Florida International University has long been known as a hurricane research center. Think: the famous Wall of Wind, the giant fan system t
hat tests the effects of 157-mph winds on structures and materials. A much larger, stadium-sized testing facility for wind and waves may soon be on the way.
FIU, with its main campus in Miami, also has been recognized for its hurrica
ne-loss modeling, often used by insurers and regulators to gauge the potential impact of storms that visit Florida annually. Under a bill approved by a Florida Hou
se of Representatives subcommittee last week, management of that modeling program and other functions would be t
ransferred to Florida State University, part of a move to make FSU a powerhouse insurance research center.
“The bill transfers all of the duties, powers, functions, funds, existing contract
s, and other issues associated with or related to the public hurricane loss production model from Florida International University to Florida State University,” reads a legislative staff analysis of House Bill 1097.
The changeover also would come with $5 million in recurring public funds and $1.5 million in non-recurring funding for the FSU’s Florida Catastrophic Storm Risk Management Center, whi
ch has been largely unfunded since 2019, and would change the name to the Florida Center for Excellence in Insurance and Risk Management.
“We want the center to go from excellent to preeminent,” said stat
e Rep. Jennifer Canady, R-Lakeland, who is sponsoring the bill. She acknowledged at the House Insurance and Banking Subcommittee that she is an FSU graduate.
Canady
The center would work closely with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation on research and data, including loss modeling, cons
Watch More Image Part 2 >>>
umer protection, claims handling, reinsurance and Cat Fund cost factors, and more. The program should also a
ssist lawmakers in developing “evidence-based policy options” and in identifying emerging insurance issues in the state, the bill prescribes.
“This would be good for independent research,” said Professor Charles Nyce, chair of FSU’s Department of Risk Management and In
surance. “OIR could ask for research; the Legislature could ask for research.”
The new center at FSU also would be required to publish a hurricane loss data summary each year, and would be tasked with developing a program to encourage more actuarial science students to work in the fields of risk management and insurance – in the public sector.
Canady and the subcommittee did not explain what prompted the bill. FIU administration officials and lobbyists did not speak at the hearing and did not return multiple phone calls and emails seeking information about the bill and the handoff to FSU if the bill passes.
