Byron Donalds is drawing mixed reactions after warning that David Jolly’s proposed state insurance fund would leave every Florida policyholder facing new taxes if the money runs short. In a post on X, the U.S. representative and Republican nominee for Florida governor cited PolitiFact and an FSU study and said Jolly’s plan would make life more expensive, a claim Jolly called a lie as users split over the research and the fight over the debate.
The posts show the two candidates going back and forth over Jolly’s proposed state insurance fund. Jolly wrote, “This is a lie. I’ve never proposed a hurricane tax,” and said his plan “repeals the hurricane tax Byron plans to continue,” adding, “Never trust a liar.” Donalds answered that if there is not enough money in Jolly’s “sovereign wealth fund,” and “there won’t be for at least 10 years,” then “every policyholder in Florida gets taxed” to cover what he called a “government-created disaster.”
Donalds quoted PolitiFact language that emergency fees “can be added to almost every type of insurance policy, including home, auto, renters and business,” and said that because the charge is required, “it functions as a statewide tax to bail out the public insurer.”
He cited an FSU study and wrote, “Are you saying that FSU knows less about insurance than you do?” before concluding, “Jolly’s plan will make life more expensive for Floridians.” Jolly later replied, “I don’t do back and forth with liars, Byron. That’s why we’re not debating.”
The thread itself does not include video. What is in dispute is whether Jolly’s fund creates a new yearly tax. Jolly says it does not. Donalds says policyholders would be assessed if the fund falls short. PolitiFact has reported that the $1,000 figure tied to the broader fight comes from a limited emergency-fee scenario in a study of a different proposal, not a guaranteed annual charge in Jolly’s plan.
How Readers Are Responding to the Florida Insurance Exchange
Some users backed Donalds’ warning even if they questioned the $1,000 figure. “He may not have been correct with a $1000 tax, but he’s definitely not wrong about Jolly’s plan. It’s a disaster!” one wrote.
Another asked why families should “pay for storms that never come instead of insurers pricing actual risk.” A third said, “Don’t worry—we see right through Jolly!”
Others sided with Jolly and said Donalds was twisting the claim. “You’re lying, and I’m so happy Floridians are seeing it,” one commenter wrote.
Parkland father Fred Guttenberg quoted Donalds and said, “You can lie about @davidjollyfl all you want, it is still a lie,” pointing to insurance-industry donations.
A separate group focused on the debate fight. Some argued Jolly was ducking a face-to-face, while others said Donalds was “too afraid to debate David.”
It remains unclear whether the exchange will change either campaign’s insurance pitch before November. The posts continue to circulate as Florida’s gubernatorial race stays fixed on costs, the disputed tax claim, and whether the two men will debate.
