Gallagher Re’s Adam Schwebach with Lisa Miller at Florida’s Training for Emergency Management Symposium in Orlando, June 3, 2026. Courtesy, FDEM
We begin the new week with forecasters watching an area of showers and thunderstorms over northeastern Mexico that could re-form later this week in the Gulf as a potential tropical cyclone. Please keep an eye on https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/.
It was a delight to see some of you at the Florida’s Training for Emergency Management Symposium in Orlando the week before last. I had the honor of co-presenting a Wednesday panel with Adam Schwebach of Gallagher Re on the evolving disaster funding landscape and the future of disaster recovery financing. Thank you to the nearly 100 people who joined us for this important discussion on what the potential changes to FEMA, recommended in the FEMA Review Council report, could mean for Florida, our local governments, and recovery partners. If FEMA shrinks and re-orients, the working managers in the audience will need to have a Plan B.
Adam, who is Gallagher Re’s Executive VP & head of property insurance for North America, highlighted the growing role of parametric insurance as a powerful risk transfer tool. As communities face increasing disaster costs, funding delays, and uncertainty surrounding FEMA federal disaster assistance, innovative solutions are becoming more important than ever.
Parametric insurance offers a unique approach by providing rapid payouts based on measurable event triggers. It is an entirely different approach from the traditional insurance claims process. This can help state and local governments, critical infrastructure providers, businesses, and nonprofit organizations access funding when they need it most − immediately after a disaster.
As disaster recovery professionals, we must continue exploring every available tool to strengthen financial resilience, close funding gaps, and accelerate recovery for the communities we serve.
The five-day symposium was organized by the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM), headed by Kevin Guthrie. Congratulations to him and his FDEM Recovery Bureau team for its recent recognition by FEMA for outstanding management of disaster recovery funding. The team earned a VAYGo Closeout Benefit through FEMA’s Public Assistance Program − achieving a payment error rate of just 0.06%, far below the national average and FEMA’s performance threshold. That means Florida has consistently demonstrated a commitment to accuracy and accountability, earning a streamlined project closeout process that will reduce administrative burdens and help recovery efforts move more efficiently. What a terrific achievement and honor!
Up next: Florida insurance regulators are taking a closer look at the number of property insurance claims complaints, the billion dollars that one insurance company is returning to Florida policyholders, the earthquake that shook a Florida insurance executive, the latest on the drought and wildfires threat, the legislature’s new funding for wind mitigation, the Florida Supreme Court’s crackdown on AI filings, plus the FSU granny who is still setting world records on her unicycle!
LMA Newsletter of 6-15-26
