House discusses bills to expand area along S.C. coast
COLUMBIA - The coastal insurance crisis erupted on the floor of the state
Senate Thursday, causing about an hour of sympathetic discussion when Sen.
Ray Cleary filed three bills aimed at easing the problem.
And on Tuesday, a House subcommittee is holding hearings on the issue of
rapidly-rising property insurance rates and inviting coastal homeowners to
come to the capital and tell their story.
"We need to get some homeowners up here," said Rep. Vida Miller, D-Pawleys
Island, sponsor of one of the House bills.
Thursday's debate was a sign that the issue, aggravated by the threat of
catastrophic hurricanes, has caught the interest of legislators from across
the state.
"It's so important that we work together on it as a statewide issue," said
Sen. Jim Ritchie, R-Spartanburg.
Sen. Kevin Bryant, R-Anderson, said he wanted to co-sponsor Cleary's bills.
Cleary's bills are similar to proposals presented by Gov. Mark Sanford last
week. They would expand the wind pool; offer free home inspections to show
people how they can make their property safer; and tax-free reserve funds to
encourage insurers to build reserves.
It's an issue for coastal property owners but one that will quickly envelop
the state if the coastal economy is crippled by a slowdown in home sales and
other side effects of insurance costs, said Cleary.
The wind pool, mainly a narrow strip along the coast, needs to be revised
because it doesn't make sense, the Murrells Inlet Republican said. All of
Hilton Head and Kiawah islands are included, for example, while "in Horry
County we only get four blocks."
The insurance companies are ripping people off and wrongly canceling
longtime customers, some senators said.
"The insurance industry just enjoyed its greatest profit year ever in
history, despite Katrina," said Sen. John Land, D-Manning.
"I think it's wrong; I think it's unconscionable for the insurance industry
to collect money for 20 years," and then as a more intense hurricane cycle
appears to be looming, "just to start dumping that risk," said Sen. Glenn
McConnell, R-Charleston.
McConnell said he and Sen. Dick Elliott, D-North Myrtle Beach, had been
working on legislation to address the issue. Cleary said he wanted to get
the ball rolling because the legislative process takes so long.
"We need the hearings now," Cleary said.
Elliott said a staff attorney has been working on legislation for two
months, comparing what is done in other states, and might have something
ready next week.
"We were practically there," Elliott said. The proposal will probably
incorporate some of Cleary's ideas as it moves through legislative study.
Some senators also criticized Insurance Commissioner Eleanor Kitzman, saying
she told them last spring she would move the wind pool line, then that she
could not.
Joel Sawyer, spokesman for Sanford, who oversees Kitzman, said the insurance
issue is complex and the governor will work with legislators on a solution.
"Looking for a single scapegoat," such as Kitzman, is not a solution, Sawyer
said.
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If you go
Upcoming insurance meeting
What | Insurance Subcommittee of the House Labor, Commerce and Industry
Committee hearing on two bills to expand the wind pool: H3224 sponsored by
Rep. Vida Miller and H3154 sponsored by Rep. Alan Clemmons
When | Tuesday at 2:30 p.m.
Where | Columbia, Blatt House Office Building Room 403
Why | The subcommittee will hear testimony on coastal insurance issues and
chairman Bob Leach welcomes homeowners to speak at the meeting.
Information | 803-734-3015
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