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GOP leaders split over banking, insurance bills
© St. Petersburg Times, published February 21, 2001 TALLAHASSEE -- The way Florida regulates banks and insurance companies has become the subject of a tug of war between Comptroller Bob Milligan and Insurance Commissioner Tom Gallagher, two of the state's best-known Republicans. Gallagher wants to leave regulating the two industries in the direct control of an elected official: a new chief finance officer. The person in that new post will be elected in 2002 when the state Cabinet shrinks, and Gallagher is expected to run for the job. Milligan wants to leave regulating the industries in the hands of appointed commissioners who serve at the pleasure of the governor and Cabinet. Unlike Gallagher, Milligan is expected to retire. The issue is likely to cause a few sparks to fly as legislators try to agree on a bill to get the new super agency up and running by January 2003. Some legislators want to see an executive director appointed for the new agency by mid 2001 to handle the transition. Lobbyists for the two industries have long dominated the discussion when it comes to insurance and banking laws, but most are remaining on the fence as legislators debate the issue. "It's your decision," insurance lobbyist Gary Guzzo told House lawmakers Monday night. Banking and insurance lobbyists often have presented opposing positions, but they agreed Monday night that the two industries need to be regulated separately, despite banks increasingly getting into the insurance business. "This is the greatest love affair I've ever seen between banking and insurance," joked Rep. Jerry Melvin, R-Fort Walton Beach. House committees are considering a bill that follows the Milligan suggestions, while the Senate is looking at a bill that is more likely to follow Gallagher's proposal. Sometime in the next two months, legislators will attempt to reach a compromise that establishes the framework of a new Cabinet office approved by voters in 1998. As a result of the constitutional amendment approved by voters, the Cabinet will shrink from six to three positions, leaving the state with an elected attorney general, agriculture commissioner and chief finance officer. The education commissioner and secretary of state will be appointed by the governor and Cabinet. At a joint meeting of three House committees Monday night, Milligan urged legislators to provide some insulation between the elected member of the Cabinet and appointed regulators. The House bill would divide the new finance office into three divisions, each to be headed by a commissioner who could take final action unless the governor and Cabinet voted to overrule it. One of the commissioners would preside over banks and credit unions, one over securities, and the third over insurance. Each would serve at the pleasure of an executive director, who would be appointed by the governor and Cabinet subject to Senate confirmation. The House bill would require each of the commissioners to have at least five years' experience in their respective industries. Gallagher wants an agency with two assistants who report directly to the chief finance officer. One would be in charge of regulation of insurance and banking. Another would deal with the state's financial services. "I firmly believe that an elected official is in the strongest position to oversee the regulation of financial services," Gallagher said in a letter to the House committees. Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Palm Harbor, chairman of the Senate's banking and insurance committee, said he thinks the Senate will support leaving regulations in the hands of an elected official. "We ought to have accountability directly to an elected official," Latvala said Tuesday.
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From the Times state desk
From the state wire
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