Gov. Charlie Crist, flanked by Attorney General Bill McCollum, Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink and Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles Bronson, presided over one of the last meetings of the Florida Cabinet Tuesday, tackling a jump in sinkhole claims and a proposed development in Polk County that led to a small flap with the Department of Community Affairs.
Florida Office of Insurance Regulation Commissioner Kevin McCarty addressed the Cabinet on the rise in insurance claims due to sinkholes, saying those types of claims have skyrocketed in the past three years.
In 2006, there were 2,360 sinkhole claims, but by 2009 the number had risen to 7,244, costing $1.4 billion along the way. McCarty said this years sinkhole claims could exceed the previous three years'.
Basically, that means sinkhole claims have tripled in three years. Based on this estimate, the damage could reach up to $2 billion, McCarty said.
Paying out claims, though, is not the only source of costs associated with the spike in sinkhole claims. Testing for potential sinkholes requires drilling into the ground and can cost up to $9,000, McCarty said.
McCarty indicated that some claims could be the result of fraud or overzealous public adjusters.
What were seeing is a proliferation of cases where cracks in the pavement or cracks in the stairwells result in a settlement, and its costing billions of dollars in claims, he said.
For Crist, however, the jury is still out.
Im not sure weve reached a definite conclusion. Well have to leave it to more scientific testing to reach a definite conclusion, Crist said.
The Cabinet also addressed a proposed Polk County development that raised issues with DCA that could be a sign of things to come for Gov.-elect Rick Scotts incoming administration.
The development in question was a site for agri-tourism that would have featured exotic animals like zebras, camels and -- at one point -- monkeys. DCA complained that the development would be for commercial use, which was not in line with its designation as agricultural land. Despite a sanction from Polk County, a judge sided with DCA to disallow the project.
Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles Bronson chided DCA for not being more amenable to the landowners and costing the state jobs.
They need to work with some of these people who are putting some people to work, Bronson said.
But DCA Secretary Tom Pelham stood up for his organization, saying DCA had become a whipping boy for politicians during the election season, looking for someone to blame for the poor economy.
Our job is not to write the laws, it's to enforce the laws written by others. All you have to do is amend your rules. Change your rules and the DCA will have no problem endorsing your rules, Pelham said.
Florida had an economic boom under the same regulations that exist now. They didnt cause the boom and they didnt cause the collapse, Pelham told reporters.
Pelham would not directly criticize Scott, who campaigned heavily on cutting government spending and regulations, but the small spat in Gov. Crists next-to-last Cabinet meeting does not bode well for future relations between DCA and the new governor.
Reach Gray Rohrer at grohrer@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
