Key West City Manager Jim Scholl on Thursday presented the Board of Directors of FIRM (Fair Insurance Rates in Monroe) a check for $20,000 in support of FIRM’s efforts to reduce windstorm and flood insurance rates in Key West and Monroe County.

The contribution was authorized by the City Commission in February, in a resolution sponsored by Commissioner Teri Johnston. Johnston and Monroe County Commissioner Heather Carruthers were founding members of the grass roots organization that has given Monroe County property owners a strong voice in Tallahassee.

FIRM is a grassroots organization formed in February, 2006 by homeowners, businesses and residents who united to fight against excessive, discriminatory and unaffordable residential, condominium and commercial property insurance rates. In the first six months the members of FIRM were able to help repeal a proposed 25 percent residential windstorm premium increase for Monroe County and went on to further reduce residential rates from Citizens Property Insurance Corporation for Monroe County by over 30 percent. Increases in these rates have remained at a maximum of 10 percent per year, another victory FIRM fought for and won. More recently, FIRM was a driving force in the rollback of FEMA Flood Insurance rate increases that threatened to make flood insurance unaffordable for many in the Keys.