Dear Friends,

Thankful for a wonderful time spent with family and friends over the holiday season and for new opportunities that arise as we start 2023.

In the Florida Senate, we are already hard at work on behalf of Florida’s citizens. This month and the month of February, the legislature will hold six weeks of committee meetings, in advance of the 2023 Legislative Session, which will begin March 7. Just before Christmas, the legislature convened a special session to address the property insurance crisis, tax relief, and toll fees. Three bills were passed and have made their way to the Governor’s desk. SB 2A, SB 4A, and SB 6A.

SB 2A increases insurer transparency to improve the marketplace for consumers, will reduce frivolous litigation that drives up costs, expedites the claim review process to verify that insurers maintain consistent communication with policyholders, stabilizes state-run Citizens Property Insurance to reduce taxpayer liability, and increases access to reinsurance to stabilize the insurance marketplace. Specifically, this bill eliminated assignment of benefits (AOB) for property insurance, the reinstatement of the offer of judgement process, and eliminated one-way attorney fees for property insurance claims. These key legal reforms will reduce the amount of cost inflating frivolous lawsuits that plague our state. Continue reading →

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced that Florida’s unemployment rate dropped to 2.6 percent — the lowest among the nation’s top ten largest states and 1.1 percent lower than the nation’s. November marks two consecutive years (24 straight months) that Florida’s unemployment rate has remained below the nation’s. Florida also continued to exceed the national job growth rate for the 20^th consecutive month in November 2022.

Florida’s private sector employment increased by 28,100 jobs over the month in November 2022, an increase of 0.3 percent. Florida’s total private sector employment increased by 5.2 percent (+420,700 jobs) over the year in November 2022, faster than the national private sector job growth rate of 3.6 percent over the same time period. Florida employers have added jobs for 31 consecutive months in November 2022. 

“Florida’s continued success over the past two years is no accident. No matter the challenges, we have stayed on offense,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Florida’s economy is outpacing the nation for the second consecutive year because we have invested in our workforce and prioritized keeping Floridians at work and businesses open. As the new year approaches, we will continue investing in our workforce and infrastructure to create jobs and keep our economy moving forward.” Continue reading →

FORT MYERS BEACH, Fla. — Today, Governor Ron DeSantis signed two bills following the special session that took place this week. Governor DeSantis signed Senate Bill (SB) 4-A which provides $750 million for additional disaster relief to Floridians following Hurricanes Ian and Nicole. The Governor also signed SB 2-A,the most significant property insurance reform bill in recent history which helps to stabilize our property insurance market, increase competition, and strengthen consumer protections. More on actions taken during the recent special session can be found here.

“We have taken an all hands on deck approach to cut through bureaucracy to help our communities recover from Hurricanes Ian and Nicole,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “I want to thank the Legislature for bringing additional disaster relief to communities across the state as we continue our historic recovery.

“The issues in Florida’s property insurance market did not occur overnight, and they will not be solved overnight. The historic reforms signed today create an environment which realigns Florida to best practices across the nation, adding much-needed stability to Florida’s market, promoting competition, and increasing consumer choice. I am thankful the Legislature answered the call for meaningful reform.”  Continue reading →

Congresswoman Kat Cammack named Melissa Li, Hailey Lin, Katie He, and Una Kinbarovsky the winners of the 2022 Congressional App Challenge. Ms. Li created an app called “PlanIt,” which provides users with an integrated, customizable planner that uses a rewards system to incentivize and motivate users to track and complete their daily activities.

“I’m excited to name this team this year’s Congressional App Challenge winner,” said Rep. Cammack. “It’s truly incredible to see these talented high school students channel their creativity in such innovative ways, using sophisticated technology and coding software at such a young age. I’d like to congratulate all our applicants from the competition for being part of the next wave of young innovators, and of course, the winners of the challenge for their app, ‘PlanIt.’ We can’t wait to see what you do next!”

Winners of the Congressional App Challenge are eligible to have their app displayed in the U.S. Capitol Building and featured on the House of Representatives website. They are also invited to a reception on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. to celebrate their accomplishments.

Congresswoman Kat Cammack announced this year’s Veteran of the Year as Mr. Ansil Lewis, a 30-year United States Marine Corps veteran.

Mr. Lewis served as a Sergeant Major in the United States Marine Corps from 1987 to 2017, where he received the Bronze Star; Legion of Merit; Meritorious Service Medal; Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal; Combat Action Ribbon; Joint Meritorious Unit Award; Navy Unit Commendation; and the Military Outstanding Volunteer Medal.

After his decades-long service to our nation, Mr. Lewis has continued to demonstrate his dedication to our area’s veterans as an involved member of the Clay County veteran community, serving as the past Commandant of the Roy S. Geiger Marine Corps League Detachment 1047, a member of the board for Operation Bambas, and the president of the Veterans Council of Clay County.

“I’m honored to announce Mr. Lewis as the 2022 Veteran of the Year,” said Congresswoman Cammack. “Sergeant Major Lewis served our nation honorably for three decades, committing his life’s work to the Stars and Stripes. Upon his return, he’s only increased his commitment to our veteran community, introducing more people to our region’s vibrant history of service and leadership. From his presidency with the Veterans Council of Clay County to his organization of dozens of events for our nation’s heroes, I can’t think of anyone more deserving of this honor. I’m excited to celebrate this award with Mr. Lewis and his family in the new year.” Continue reading →

WASHINGTON, D.C.— Reps. Kat Cammack (R-FL-03) and Darren Soto (D-FL-09) led the Florida congressional delegation in sending a bipartisan letter to House and Senate appropriators, urging them to provide relief for specialty crop insurance providers who are facing steep Administrative and Operating (A&O) costs.

In 2011, a cap on the administrative and operating (A&O) expense reimbursement was established to ensure that, when the prices of crops like corn, wheat, soybeans, or cotton increase, A&O costs associated with these crops’ policies do not also significantly rise. Unfortunately, specialty crops have not seen the same price increase as row crops but have been subject to the same A&O caps, resulting in steep decreases to specialty crop insurance funding.

Thus, the downward pressure on specialty crop funding has made it more difficult for crop insurance providers to deliver specialty crop insurance policies to producers in Florida and elsewhere, which in turn threatens the long-term survival of our nation’s specialty crop producers

The letter is a follow-up to one sent by Rep. Cammack and Rep. Soto in June of this year, and asks the House Appropriations Committee to provide relief in the FY23 Agriculture appropriations bill to ensure that specialty crop insurance policies are not tied to this A&O cap Continue reading →

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, S.2159, the bill to rename the VA Clinic in Middleburg, Florida after Andrew Kenneth Baker, was signed into law by President Biden at the White House.

After the bill passed the House and Senate earlier this fall, the president’s signature was the final step before the formal designation and name change ceremony in Middleburg.

“It’s an amazing day in Florida’s Third Congressional District,” said Cammack. “To have this bill across the finish line during my freshman term is a major accomplishment, and to do it in memory of Chief Baker and his service and sacrifice is truly an honor. I look forward to seeing the new name go up on the building in the new year, and to celebrate this project’s completion. Thank you to Senators Rubio and Scott and all of my Florida colleagues for your support of this effort.” Continue reading →

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody today called on Apple and Google to take immediate action and correct the application store age ratings of TikTok by the end of the year. Attorney General Moody and 14 other state attorneys general state that the change will help parents protect their children from being exposed to harmful content online.

Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “While our investigation into TikTok continues, it is important that action is taken now to better protect children from harmful content they might encounter on this China-owned social media platform. If TikTok isn’t banned outright, app stores should at the very least increase the age rating on the TikTok app to ensure parents know that this social media platform is not appropriate for users under the age of 17.”

In a pair of letters to Apple CEO Tim Cook and Google CEO Sundar Pichai, the coalition of attorneys general outlined the deceptive nature of the current ratings for the social media platform. The letters state that without taking the necessary steps to increase the age rating and change the accompanying age descriptions, the states reserve the right to take appropriate legal action against the companies. Continue reading →

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Office of Statewide Prosecution charged a human trafficker with manslaughter and human trafficking causing great bodily harm, permanent disability or permanent disfigurement. The defendant, Daniel Rhodes, faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement arrested Rhodes, who used several women’s drug addictions to coerce the victims into engaging in sexual activity for Rhode’s financial benefit. According to an FDLE investigation, Rhodes also injected one of the victims with a drug concoction that included fentanyl, resulting in the woman’s overdose death.

Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “This monster injected his victims with drugs and coerced them to perform sex acts for his financial gain. An FDLE investigation also revealed that he caused the death of one woman, by injecting her with a fentanyl-laced drug mixture. My prosecutors will aggressively pursue this case to make sure this vile human trafficker pays for his crimes.” Continue reading →

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody is issuing a Consumer Alert highlighting schemes associated with the holiday season. The National Retail Federation predicts that overall spending during the holidays is expected to total a record-breaking $950 million. Schemers know spending increases during the holidays and will craft ways to target consumers.

Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “It’s a busy time of year for shoppers, retailers and delivery companies as millions of gifts are sold, shipped and delivered. It’s also a busy season for scammers concocting schemes to exploit the holiday demand. Today, I am releasing the 12 Schemes of Christmas Consumer Alert to help Floridians identity and avoid scams they could encounter during this busy holiday shopping season.”

Attorney General Moody lists 12 schemes Floridians should be wary of during the holiday season and beyond:

Continue reading →