SCHotline

Governor Huckabee kicks off return to South Carolina by stumping in Lexington at Hudson’s Smokehouse.

Governor Huckabee receives a warm welcome from and estimated 400+ crowd.

Governor Beasley works the crowd showing some love like few politicians know how to.

Veta and friends enjoy their fifteen minutes of fame with Gov. Huck

As a good friend once stated; “in this business of politics you have to sometimes do business with some unsavory characters”  Brad you are my favorite liberal!

The views and opinions expressed of A. Citizen a new series we are running on schotline.com do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of schotline.com.  A Citizen is a new opinion forum for well sourced news you will not get from the main stream media.

By Andrew Citizen

A politically motivated, election year decision by Gov. Mark Sanford resulted in tens of thousands of coastal South Carolina residents losing access to vital storm insurance – a fact the governor is now attempting to make his Insurance Director Eleanor Kitzman the scapegoat for.

The controversy stems from the Sanford administration’s August 2006 failure to move what is called the “wind pool line,” a boundary that determines which coastal areas are eligible for wind and hail insurance given South Carolina’s vulnerability to hurricane conditions.

Sanford’s failure to move the wind pool line has resulted in approximately 20,000 South Carolinians losing access to storm insurance, a crisis which was the subject of a State House hearing last week.

According to e-mails obtained by SC Hotline, Sanford’s Insurance Director Eleanor Kitzman specifically warned the governor’s office about this impending crisis months in advance.

“Several insurers have advised that they will cease writing new business (policies) and will non-renew a portion of their existing policies due to the wind exposure,” Kitzman wrote in an August 29, 2006 e-mail to Sanford’s Cabinet Affairs liaison Marisa Crawford. “It is my belief that there are not sufficient other carriers to pick up this business when it is non-renewed.”

In addition to alerting the governor’s office to what was about to happen, Kitzman’s e-mail – which included a detailed 42-page report on the coastal insurance situation – also recommended a preemptive solution to the crisis – expanding the wind pool boundaries.

“Expanding the wind pool in the manner proposed responds to consumers’ immediate needs and will stabilize the market while exploring other long term solutions,” Kitzman wrote Crawford in the August 29 e-mail.

The following day, August 30, 2006, Kitzman met with the governor, Ms. Crawford, Scott English and legislative aide Jarrett Martin in the governor’s office, at which time she presented the governor with a formal order to move the wind pool boundary – an order he declined to authorize.

Sanford’s office is now reportedly telling members of the media that Kitzman never recommended moving the wind pool boundary. The governor’s office is also denying that the August 30, 2006 meeting ever took place although it appears on Kitzman’s schedule.

Several months later, when Farm Bureau issued non-renewal notices to approximately 3,000 coastal residents who fell outside of the wind pool area, Kitzman again alerted the governor’s office, e-mailing Sanford staffer Jarrett Martin of the non-renewal notice and reminding him that “all of these policyholders are outside of the existing Wind Pool territory.”

The governor again declined to take the necessary action.

Approximately six weeks later, in late November, Allstate issued non-renewal notices to approximately 12,000 coastal residents.

On top of this, SC Hotline is also hearing rumors that the governor’s office is in the process of replacing Kitzman in an attempt to make her the scapegoat for the coastal insurance crisis.

Neither Kitzman nor the governor’s office could immediately be reached for comment.

The views and opinions expressed of A. Citizen a new series we are running on schotline.com do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of schotline.com.  A Citizen is a new opinion forum for well sourced news you will not get from the main stream media.