This bill reorganizes Florida’s insurance research infrastructure by renaming the Florida Catastrophic Storm Risk Management Center at Florida State University as the Florida Center for Excellence in Insurance and Risk Management. It expands and clarifies the center’s mission to conduct, coordinate, and disseminate research on Florida’s insurance markets, risk management, storm preparedness, affordability, and availability of insurance products. The bill specifically identifies research areas such as storm forecasting, loss modeling, consumer protections, claims handling, reinsurance, catastrophe bonds, building resilience, the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, the My Safe Florida Home Program, and multiple lines of insurance including health, life, workers’ compensation, and auto insurance.
The bill also requires the center to work with the Office of Insurance Regulation to produce an annual report analyzing the state’s property insurance market, including 1-, 5-, 10-, and 20-year outlooks and recommendations to improve affordability, availability, and catastrophe readiness. The first report must be published by January 1, 2026, and updated at least every two years. In addition, the center must develop a program with the Office of Insurance Regulation and Florida State University’s actuarial science program to encourage actuarial students to enter public-sector work in risk management and insurance.
A major operational change in the bill is the transfer of management of the public hurricane loss projection model from Florida International University to Florida State University through a type two transfer. The Office of Insurance Regulation must contract with the new center to manage and continuously update the model, and the center may use it to fulfill its statutory duties. The bill also exempts the office and the center from certain fees for access to the model, while keeping private-sector access fees tied to reasonable operating and maintenance costs. Conforming changes are made to the statute governing annual hurricane loss data reports, which must continue to be published and submitted to state leaders.
The bill’s impact on state law is to shift statutory authority, duties, and records associated with the public hurricane loss projection model from Florida International University to Florida State University, while broadening the center’s research and reporting responsibilities. It also strengthens the statutory role of the Office of Insurance Regulation and the center in producing market analysis and using insurer data to support rate-setting, model validation, and policy development. Affected parties include Florida State University, Florida International University, the Office of Insurance Regulation, residential property insurers, rating and advisory organizations, and consumers and policymakers interested in property insurance affordability and catastrophe risk.
The overall sentiment around the bill appears strongly favorable. It passed three House committees unanimously, with no recorded dissent in the House Insurance & Banking Subcommittee, House Budget Committee, or House Commerce Committee. The committee history suggests broad support for expanding insurance research capacity and improving state oversight of the property insurance market.
The main point of potential contention is the transfer of the public hurricane loss projection model from Florida International University to Florida State University. Although the bill does not include recorded opposition in the available history, the relocation of a long-standing technical function and associated resources could raise institutional or administrative concerns. Another possible area of interest is the bill’s emphasis on using insurer data and state-produced modeling to influence rate filings and market analysis, which may draw scrutiny from insurers or stakeholders concerned about methodology, data use, or regulatory impact.
The bill amends Florida statutes governing the state’s insurance research center, the public hurricane loss projection model, and hurricane loss data reporting. It transfers the model and related functions from Florida International University to Florida State University, requires the Office of Insurance Regulation to contract with the new center, and updates statutory reporting and fee provisions accordingly. It also expands the center’s research, educational, and reporting duties, including a recurring property insurance market outlook report and collaboration with actuarial and regulatory partners.
The available legislative history indicates clear support for the bill. It advanced through the House Insurance & Banking Subcommittee, House Budget Committee, and House Commerce Committee unanimously, with no recorded nay votes. That pattern suggests the bill was viewed as a constructive, noncontroversial effort to strengthen insurance research and state capacity on property insurance and catastrophe risk.
The most notable issue is the transfer of the public hurricane loss projection model from Florida International University to Florida State University, which changes institutional control over a significant state modeling function. While no opposition is recorded in the provided materials, such a transfer could be a point of concern for affected universities, model users, or stakeholders focused on continuity, expertise, and administrative responsibility. A secondary area of possible debate is the bill’s expanded use of insurer data and state research to inform rate filings and market policy, which could be sensitive for insurers and regulators.