Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Washington’s New Short-Term Rental Law Requires Liability Insurance
May 13 2019 // Legislation signed into law by Washington Gov. Jay Inslee requires short-term rentals to remit all taxes, maintain liability insurance and includes critical consumer safety provisions, according to the Washington...
Florida Passes ‘Catch All’ Insurance Bill Impacting Surplus Lines, Catastrophe Fund
May 13 2019 // A Florida bill that the insurance industry says will help modernize the state’s surplus lines system, as well as impact property insurer contracts under the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund and reduce “bad...
House-Passed Hurricane, Farm Disaster Aid Bill Includes Flood Insurance Extension
May 13 2019 // The House on Friday passed a $19 billion disaster aid bill that would deliver long-sought relief to farmers, victims of hurricanes and floods, and rebuild southern military bases, as Democrats try to dislodge the...
Michigan House Approves its Own Auto Insurance Reform Plan
May 10 2019 // The Republican-led Michigan House early on May 9 approved a plan to reduce the state’s high auto insurance premiums, moving to no longer require that drivers buy unlimited medical benefits through their car insurer...
$10B Fund for California Fire Costs May Dry Up by 2030
May 10 2019 // California has for months been weighing the idea of a fund that utilities could dip into when facing crippling costs tied to wildfires. On Wednesday, state lawmakers got a feel for how big that fund would have to...
Florida Governor Signs Bill Allowing More Armed Teachers
May 10 2019 // More Florida teachers will be eligible to carry guns in the classroom under a bill Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Wednesday that immediately implements recommendations from a commission formed after a mass shooting at...
Judge Tells PG&E’s Board to Tour Wildfire-Ravaged California Town
May 8 2019 // A federal judge has ordered board members of Pacific Gas & Electric to tour the Northern California town of Paradise, which was leveled by a wildfire that may have been caused by the utility’s equipment. The...
Texas Legislation Would Allow More Armed School Personnel
May 8 2019 // Nearly a year after a mass shooting at a Texas high school in which eight students and two substitute teachers were killed, lawmakers in the gun-friendly state are close to passing new measures that they say would harden...
Michigan Senate Passes Plan to Cut Car Insurance Rates
May 8 2019 // Michigan’s Senate has passed legislation aimed at cutting the country’s highest average auto insurance premiums by eliminating a requirement that drivers buy unlimited medical benefits to cover crash...
Uber May Rethink Litigation Avoidance Plan as 60,000 Drivers File Arbitration Demands
May 8 2019 // For Uber Technologies Inc., using legal arbitration to deal with driver compensation complaints — over anything from pay to overtime to mileage reimbursement — seemed like the smart play: it would preclude...
Tennessee Passes Bill Allowing Drivers with Unpaid Court Debt to Keep Licenses
May 7 2019 // Tennessee lawmakers have signed off on legislation that would prevent the state from revoking or suspending driver’s licenses over unpaid court costs. The Senate on Tuesday advanced a proposal allowing people to...
North Carolina Industry-Backed Cellphone Ban Bill Moves Forward
May 6 2019 // Legislation originally designed to prohibit hand-held cellphones while driving in North Carolina nearly stalled Friday after a rewrite because lawmakers worried it would punish people who eat or put on makeup behind the...
A Case for Updated Insurance Licensing Exemption Regulations
May 6 2019 // Harken back to 2002 — a time when iPhones, Android phones, even Blackberries, had yet to be introduced. Facebook, Twitter and YouTube were years away from their debuts, and streaming content on Netflix was still a...
Oklahoma Supreme Court: Non-Economic Damages Cap Is Unconstitutional
May 6 2019 // The Oklahoma Supreme Court on April 23 struck down a state law that caps monetary damages for pain and suffering in personal injury lawsuits, the latest civil justice measure backed by the Republican-controlled Legislature...
Oklahoma Lawmakers Send Autonomous Vehicle Safety Bill to Governor
May 6 2019 // Oklahoma would establish rules regulating how to safely operate driverless vehicles navigating state highways under a bill passed by Legislature that has been sent to the governor’s office. Autonomous vehicles are...
Florida Passes Industry-Backed AOB Reform Bill
May 6 2019 // After seven years of failed attempts, Florida legislators passed property insurance reform to address the abuse of a policyholder benefit known as assignment of benefits (AOB). The insurance industry and consumer advocates...
People
May 6 2019 // National Robert Bauer has joined insurance broker Marsh to lead its U.S. Sharing Economy & Mobility Practice. Bauer will focus on developing and delivering products and services to companies operating in the new...
The Need for Agents (to Do Their Jobs)
May 6 2019 // I received a nice notice from my commercial GL carrier advising the coverages at renewal would materially change. Admitted carriers have to provide such notices (E&O point: exceptions to this rule do exist, even for...
Louisiana Senators Say Agreement Reached on Federal Flood Aid for Homeowners
May 3 2019 // The Trump administration has agreed to rewrite regulations to help thousands of Louisiana homeowners with damage from the 2016 floods access federal aid, the state’s U.S. senators said Thursday. Republican Sens. Bill...
Congressional Budget Office Warns of ‘Potentially Disruptive’ Move to ‘Medicare for All’
May 3 2019 // Congressional budget experts said this week that moving to a government-run health care system like “Medicare for All” could be complicated and potentially disruptive for Americans. The report from the...
