Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Rhode Island Lawmakers Eye Driver’s Licenses for Undocumented Immigrants
Feb 29 2016 // Lawmakers in Rhode Island are making another attempt to grant driving privileges to immigrants who are in the country illegally. Similar legislation stalled last year but state Sen. Frank Ciccone, a Providence Democrat,...
Florida Lawmakers Reintroduce Bill Limiting Citizens’ Take-Out Letters
Feb 28 2016 // Florida legislators may try once again give additional protections to customers of Citizens Property Insurance. A Senate panel on Feb. 25 approved a bill that would put a limit on how many times a year a homeowner could be...
Thawing Arctic Ice Creates New Environmental Risks as Shipping Routes Open
Feb 25 2016 // The Arctic is thawing even faster than lawmakers can formulate new rules to prevent the environmental threat of heavy fuel oil pollution from ships plying an increasingly popular trade route. Average Arctic temperatures...
North Carolina Judge Dismisses Academic ‘Sham’ Lawsuit by UNC Athletes
Feb 23 2016 // A North Carolina judge dismissed a lawsuit Friday in which two former University of North Carolina athletes alleged the school failed to provide them and other athletes a quality education by directing them toward sham...
Homeowners Ask Judge to Rule Against New Jersey in Protective Dune Case
Feb 23 2016 // Nine oceanfront homeowners in Bay Head, New Jersey, are asking a judge to declare that the state has no legal right to seize parts of privately owned beaches for a protective dune project. In court papers filed Feb. 19,...
Vermont Republicans Call for Review of State’s Health Exchange
Feb 22 2016 // Vermont Lt. Gov. Phil Scott and the state’s legislative Republican leaders are calling for an independent assessment of the Vermont Health Connect state insurance exchange, with an eye toward possibly closing it and...
Louisiana Court Rules Flood Board Can Hire Outside Lawyers for Oil Suit
Feb 22 2016 // A south Louisiana flood board has won a legal round in its fight against oil and gas companies over coastal wetland damage. A state appeal court ruled last week that the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East...
Oklahoma Ponders ‘California Model’ for Earthquake Insurance
Feb 22 2016 // Oklahoma lawmakers are in the early stages of considering legislation to create a state-level “earthquake reinsurance program” that its author claims will be modeled on the California Earthquake Authority. S.B....
Iowa Court Ruling Could Make Defense Attorney Malpractice Suits Easier
Feb 22 2016 // The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled that a man who pleaded guilty to soliciting a minor for sex but later had the conviction overturned can sue his defense attorney for legal malpractice without being required to prove...
U.S. Safety Agency to Google: Software Qualifies as a Driver
Feb 22 2016 // U.S. vehicle safety regulators have said the artificial intelligence system piloting a self-driving Google car could be considered the driver under federal law, a major step toward ultimately winning approval for...
Future of Tennessee Workers’ Comp Option in Question Amid Lawmaker Scandal
Feb 22 2016 // Legislation to create a workers’ compensation alternative in Tennessee is already facing serious setbacks in the new legislative session, despite being amended in 2015 and refiled in 2016. An emerging scandal...
Insurance Journal TV: Interview With Patricia Henry, Executive Vice President Of Global Government Affairs At Chubb
Feb 19 2016 // San Diego, CA, February 19, 2016- Insurance Journal TV offers exclusive new video segments from Patricia Henry’s interview with Carrier Management. Chubb’s Patricia Henry: Staying on Top of Global Regulatory...
Earthquake Response Legislation Passes Oklahoma House Panel
Feb 19 2016 // Legislation that reaffirms the Oklahoma Corporation’s Commission’s authority to respond to emergencies involving oil and natural gas production in the state, including drilling-related earthquakes, has been...
New Mexico Lawmakers Beat Clock to Pass Ridesharing
Feb 19 2016 // The New Mexico Legislature closed out its 2016 session Feb. 18, but not before passing legislation to legalize and regulate ridesharing services like Uber and Lyft. Just hours after the state Senate voted 33-5 to approve...
Tennessee High Court Rules to Make it Easier to Arrest, Convict Drunk Drivers
Feb 19 2016 // In two unanimous decisions, the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled Feb. 11 that police have the right to stop motorists if their vehicles cross roadway markings, even if briefly, essentially making it easier to arrest and...
How Employer Joint Liability Is Changing
Feb 18 2016 // Businesses known for their uniforms are worried about lawyers in business suits in the wake of a change in the nation’s labor laws affecting their liability for employment practices. The change could unravel the...
Law Enforcement, Private Firms Look to Evolving Drone Defense Industry for Protection
Feb 18 2016 // The drone intruder was roaming around the Rose Bowl Stadium as 94,000 fans cheered, oblivious to the threat. But scientists testing a new security device at the game knew: they detected its radio signals and seized control...
Kansas Lawmakers Consider Increasing Speed Limit to 80 MPH
Feb 17 2016 // Legislative committees are considering bills that would allow the Kansas Department of Transportation to raise the state’s highest speed limit on separated, multiple-lane highways from 75 to 80 miles per hour. The...
Lawsuit Says N.J.’s Post-Sandy Coastal Zone Rules ‘Don’t Make Sense’
Feb 17 2016 // Some New Jersey residents and environmental groups are suing to try to block the state’s new rules governing coastal development in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, saying they allow too many people and buildings to be...
FACTBOX: What Will ‘Brexit’, a British Exit from the EU Look Like?
Feb 17 2016 // As Britons debate whether to stay in or leave the European Union at a membership referendum, one of the key arguments is what a British exit, or “Brexit,” would look like? Below is an outline of the process...
