Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
The Insurance Mood in Tallahassee
Feb 11 2013 // Lawmakers Have Insurance Concerns But Will They Act in 2013? When you ask experts in Florida to describe the mood of state lawmakers about insurance reforms in 2013 they use words like “disinterested” and...
Agents Act Now on Healthcare Reform
Feb 11 2013 // The year is a prime time for agents and brokers to begin preparing their clients for Affordable Care Act (ACA) requirements coming in 2014. Don’t assume that you can wait until the beginning of the plan year to...
Oklahoma Agents Group on Workers’ Comp Reform: Wait-and-See
Feb 8 2013 // Workers’ compensation reform is certain to be an issue during the 2013 legislative session in Oklahoma and it is a major concern for the state’s independent insurance agents. The board of the Independent...
Oklahoma Lawmaker Wants Audit of Insurance Department
Feb 8 2013 // An Oklahoma state senator wants the governor to request a performance audit of the agency that regulates insurance in that state. Sen. Harry Coates sent a letter to Gov. Mary Fallin requesting the audit because Republican...
Alabama Warns Hundreds of Insurers to Register or Face Fine
Feb 8 2013 // Hundreds of property/casualty insurance companies have not registered with Alabama regulators as required, prompting the state insurance department to issue a warning and extend the registration deadline to March 31. The...
Texas Lawmaker Tackles Football in Public School Concussion Fight
Feb 7 2013 // A state lawmaker who wants to make concussion screenings as routine as physicals in Texas public school athletics has taken direct aim at football. State Rep. Eddie Lucio III has filed a bill that would limit high school...
California Bill Would Force Gun Owners to Buy Insurance
Feb 7 2013 // Democratic lawmakers have proposed legislation that would require California gun owners to buy liability insurance to cover damages or injuries caused by their weapons. Similar bills have been introduced in other states...
West Virginia Court Rules Negligent Mine Inspectors Can Be Sued
Feb 7 2013 // Private and federal mine safety inspectors can be held liable and sued when a negligent inspection results in the wrongful death of a coal miner, the state Supreme Court ruled in handing a victory to the widows of two men...
Conservative Oklahoma Lawmaker, ACLU Team Up on Privacy Rights
Feb 6 2013 // A conservative Oklahoma lawmaker and the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma are working together to advance legislation to privacy rights of Oklahomans in the face of rapidly advancing technology. State Rep. Paul...
South Dakota Lawmakers Endorse Teen Driving Safety Measures
Feb 6 2013 // A package of recommendations that would ban beginning drivers from using cellphones behind the wheel and make other changes aimed at reducing teen traffic fatalities and serious injuries is progressing through the South...
Florida Considers Partners for Health Insurance Exchange
Feb 6 2013 // Florida lawmakers heard this week from two organizations that could serve as partners in running an insurance exchange under the federal health overhaul. Florida has missed the deadline to run its own online marketplace...
Arkansas State Senator Announces School Safety Bill
Feb 5 2013 // Arkansas Senator Missy Irvin of Mountain View announced she is drafting legislation to better prepare students and faculty in Arkansas for incidents of deadly school violence. Irvin said a goal of her legislation would be...
Missouri Senate to Debate Future of Disability Fund
Feb 5 2013 // Missouri senators are preparing to debate legislation to revive an insolvent fund for disabled workers. The state’s Second Injury Fund has a deficit of about $25 million that is expected to keep growing. The fund...
Florida Supreme Court Rules Arbitration Clauses Apply to Fraud Claims
Feb 5 2013 // The Florida Supreme Court says contract clauses requiring arbitration to settle related disputes include fraud claims. The justices unanimously reversed a three-judge panel of the 1st District Court of Appeal, which had...
Industry Opposition Slows Airline Safety Law Implementation: Report
Feb 4 2013 // Federal regulators are struggling to overcome substantial industry opposition and implement a sweeping aviation safety law enacted after the last fatal U.S. airline crash nearly four years ago, according to a report by a...
Republicans to Block Obama Consumer Financial Bureau Chief
Feb 4 2013 // U.S. Senate Republicans on Friday pledged to block President Barack Obama’s choice to lead the consumer finance watchdog until Democrats agree to restructure it, ramping up an expected fight this year over the...
Obama Offers Compromise on Birth Control Insurance Coverage
Feb 4 2013 // The Obama administration on Friday sought to settle a dispute with religious leaders over whether employees at faith-affiliated universities, hospitals and other institutions should have access to health insurance coverage...
North Carolina Lawmakers Move to Halt State’s Health Exchange
Feb 1 2013 // North Carolina’s General Assembly is freezing any state work on a new one-stop shop to help people buy affordable health insurance and ordering unspent federal funds returned. Senate and House lawmakers this week...
Only 11 States Have Moved on Obamacare Health Regulations
Feb 1 2013 // Only 11 of the 50 U.S. states have moved to implement new consumer safeguards under President Barack Obama’s healthcare law, raising questions about how major health insurance reforms will be enforced, a report...
Florida Senate Democrats to Oppose Property Insurance Rate Hikes
Jan 31 2013 // With Florida lawmakers expected to consider formal changes to the state’s property insurance market next week, state Democrats are signaling that they will likely oppose any measure that results in higher...
