Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Louisiana Judge Ends Katrina Flooding Lawsuits Against Feds
Dec 30 2013 // Dozens of lawsuits seeking damages from the federal government for Hurricane Katrina-related levee failures and flooding in the New Orleans area are over. U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval Jr. has dismissed the cases. The...
Texas Fire Marshal Preaches Safety, Training After West
Dec 30 2013 // When a fertilizer plant exploded in a small Texas town, killing 15 people and decimating homes and schools, it became Chris Connealy’s responsibility to stop anything like it from happening again. The state fire...
Montana Judge Rejects Residents’ Lawsuit Against ARCO
Dec 27 2013 // A lawsuit against Atlantic Richfield Co. by nearly 100 residents of Opportunity seeking to have the company clean hazardous materials from their property has been rejected. District Judge Brad Newman ruled on Monday that...
Judge Rejects BP Complaint Over Proof of Economic Losses from Gulf Oil Spill
Dec 27 2013 // BP Plc lost a bid to require businesses to provide proof their economic losses were caused by the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill under a $9.2 billion settlement over the disaster. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New...
Judge Rejects Catholic Church Challenge to Obamacare Birth Control Coverage
Dec 23 2013 // The Catholic Church isn’t harmed by the U.S. Affordable Care Act’s requirement for providing employees with insurance coverage for contraceptives, a judge ruled, throwing out most of a lawsuit challenging the...
Texas Lawmaker Wants Probe into Windstorm Insurance Association Emails
Dec 23 2013 // A Texas lawmaker has called for an investigation into racist emails uncovered within the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, which acknowledged in court that bigotry could have influenced a claim filed by a...
Arkansas Lawmakers Approve Insurance Exchange Funds
Dec 23 2013 // Arkansas lawmakers have narrowly approved a $10.6 million grant to continue operating the insurance marketplace under the federal health overhaul, despite objections from some legislators over the law’s rocky...
Massachusetts Congressional Delegation Challenges FEMA’s New Flood Maps
Dec 20 2013 // Members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation, led by Congressman Bill Keating, recently sent an open letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The lawmakers argued in their letter that when FEMA...
Another Missouri Appeals Court Questions Red Light Cameras
Dec 19 2013 // For the third time in a month, a Missouri appeals court ruling has raised concerns about red light cameras. The Eastern District of the Missouri Court of Appeals on Dec. 17 reversed an earlier ruling that favored the red...
Florida Lawmakers Unveil Plan to Encourage Private Market for Flood Insurance
Dec 19 2013 // With the chances of a federal solution to rising flood insurance rates waning by the day, Florida lawmakers are pressing forward with a bill to create a private market solution to the problem. Florida State Senator Jeff...
Judge Allows Investors’ Class Action Against Facebook, Underwriters Over IPO
Dec 19 2013 // Facebook Inc. and the underwriters of its May 2012 initial public offering must face a class-action lawsuit by investors claiming the company misled them about its financial condition, a judge ruled. U.S. District Judge...
Penn. House Insurance Committee Chair Applauds Passage of Auto Insurance E-Card Bill
Dec 18 2013 // Pennsylvania State Rep. Tina Pickett (R-Bradford/Sullivan/Susquehanna), who serves as chairman of the House Insurance Committee, applauded the passage of Senate Bill 1040. Picket said Pennsylvania residents will soon be...
Arch Enhances Healthcare Facility Professional Liability Form
Dec 17 2013 // Arch Insurance Group, a member of Arch Capital Group Ltd., has launched a specialized healthcare professional liability product in the U.S called Net Protection PLUS / Regulatory Defense PLUS coverage, which will be...
Missouri Lawmakers to Try Again for Award Limits in Medical Liability Suits
Dec 17 2013 // Missouri lawmakers plan to try again to limit how much money people can receive in medical malpractice lawsuits. Missouri House Speaker Tim Jones says the liability limits are a priority for the 2014 session. And Rep. Eric...
Constitutionality of Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Law Upheld
Dec 17 2013 // A constitutional challenge to Oklahoma’s workers’ compensation law has been rejected by the state’s highest court. In a ruling on Dec. 16, the Oklahoma Supreme Court said Senate Bill 1062, which was...
Nasdaq Denied Immunity for Some Investors’ Claims Over Facebook IPO
Dec 17 2013 // Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. must face some of the negligence and securities law claims by investors who alleged they suffered $500 million in damages from the exchange’s handling of Facebook Inc.’s May 2012 initial...
Indiana Judge Dismisses Unions from Burned Man’s Compensation Suit
Dec 16 2013 // An eastern Indiana judge has dismissed two unions from a lawsuit against a transportation company, an insurance agency and several insurers filed by a man badly burned when he fell into a tank of chemicals heated to about...
ABIR Comments on ComFrame Supervision, Int’l. Insurance Capital Standards
Dec 16 2013 // In comments filed with the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers (ABIR) offered its support for the development of insurance capital standards (ICS)...
Canada Considers Requiring Emergency Response Plans for Rail Oil Shipments
Dec 16 2013 // Canada is considering classifying crude oil as a higher-risk, dangerous product, requiring emergency response plans for shipment by rail following a train accident that leveled the heart of a Quebec town in July, a...
PCI Expresses Concern with ‘Unnecessary’ Regulation in ComFrame Draft
Dec 16 2013 // The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) has submitted formal comments to the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) on its ComFrame Consultation Draft stating that ComFrame, while...
