REALITY: Florida’s reinsurance catastrophe fund benefits insurance companies by giving them taxpayer-backed reinsurance while providing little relief to consumers for the cost of homeowners insurance.

• Government funds, like Florida’s fund, do not reduce the vulnerability of people to natural catastrophes and are not a proactive, disaster planning approach. These funds are a political response to an economic issue. The funds do not reflect risk, but create incentives for additional development in high-risk areas and diminish incentives for storm proofing further exacerbating the problem.