Democratic District 19 congressional candidate Kari Lerner said the state has failed the people of Florida.
Democrats running for Congress say federal lawmakers must step in to help bring down skyrocketing home insurance premiums in Florida and around the country.
Lerner, who is running to unseat District 19 Republican Byron Donalds, is joining a Tampa-area Democratic candidate with a plan.
Whether you live along the water or inland, chances are you have seen your home insurance rates go up since Hurricane Ian hit. Some wannabe Democratic lawmakers say that not enough is being done at the state level and now they have a plan to fix things at the federal level, if elected.
“This is the No. 1 issue. It contributes to our homeless crisis. It's the most serious problem for most Americans,” Lerner said.
The moderate Democrat is challenging Donalds in November.
“I think there has been a disconnect between the voters and the elected officials,” Lerner stated.
She's supporting democratic District 13 Congressional Candidate Whitney Fox's proposal called "The Cheaper Plan."
“People are being priced out of their homes. We need to take action now before it gets too late and people are not being able to afford their home insurance,” Fox stressed.
The act will create a federal home insurance policy for natural disasters like Ian and step in where private insurers are failing, similar to the national flood insurance program.
While the National Flood Insurance program is in debt some people question whether another government agency can afford to bail them out in time of crisis.
“That is a legitimate concern. There needs to be more research done,” Lerner responded.
Fox, however, said she doesn’t think the country can afford not to do it.
“There are ways we can afford to do things like this. It's just re-prioritizing how we're getting the funds to do so,” Fox explained.
Both Fox and Lerner agree on one other thing.
“What we don't need are leaders who are currently in office who are focused on chasing culture war headlines and other issues that are not going to affect the people's day-to-day lives,” Fox stated.
As many Republicans call for more unity, NBC2 did reach out to Republican congressman Byron Donald's office to see if he would support a plan like this. We did not hear back.