Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Marsh Establishes ‘Protected Cell Captives’ in Wash. DC, Isle of Man
Apr 30 2009 // Marsh announced that it has established protected cell captive (PCC) [also known as segregated account] insurance facilities in Washington, DC, and Isle of Man “to serve the needs of small and mid-sized businesses...
Massachusetts RMV Chief Warns Lawmakers of Branch Closings
Apr 30 2009 // Massachusetts egistrar of motor vehicles is warning House members she will have to close one-third of RMV branches if they cut her budget as planned. Rachel Kaprelian said in a memo this week that trimming her budget from...
Judge Rules Transsexual Discrimination Protected Under Federal Law
Apr 30 2009 // A federal judge has awarded a former Army Special Forces commander nearly $500,000 because she was rejected from a job at the Library of Congress while transitioning from a man to a woman. Diane Schroer of Alexandria, Va.,...
North Carolina Judge Clears Way for Home Insurance Rate Changes
Apr 30 2009 // A Wake County judge has cleared the way for homeowners insurance rates to drop in nearly three dozen western North Carolina counties and soar along the coast starting Friday. Superior Court Judge Ronald Stephens this week...
Florida Senate, House Seek to Close Property Insurance Legislation Gaps
Apr 29 2009 // The Florida House and Senate are trying informally to work out differences in bills to address the state’s property insurance crisis, including how much rates for more than one million customers of the state-backed...
AIG a Lesson for European Watchdogs
Apr 28 2009 // AIG’s near collapse is a credit-crunch case study in how Europe can improve supervision of big cross-border insurers, a top EU market regulator said on Monday. The American insurer has received nearly $180 billion in...
U.S. Recovery Could Be Hurt by Fear of New Regulation
Apr 28 2009 // Too many regulators currently watch over U.S. companies and a fear that some industries may soon face even more rules could be hurting the U.S. recovery, two top financial industry executives said. “We need a lot...
County Commissioners Say Minnesota Bill Gives Lawyers a ‘Pay Raise’
Apr 28 2009 // A coalition of county commissioners from across Minnesota have formally voiced their opposition to a bill in the legislature that they claim would grant wealthy trial lawyers a pay raise at the expense of the state’s...
Louisiana Lawmakers OK $133M in Stimulus Spending
Apr 28 2009 // Four more highway projects, including the widening of Interstate 10 in Baton Rouge, will be funded with Louisiana’s share of the federal stimulus package after receiving quick approval Monday from lawmakers. The $133...
Florida Rep. Proctor Challenges Commissioner McCarty’s Insurance View
Apr 28 2009 // In my opinion, Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty’s assertions that our state has “one of the most” competitive property insurance markets in the country and that easing rate regulation will not...
Rep. Frank: House Panel to Examine Federal Regulation Option for Insurance
Apr 28 2009 // A congressional panel will examine whether an optional federal charter for insurance companies is needed, the chairman of the U.S. House Financial Services Committee said Tuesday. The committee’s panel on insurance...
Florida House Approves Property Insurance Measure
Apr 27 2009 // The Florida House has approved property insurance legislation that promises to reduce the exposure of the state’s backup hurricane insurance fund and gradually raise rates for policyholders insured in state-backed...
AIG, Congress and Law of Unintended Consequences
Apr 27 2009 // When corporations want to borrow large sums of money they usually rely on selling bonds. Introductory college finance courses always include a chapter covering interest rates and bonds. So, much of the information I...
Louisiana Legislative Session Begins; More than 1,100 Bills Pre-filed
Apr 27 2009 // David Tatman of the Tatman Group and lobbyist for the Louisiana Surplus Lines Association, has outlined some of the legislation that group will be following during Louisiana’s legislative session, which opens...
World’s Financial Sector Facing ‘Hornet’s Nest’ of Political Risk
Apr 24 2009 // Oh, for the days when a little irrational exuberance was the biggest problem facing the world’s bankers and financiers. It is way beyond that now. With the financial world mired in a stubborn credit crisis and the...
Florida’s Property Insurance Market: An Overview by Commissioner McCarty
Apr 24 2009 // It is always interesting, and frequently amusing, to read various “research” pieces on the Florida property insurance market. While I, like every other insurance regulator, industry professional and observer in...
FDIC Head Favors Interagency Panel to Oversee Systemic Risk
Apr 24 2009 // The head of the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said Friday that she favors a council of regulators over one entity to oversee systemic risk in the financial system. “If there was a (interagency) council for...
Addressing Systemic Risk Without More Bureaucracy
Apr 24 2009 // America’s market-based economic system once created the largest economic engine in the world and gave this country one of the highest standards of living in history. However, that system now faces a credibility...
Europe Votes to Adopt New Solvency Rules for Insurance by 2012
Apr 23 2009 // The European Parliament voted this week for new regulation of insurers that aims to cut costs by giving one national regulator the lead role in monitoring insurance companies operating across several EU nations. EU...
Oklahoma Consumer Group Blasts Lawmakers, Health Insurers
Apr 23 2009 // An advocacy group criticized Oklahoma legislative leaders on April 21 for what it described as a host of bills that help the health insurance industry at the expense of consumers. Dr. Rene McNall Knapp, who specializes in...
