Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Arizona Becomes 48th State with Cellphone-Driving Law
Apr 25 2019 // Arizona ended a decade of resistance to restrictions on using a cellphone while driving when Gov. Doug Ducey signed a law this week outlawing holding a phone behind the wheel. It is now the 48th state to ban texting and...
Florida Governor to Sign AOB Reform Bill; Citizens Plans Rate Review
Apr 25 2019 // Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signaled his support of a property insurance reform bill passed by the Florida Senate Wednesday, saying in a statement Wednesday he will sign the legislation that the insurance industry...
Court Rules Wyoming Killer Was Not a ‘Resident’ Under Mother’s Homeowners Policy
Apr 24 2019 // A U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th District this week ruled that a Wyoming man convicted of a 2014 murder was not an insured “resident” under his mother’s homeowners insurance policy, and it turns out...
Update: Florida Legislature Passes Industry-Backed AOB Reform Bill
Apr 24 2019 // After seven years of failed attempts, Florida legislators have passed property insurance reform to address the abuse of a policyholder benefit known as assignment of benefits (AOB). The insurance industry and consumers...
Oklahoma Supreme Court Tosses Non-Economic Damages Cap
Apr 24 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...
Alphabet’s Wing Is First Commercial Drone Unit Certified as Airline
Apr 24 2019 // An offshoot of Alphabet Inc.’s Google has become the first drone operator to receive government approval as an airline, an important step that gives it the legal authority to begin dropping products to actual...
Cops Draw Blood to Catch Impaired Drivers
Apr 23 2019 // It was about 6:30 on a Friday night in January when Phoenix Police Det. Kemp Layden pulled over a white Jeep Cherokee that was speeding and weaving in and out of its lane. The 47-year-old driver spoke slowly, his eyes were...
As an Unelected Legal Organization Attempts to Rewrite Insurance Law, Indiana Legislators are Pushing Back
Apr 22 2019 // State legislatures, including Indiana’s General Assembly, are moving to protect themselves from an emerging version of legal “alternative facts” as yet another venerable American institution erodes its...
Car Sharing Lobbyists Battle Car Renting Lobbyists, Driving State Lawmakers Crazy
Apr 19 2019 // The bill that turned Illinois into the focal point of a bitter debate over car-sharing last year started as a proposal about what happens when a rental car is stolen. The legislation, which would allow rental companies to...
S&P Will Issue ‘Environmental, Social and Governance’ Evaluations Including on Insurance Sector
Apr 18 2019 // If you’re among those who regard “environmental, social and governance” as just another in a long line of trendy buzz-phrases, then you may want to rethink. ESG standards, which companies use to highlight...
Florida AOB Reform Bill Passes Final Committee, Heads to Full Senate
Apr 18 2019 // A bill the Florida insurance industry says will help reign in assignment of benefits abuse that is plaguing the state and raising insurance costs has passed its final committee in the Florida Senate and is now headed to...
Experts Give Texas Mixed Reviews on Disaster Preparedness
Apr 17 2019 // More than a year and a half after Hurricane Harvey slammed into Texas, killing dozens, the state is still waiting on billions in federal recovery dollars. In the meantime, Texas lawmakers are looking to prepare the state...
Britain’s Financial Regulator to Review Its Rules for Post-Brexit Landscape
Apr 17 2019 // Britain’s markets watchdog will review its rules as the country readies to leave the European Union, the source of its financial regulation for decades. “Post-Brexit, we need to consider the future of...
Oklahoma Judge: No Jury Trial in Case Against Drugmakers
Apr 16 2019 // An Oklahoma judge has ruled that he, not a jury, will decide the state’s case against several drug manufacturers for their alleged role in the nation’s deadly opioid crisis. The attorney general’s office...
Washington Official Wants to Raise Insurance Tax to Help Fight Wildfires
Apr 15 2019 // With an increasing number of forest fires scorching portions of Washington each year, the Legislature is considering a proposal to create a fund dedicated to preventing and battling wildfires. In March, Commissioner of...
New York City May Ban Pre-Hire Marijuana Tests for Many Job Applicants
Apr 15 2019 // Many job-seekers would no longer face tests for marijuana use under legislation that New York City is likely to enact, taking a novel step as lawmakers and employers around the U.S. grapple with workplace policies about...
Judge Directs Bayer to Enter Mediation with Plaintiffs in Roundup Cancer Lawsuits
Apr 15 2019 // A U.S. judge ordered Bayer AG to pursue mediation with plaintiffs claiming that its Roundup weedkiller causes cancer, asking the company to try to settle lawsuits that have wreaked havoc on its share price. More than...
Why Uber ‘Depends Heavily’ on Insurance
Apr 15 2019 // Uber Technologies Inc., on its way to an initial public offering that some media reports say could raise $10 billion, might not be in the position it is in without insurance. “Our business depends heavily on...
Declarations
Apr 15 2019 // Disaster Insurance “Allowing the state to invest in an insurance policy will provide predictability and limit taxpayers’ risk of increasing disaster costs.” –California state Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa,...
Automation, Artificial Intelligence Part of Plan for Modernizing Texas Insurance Department
Apr 15 2019 // Becoming the chief insurance regulator of a large and populous state with the second largest insurance market in the country was never in Kent Sullivan’s game plan. But when Texas Gov. Greg Abbott asked Sullivan to...
