Republican gubernatorial nominee Rick Scott unveiled his plan on taxes and insurance Monday, calling for a 19 percent cut in the states property taxes. In so doing, he continued in a duel of heated exchanges with his Democratic rival, state CFO Alex Sink.
Today, I want to talk about taxes and insurance -- two very important issues that must be addressed in order to put Floridians back to work and turn around our housing crisis, said Scott at a town hall-style event in Miami.
Scott used the event to take a shot at Sink.
Politicians in Tallahassee, like my opponent Alex Sink, had an opportunity over the last four years to reduce property taxes and insurance, but instead made the problem worse, he said. As an outsider who is not entrenched in the status quo or beholden to special interests, I have a plan that will lower property taxes for all homeowners in Florida who desperately need some tax relief, eliminate the business tax and address the insurance crisis.
Scott focused on property taxes -- and called for a major tax cut.
Florida is also in the top three states nationally in mortgage foreclosures and our economy has been crushed by housing price declines, added Scott. Forty-four percent of our homes are under water and property tax revenues have been growing faster than personal incomes. I will cut the state portion of property taxes by 19 percent for all homeowners in Florida helping to make their homes affordable again.
Scott added that revenue would be made up by his jobs plan.
The candidate also called for reforming insurance in the Sunshine State.
I will return citizens to the insurer of last resort, level the playing field so that solvent private insurers are allowed to compete with each other for business, not with the subsidized and financially unsound government-run insurance company, said Scott. Florida needs a thriving mitigation program that will incentivize homeowners to spend money to install features that harden their homes against hurricanes and will ultimately drive down cost. The fraud-based system that politics as usual gave us these past years was a failure.
Scott also picked up a familiar Republican mantra and pledged to reform tort law in Florida.
As governor, I will make the following tort reforms a priority: bad faith reform, product liability and crash-worthiness, disaster recovery private sector, expert testimony reform, and medical-related reform, pledged Scott.
He said he was bullish on his chances in the general election against Sink.
I proved them wrong on Aug. 24 and we will again on Nov. 2, when voters have a real choice between the failed policies of the past or the new solutions we need to turn our Sunshine State around, said Scott. Our opportunities are too great, our future too bright for the old ways of government and the failed policies of the past. Thats why I invite you to join me in a completely different kind of campaign.Lets shake up Tallahassee, turn our state around and get Florida growing again!
The Sink team dismissed Scotts plans as reflecting the agenda of big business and insurance companies.
"It simply boils down to whose side you're on: the consumer's or the insurance industry's -- and Rick Scott is clearly with the big companies," said Kyra Jennings, a spokeswoman for Sink."In a nutshell, his plan would turn the insurance companies loose to raise rates as high as they want on Floridians.
"About the only place citizens are equal to big corporations is in front of a judge, but Scott's so-called reform plan would close the door to the courthouse for too many Floridians," added Jennings. "But it's to be expected from an unethical businessman whose company committed one of the largest frauds against taxpayers in history."
This was the lightest volley from the Sink campaign as it continued unleashing its own fire at Scott. The Sink camp released two television commercials during the weekend, claiming Scott was ignoring state affairs to focus on national issues and claiming that Sink is better positioned to help revitalize the state education system and the economy.
Sinks team also hammered Scott for his record in the private sector, pointing to a piece run by the Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times on Sunday focusing on his experiences in business.
"Year after year Rick Scott signed documents acknowledging the misdeeds of his company, removing any last shred of credibility he had in his weak attempts to defend the illegal misconduct he oversaw at his hospitals," said Jennings. "Floridians deserve better than a governor who chooses to ignore warnings that he might be breaking the law, turned a blind eye to illegal kickbacks, and used legal maneuvering to avoid being questioned by the FBI. This latest information about Rick Scott's connections to the historic, systemic fraud happening at his company for years shows once again just how much he is hiding his record from the people of Florida.
"Floridians can just add this to the laundry list of critical information about his record and past that Rick Scott is hiding from Floridians," added Jennings. "From refusing to release the deposition with his new health-care company he gave just six days before running for governor, to avoiding making his tax returns public, to ducking debates, Rick Scott is trying to keep Floridians from learning one basic truth: Rick Scott is clearly disqualified to be Florida's next governor."
The Scott team fired back Monday with Rep. Jennifer Carroll of Jacksonville, Scotts running mate for lieutenant governor, attacking Sinks record in guarding state employees pensions.
Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink was at the wheel when the state pension fund lost $24.5 billion. She even approved giving bonuses to SBA staffers despite the losses, said Carroll. It is appalling to learn that not only was the SBA warned about the risky investments that cost our seniors billions and put the Local Government Investment Pool in grave danger, but that the SBA repeatedly tried to finagle permission from the SEC to make these risky investments despite repeated advice and warnings that it might be against the law.
Ignoring warnings and the SBAs previous failures, CFO Alex Sink is still allowing the SBA to engage in risky investing in what experts called an absurd investment scenario, continued Carroll. CFO Alex Sink has sunk our seniors pensions and cost local governments valuable resources with a pattern of behavior that raises questions about both her competence and integrity.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
