Nationwide Search for Citizens Property Insurance Inspector General Launches

On Tuesday, following a recently passed law, Governor Rick Scott tapped Chief Inspector General Melinda Miguel to lead a national search to find a new inspector general for Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, the state-backed insurer of last resort.

I have asked Chief Inspector General Melinda Miguel to immediately join with other Cabinet offices and begin a nationwide search for the new Citizens Inspector General, Scott said on Tuesday. Through this transparent process, the States IG will work together with the IGs of the Chief Financial Officer and the Office of Insurance Regulation to find an applicant that will vetted and ultimately approved by the Financial Services Commission. This new Inspector General will be accountable to the Cabinet and will not be an employee that Citizens can fire, as they did with their old compliance officer. A strong Inspector General is needed to provide independent oversight at Citizens and to end the many problems that have plagued Citizens for too long and led to a lack of public confidence.

The search will be led by a committee made up by Miguel and the inspector generals from the state CFOs office and the Office of Insurance Regulation.They will be holding their first public meeting on June 20.

The selection process will be held in accordance with Floridas Sunshine Laws to ensure a completely transparent process and to assist the governor and other members of the Financial Services Commission in selecting the best candidate, Miguel said. We look forward to conducting a nationwide search to find an IG who is fully qualified to hold this important position and is able to assist the Financial Services Commission in holding Citizens accountable to the people of the state of Florida.