Property insurance rates are about to turn John Melkun into a Pasco County refugee, as he considers following in his brother's footsteps to sink new roots in South Carolina.

Melkun is among Floridians who say the state is headed down the wrong track, a group that outnumbered those who say the state is on the right track, according to a recent St. Petersburg Times/Bay News 9 poll.

"Florida is going backwards. The Legislature and the state, they talk and talk and talk, and they move slower than a snail," said Melkun, 60, a retired construction worker whose State Farm premium increased from $900 to $4,700 this year.

While frustrated, most Floridians don't appear to blame Gov. Charlie Crist. His popularity has slipped some, with 57 percent of those polled saying he is doing a good or excellent job. In May, a similar poll done for the St. Petersburg Times by the same companies showed about 62 percent of those polled gave Crist high marks. (Story here.)