Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Democrats Vow to Pursue Oil Spill Liability Bill
Jan 26 2011 // U.S. Democrats Wednesday pressed for new legislation aimed at preventing a repeat of last year’s massive BP oil spill, as Republicans warned that the disaster should not be used to hamper offshore oil and natural gas...
Alabama Court Rules University Hospital Shares State Immunity
Jan 26 2011 // The Alabama Supreme Court has thrown out a $3.2 million judgment against a Montgomery hospital, ruling for the first time that a hospital affiliated with a state university shares the state’s immunity from...
Judge Rules Barge Did Not Cause Katrina Flooding in New Orleans
Jan 25 2011 // A federal judge has ruled that a barge that landed on top of several homes in the Lower 9th Ward in New Orleans did not cause the floodwall to break during Hurricane Katrina. U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval Jr. of New...
Tennessee Firms Opting Out of Workers’ Compensation Must Register
Jan 25 2011 // A new Tennessee law is requiring all construction firm owners to register with the state if they choose to opt out of the state’s workers’ compensation system. The new law is designed to protect general...
California To Enforce Health Insurer Spending Limits
Jan 25 2011 // California’s Office of Administrative Law (OAL) has approved state Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones’ request for an emergency regulation to give him the authority to enforce the 80 percent Medical Loss Ratio...
Guernsey Statement: ‘No Plans’ to Seek Equivalence under Solvency II
Jan 25 2011 // The Commerce and Employment Department of the States of Guernsey (the Guernsey Government) and the financial regulator, the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) have released a joint statement, which affirms that...
Judge Imprisons 2 for Life in Texas Church Arsons
Jan 24 2011 // A judge has sentenced two men to life in prison after they pleaded guilty in a series of fires at churches in Smith County in East Texas last year. Judge Christi Kennedy ordered the prison terms for 20-year-old Jason...
Panel on BP Oil Spill Calls for Tougher Oversight
Jan 24 2011 // A White House commission probing BP’s massive oil spill has called for an overhaul of a regulatory system that was “entirely unprepared” for disaster and outlined stringent, new oversight, a plan sure to...
Ohio Uninsured Motorist Litigation Tied to Money for Charities
Jan 24 2011 // An Ohio insurance company in late 2010 successfully challenged a class action lawsuit involving uninsured motorist/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage in a case that played prominently in a campaign to change the way...
Missouri Business Leaders Urge Tort, Workers’ Comp, Employment Law Reforms
Jan 24 2011 // Business leaders in Missouri are asking state lawmakers for reforms that they say will help protect and create jobs. Among the priorities, which proponents are calling “Fix the Six,” are bottom-line issues for...
Captivated By Potential
Jan 24 2011 // Northeast State Have Uneven Success Attracting Captives States across the Northeast continue to look at captive insurance companies as a potential source of new business — and tax revenue — but the continued growth of...
New York Insurers Applaud Plan to Merge State’s Regulatory Arms
Jan 24 2011 // A key trade group for insurers in New York State applauded a proposal by Gov. Andrew Cuomo to merge the state’s insurance regulatory arm into a single agency overseeing insurance, banking and consumer protection. The...
Much State Regulatory Ado About Little
Jan 24 2011 // Home State Taxation Under the NRRA As of July 21, 2011, the Nonadmitted and Reinsurance Reform Act (NRRA), also known as Subtitle B of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, reshapes the landscape...
Washington Governor Wants to Reform Workers’ Comp
Jan 24 2011 // Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire has proposed several changes to the state’s workers’ compensation system to help the state out of the recession and support the vitality of businesses. She estimates the proposed...
States Grapple with Healthcare Overhaul
Jan 24 2011 // True or false: States suing to overturn core requirements of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul are refusing to carry out the law. If you said ‘true,” you’d be wrong. Republican state...
Florida Looking for Ways to Curb Sinkhole Losses
Jan 24 2011 // Florida lawmakers are trying to address the cost of sinkhole claims, which state officials and insurers say are driving up property insurance rates and could threaten the solvency of some domestic insurers if not brought...
Lower Collateral for 7 Reinsurers
Jan 24 2011 // Bermuda-based Renaissance Reinsurance Ltd. has been approved to participate in Florida’s property reinsurance marketplace with modified collateral requirements. In 2007, Florida lawmakers passed legislation that...
McPeak to Head Tennessee Commerce, Insurance
Jan 24 2011 // Republican Gov.-elect Bill Haslam has named insurance regulatory attorney Julie McPeak to oversee the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance. The department includes the Consumer Affairs, Insurance, Securities,...
Panel on BP Oil Spill Calls for Tougher Oversight
Jan 24 2011 // A White House panel probing BP’s massive oil spill has called for an overhaul of a regulatory system that was “entirely unprepared” for disaster and outlined stringent, new oversight, a plan sure to face...
Court Upholds Florida Regulator in Denial of Texas Insurer
Jan 23 2011 // A Texas-based workers’ compensation insurer has lost its appeal of rulings by the Florida insurance commissioner that have blocked it from doing business in the state. On Jan 20, without explanation, a three-judge...
