As the year comes to a close, your donation to FIRM will make an impact on the state of property insurance for Monroe County residents. With your support, we can continue to work with our legislators on bills that provide relief to policyholders, build relationships with officeholders and provide education to our members to help them make sound property insurance decisions. Please consider a generous donation today to help us continue making a difference.
FIRM actively engages with our legislators and insurance regulators in Tallahassee, and as a result, we’ve helped bring about positive changes like keeping non-primary homes that are rented year around to locals on the glide path and removing the requirement for flood insurance contents coverage to match windstorm coverage.
FIRM representatives attended the Citizens Rate Hearing before the Office of Insurance Regulation to ask for no rate increase for Monroe County. Insurance Commissioner Yaworsky is still considering the rate recommendations, and we’re hopeful that he will decide in Monroe County’s favor.
FIRM pushed for a Monroe County resident to sit on the Citizens Board of Governors–the body that makes those rate recommendations–and we are happy that Key West businessman Robert Spottswood was appointed to serve.
FIRM hosted representatives from Citizens and the Insurance Consumer Advocate on field trips to help them better understand the challenges our residents face with the cost of windstorm insurance. And we also used those trips to illustrate how our strict building codes help residents recover quickly after a storm.
FIRM has just begun a project with Habitat Florida to develop a windstorm insurance program that will help their owners continue to benefit from the amazing work that Habitat for Humanity does. Monroe County’s three Habitat for Humanity affiliates provide much-needed affordable housing for our workforce.
On the flood insurance front, FIRM continues to work with the Coalition for Sustainable Flood Insurance (CSFI) to push FEMA for transparency and accountability of its Risk Rating 2.0 methodology and outdated flood maps. This year’s storms highlight the inadequacy of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and the imperative to reauthorize the program with meaningful reforms.
FIRM’s year end fund drive reminds residents that our work continues to be important to the future of Monroe County. The cost of property insurance contributes to housing affordability, and that is an issue that affects all of us.
We hope that you will remember FIRM as you plan your year-end giving. You can support FIRM’s mission in 3 ways:
- Donate to FIRMKeys – FIRM’s educational arm that works with our local governments to promote programs that inform residents and help build a more sustainable community.
- Donate to FIRMPAC – FIRM’s advocacy arm that works with our lawmakers to draft legislation that provides relief to Monroe County residents.
- Sign up for our newsletter – FIRM’s free membership helps to keep you informed and lets us know what kind of information you want to see.