 minutes and with no member raising an objection or question – took up the Senate bill and replaced it with essentially the House bill and two amendments and placed it on the calendar for potential House passage as early as Monday.  Their action means that the Senate’s mandatory MedPay provision was replaced with the House’s mandatory offer of MedPay.  When and if the House passes a bill, it would next go to the Senate for agreement or amendment.

Latest PIP/No-fault Repeal Advances in House

Monday, April 19, 2021, Tallahassee – With less than two weeks remaining in the year’s regular legislative session a revised proposal aimed at repealing and replacing Florida’s decades-old No-fault/PIP auto insurance system was approved this afternoon by the House Judiciary Committee, the bill’s last committee of reference. Committee Substitute for House Bill 719 by Rep. Erin Grall (R-Vero Beach), is now available for consideration by the full House. A similar proposal, Senate Bill 54, passed by the full Senate on April 14th, is now available for consideration by the House as well.

Senate Passes PIP/No-fault Repeal with Mandatory MedPay

Thursday, April 15, 2021, Tallahassee – After three weeks of inaction, last night in a surprise move the Senate debated and quickly passed by a 38 to 1 vote a bill proposing to repeal Florida’s No-fault/PIP auto insurance system. Adding to that surprise was that the final bill passed included a number of last-minute amendments, most of which had never been aired or considered in the usual committee process, pointed out during debate on the bill by Sen. Jeff Brandes (R-St. Petersburg), who cast the lone dissenting vote on final passage.

PIP Repeal Stalls, Spending Plans Full Speed Ahead

Friday, April 9, 2021, Tallahassee – Plans proposing to repeal and replace Florida’s decades-old No-fault auto insurance system remained stalled again this week on both sides of the capitol, as lawmakers finished their sixth week of the Legislature’s annual nine-week session. Senators once again deferred consideration of their plan, SB 54, though teed-up and ready for consideration on the floor, while the House plan, HB 719, remained stuck in neutral, waiting for its second of three referenced committee hearings.
 
But over in the dollars-and-cents lane, it was full speed ahead. Senators gave unanimous approval to their $95-billion budget on Wednesday, while the House followed on Thursday approving their slightly more generous $97-billion plan to likewise fund state government for FY 2021-2022. The Senate president and House Speaker are now in a posture to appoint their respective members to a conference committee to begin work hammering out the differences between the two plans. Standing committees are continuing to finish their meetings as lawmakers shift their focus to both budget work and floor debate.
 
Several other issues of interest to the profession saw action this week, while others remain at a standstill. Here’s the latest as we enter the last third of this year’s session.  

Early Budget Plans Unveiled as Session Nears Mid-point

Friday, March 26, 2021, Tallahassee – Lawmakers this week released the earliest drafts of their state government spending plans as we near the halfway point of their 60-day annual legislative session next week. Senate budget chief Sen. Kelli Stargel (R-Lakeland) announced yesterday that the Senate will begin hearings on their plan starting on March 31st.
 
A bill forcing the collection of sales taxes on online purchases could likely be the first bill to reach the Governor’s desk this session. By at 30 to 10 vote the Senate on Thursday gave their nod of approval to SB 50 offered by Sen. Joe Gruters (R-Sarasota) which is now headed to the House. Estimates place the value of those collections at close to $1-billion which the Senate plan earmarks to replenish the pandemic-depleted unemployment trust fund saving Florida businesses from unemployment tax increases of up to 700%.
 
While committees continue to meet for the next several weeks, they will start to wind down their hearings as more time is devoted in both the House and Senate to debating bills on the floor and moving them to final passage. Though anything is still possible, bills that have not started their trek through the committee process will soon litter the landscape, losing their chance for a final blessing. Nevertheless, here’s a look at some of the issues still very much alive – plus several others now on life support – based on lawmakers actions this last week.

Committee Deliberations Dominate Lawmakers’ Week

Friday, March 19, 2021, Tallahassee – Legislators finished week three of their annual nine-week session with much of their schedule dedicated to committee hearings on individual member bills, taking public testimony and considering amendments, all readying the proposals for final consideration in both the full House and Senate. During the remaining six weeks, more and more of members’ time will be spent developing a state budget for FY 2021-22 and in full sessions on both the House and Senate floors to consider bills that have successfully navigated the committee process.
 
As you will see in the key issue updates that follow, this year’s session is already shaping up to be a very active one for your FCA Lobby Team as we continue to track and work on a diverse roster of bills. In addition to the proposals aimed at repealing and replacing No-Fault/PIP auto insurance, there are more than two dozen other bills with direct effect – both positive and negative – on the profession.

Lawmakers Get to Work, No-Fault/PIP Repeal Advances

Friday, March 12, 2021, Tallahassee – State lawmakers spent the second week of their nine-week regular session focusing primarily on committee work on individual member bills together with hearing individual appropriation requests. State budget committees also began their early work developing a plan to fund state government, the only exercise the constitution mandates legislators are charged with completing each year.
 
Committees in both the House and Senate also considered and advanced similar proposals seeking to repeal Florida’s decades-old No-fault/PIP auto insurance system replacing it with a requirement that drivers instead carry mandatory bodily injury coverage. (A complete summary of this issue follows.)
 
Below you will also find a summary of some of the many bills and issues your Lobby Team is following during this year’s annual lawmaking session. Each week your FCA Lobby Team will be providing you with the latest action on these issues, together with other key issues of primary interest to the profession. 

FCA Member News

Insurance News

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