Latest Legislation Headlines

All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Federal Judge Rules Michigan College Coach Immune to Player Suit

Sep 8 2009 // A federal judge has dismissed parts of a lawsuit against Central Michigan University and its women’s basketball coach, who is accused of dropping a scholarship partly because a player isn’t a lesbian. U.S....

Colorado Officials Defend Pinnacol Actions

Sep 8 2009 // Executives from Colorado’s state-chartered workers’ compensation insurance company defended themselves against accusations of lavish spending and excess profits on Friday and they told lawmakers it would be...

Oklahoma Considers Privatizing State-backed Workers’ Comp Insurer

Sep 8 2009 // In a recent meeting of a task force considering privatizing Oklahoma’s state-backed workers’ compensation insurer, CompSource Oklahoma, Nevada insurance executives said workers’ comp rates have dropped in...

States Give a ‘Thumbs Up’ to Fingerprinting Insurance Producers

Sep 7 2009 // Regulators Say Fingerprinting Keeps Criminals Out of the Business Don’t be alarmed, but there are convicted criminals roaming around the country acting as insurance producers. They could be robbers, forgers, possibly...

Small Businesses Confront Big Cyber Risks

Sep 7 2009 // Larger Firms Tend to Have More Data Security Resources The theft of personal and private data — from credit card information, to Social Security numbers, to health information, is a thriving global crime — and it is...

Small Businesses Confront Big Cyber Risks

Sep 7 2009 // Larger Firms Tend to Have More Data Security Resources The theft of personal and private data — from credit card information, to Social Security numbers, to health information, is a thriving global crime — and it is...

Colorado’s Pinnacol Under Scrutiny

Sep 7 2009 // Colorado’s dominant workers compensation insurer is defending its spending on travel and entertainment for its agents, telling Colorado lawmakers it’s good for morale and helps lower costs in the long...

Michigan High Court to Reconsider Auto Accident Victims’ Right to Sue

Sep 7 2009 // The Michigan Supreme Court has set the stage for reversing a 2004 precedent that restricts when people injured in auto accidents can sue for pain and suffering. In a 4-3 order, the court decided to reconsider the case of...

North Carolina Beach Plan Insurance Reforms Become Law

Sep 7 2009 // North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue has signed into law legislation to shore-up the state’s backup coastal insurer and reduce the liability of private insurers should a major catastrophe strike the state. House Bill...

California Bill Calls for Green Insurance

Sep 4 2009 // A bill just introduced in California could encourage more ecologically friendly insurance policy products, putting the state again at the fore of pushing, and leading, for greener public policies. The bill, which has been...

Judge Says Rating Agencies Not Shielded by Free Speech Defense

Sep 3 2009 // Credit rating agencies may find it harder to argue that their opinions deserve free speech protection after a judge rejected efforts by Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s to dismiss a fraud...

New Jersey Mandates Fuller Hospital Error Disclosures

Sep 1 2009 // New Jersey hospitals will soon have to make public more detailed information on medical errors. The legislation — which also bars hospitals from charging insurers or patients for procedures to correct certain medical...

Nebraska High Court: Judge Must Explain Countrywide Insurance Ruling

Sep 1 2009 // A judge must explain to the Nebraska Supreme Court why he ordered a new trial in a multimillion dollar insurance dispute involving Florida and Omaha-based Countrywide Insurance Agency. In June 2008, the Supreme Court threw...

Colorado Lawmakers Hold Pinnacol Hearing

Sep 1 2009 // Colorado lawmakers heard from injured workers about their experiences with workers’ compensation on Monday. They gave testimony that the Denver Daily News called “horror” stories and...

How Changes to Federal and State Law Impact Golf and Country Clubs

Aug 31 2009 // Changes to state and federal law over the past few years may prove to be no gimme for golf and country clubs. In fact, since many club owners and managers are unaware of the potential impact of these laws, a simple...

Colorado Electricity Dam Fire Results in Indictment

Aug 31 2009 // Xcel Energy, Inc., Public Service Company of Colorado, RPI Coating, Inc., and two men were indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver late Friday on charges that the defendants violated workplace safety and health rules...

North Carolina Governor Signs Beach Plan Insurance Reform Bill Into Law

Aug 27 2009 // North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue has signed into law legislation to shore-up the state’s backup coastal insurer and reduce the liability of private insurers should a major catastrophe strike the state. House Bill...

New Paper Evaluates Current State of Insurance Regulation and Its Future

Aug 27 2009 // The current state of the financial services industries and the role of the federal government in regulating these industries, including the insurance sector, continues to be a matter of debate in Congress. To help assess...

Bailed Out Firms Making Compensation Subject to Government Approval

Aug 25 2009 // Citigroup Inc., Bank of America Corp. and AIG are forging new employment contracts that let them void compensation agreements if they are challenged by the U.S. government, according to a person familiar with some recent...

Private Health Insurance Competition Weak in Many U.S. Markets

Aug 24 2009 // One of the most widely accepted arguments against a government medical plan for the middle class is that it would quash competition — just what private insurers seem to be doing themselves in many parts of the...