Florida Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky said he believes the state’s insurance industry has stabilized, adding consumers “are finding relief” and have more options “than we’ve had in decades.”

“If you were in this meeting three years ago, it was like the equivalent of a funeral. It was very depressing; it was dark. Everyone thought the end was coming,” he said Friday during the Florida Chamber of Commerce’s annual insurance summit. “And two years later, we are in a fantastic place, seeing nothing but success on the horizon.”

In an interview this week with Florida Politics, Yaworsky said consumers went from “massive rate hikes year-over-year to very modest rate hikes.”

In some cases, people are seeking decreases, he added.

“Over 100 carriers have filed for a 0% increase or decrease,” he said.

But it’s clear Floridians are still worried about rising property insurance costs.

“The Invading Sea’s Florida Climate Survey also found that most Floridians – 54% – are worried about being able to afford and maintain homeowners insurance due to climate change,” Florida Atlantic University said in a press release this Spring. “According to a 2023 report by LexisNexis Risk Solutions, the average premiums for Florida homeowners rose nearly 60% between 2015 and 2023, the largest increase in any state.”

Yaworsky also touted reforms that would lower auto insurance costs.

“We’ve seen a $1 billion return to policyholders because despite the best actuarially sound estimates of just how good the reforms would be and how much of an impact that would have on rate making … It has exceeded all expectations,” he said.

In October, the state announced that the average Progressive auto insurance policyholder will receive a $300 rebate.

“A billion-dollar return from Progressive is just one of the first of what will likely be others,” Yaworsky told Florida Politics. “Those consumers will be getting additional money back in addition to rate reduction to make sure that insurers aren’t overcharging people because of the reforms.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis is continuing to warn Republicans that next year’s Midterm contests may not go their way if the party doesn’t change course.

He recommends that Republicans make a strong case for what they will do if they somehow retain control of Congress next year, given that “in an off-year Midterm, the party in power’s voters tend to be more complacent.”

But DeSantis, who himself served nearly three terms in Congress before resigning to focus on his campaign for Governor in 2018, says House Republicans haven’t accomplished much, and they need to be proactive in the time that’s left.

“I just think you’ve got to be bold. I think you’ve got to be strong. And I think one of the frustrations with the Congress is, what have they done since August till now? They really haven’t done anything, right?” DeSantis explained on “Fox & Friends.”

“I’d be like, every day, coming out with something new and make the Democrats go on the record, show the contrast.”

The Governor said the economy and immigration are two issues that would resonate with voters.

On immigration, DeSantis believes his party should remind voters that President Donald Trump stopped the “influx” of illegal border crossers given passage when Joe Biden was in power.

After providing contrast to some of his policy wins through the end of 2023 in Florida, DeSantis suggested that the GOP needs to blame the opposition party regarding continued economic struggles.

“Democrats, they caused a lot of this with the inflation and now they’re acting like … they had nothing to do with it,” he said.

DeSantis’ latest comments come after Tuesday’s narrow GOP victory in deep-red Tennessee, in yet another election where a candidate for Congress underperformed President Donald Trump.

Republican Matt Van Epps defeated Democrat Aftyn Behn by roughly 9 points in the Nashville area seat. That’s less than half the margin by which Trump bested Kamala Harris in 2024. This is after U.S. Reps. Randy Fine and Jimmy Patronis won by smaller margins than expected in Special Elections in Florida earlier this year.

Though partisan maps protect the GOP in many cases, with just a seven-vote advantage over Democrats in Congress there is scant room for error.

Bettors seem to believe the House will flip, with Democratic odds of victory at 78% on Polymarket on Friday morning.