Latest Legislation Headlines

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

Third-generation industry executive shares insight on regulatory matters

Feb 26 2007 // Sullivan discusses reinsurance collateralization, surplus lines regulation reform Gerald Sullivan, chairman of Los Angeles-based The Sullivan Group, has been said to have grown up reading insurance rating manuals instead...

The Commissioners: Jim Poolman

Feb 26 2007 // Poolman says regulatory modernization, agent licensing are priorities Currently serving in his second term as North Dakota Insurance Commissioner, Jim Poolman has focused his efforts on working for and protecting insurance...

Katrina lawsuits: Are the winds of fortune changing for insurers?

Feb 26 2007 // In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina when it became apparent that property losses would total billions of dollars, the insurance industry was understandably concerned that courts in Mississippi and Louisiana...

Bullies and barons

Feb 26 2007 // We’re looking a robber baron in the face. State Farm is not a responsible corporate citizen.” That’s Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood attacking State Farm after the insurer, still reeling from...

Miss. AG Hood picks fight with State Farm over pullback

Feb 26 2007 // Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood said he will seek legislation aimed at blocking State Farm Insurance Cos. from refusing to write new homeowners and commercial policies in the hurricane-battered state. Hood’s...

Alabama licenses first captive

Feb 26 2007 // The Alabama Department of Insurance has licensed its first captive insurance company under legislation enacted in 2006 and signed into law by Gov. Bob Riley. Chantilly Risk Management, which is located in Montgomery, is...

Insurers halt move to block Fla. emergency rule

Feb 26 2007 // Insurance companies dropped a court challenge to a new Florida rule preventing them from immediately canceling some homeowners policies or raising rates. The rule, which took effect Jan. 31, is a stopgap until a new law...

Ariz. lawmakers move to raise burden of proof on ER suits

Feb 26 2007 // The Arizona Senate has narrowly approved a medical malpractice bill to raise the bar on the legal burden of proof required for malpractice lawsuits involving emergency medical care. The Senate approved the bill 16-12,...

Declarations

Feb 26 2007 // Stellar statistic “This is the most remarkable statistic of all. The combined ratio we estimate to be about 94 for the year. That would be the best result since 1955.” — Dr. Robert Hartwig, president and...

Washington’s 2007 Legislative agenda targets license reform

Feb 26 2007 // Washington Insurance Com-missioner Mike Kreidler recently promulgated his agency’s proposals for the 2007 Legislative session. Of nine proposals, Sandi Peck, deputy commissioner of public affairs for the Washington...

Third-generation industry executive shares insight on regulatory matters

Feb 26 2007 // Sullivan discusses reinsurance collateralization, surplus lines regulation reform Gerald Sullivan, chairman of Los Angeles-based The Sullivan Group, has been said to have grown up reading insurance rating manuals instead...

Industry leaders debate federal versus state regulation with Democratic Congress shift

Feb 26 2007 // Could federal regulation of the insurance industry become a reality, now that Democrats control both the House and Senate in Congress?And are consumers and the insurance industry ready for such a scenario? Other financial...

Agents welcome windstorm debate; insurers warn against subsidies

Feb 26 2007 // The Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (the Big “I”) says the debate over windstorm coverage is crucial for consumers and independent agents and brokers in many regions around the...

Coming to the Rescue: States get ready to modernize surplus lines regulation

Feb 26 2007 // Bernd (Bernie) G. Heinze, executive director of the American Association of Managing General Agents (AAMGA), recalls a perfect example of the regulatory difficulties the surplus lines industry faces. A colleague at a...

Congress gets bipartisan bills to repeal insurance antitrust immunity

Feb 26 2007 // Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., chairman of the Judiciary Committee, joined with Senate Democratic and Republican leaders earlier this month to introduce a bipartisan bill that would strip the insurance industry of its limited...

News Currents

Feb 25 2007 // Maryland mulls how to keep property insurers on coast Alarmed that homeowners on Maryland’s coasts may one day be cut off from home insurance, state lawmakers are mulling new rules prohibiting insurers from pulling...

Jim Poolman, North Dakota, Commissioner of Insurance

Feb 25 2007 // Currently serving in his second term as North Dakota Insurance Commissioner, Jim Poolman has focused his efforts on working for and protecting insurance consumers across the state. He served eight years in the North Dakota...

News Currents

Feb 25 2007 // Miss. AG Hood picks fight with State Farm over pullback Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood said he will seek legislation aimed at blocking State Farm Insurance Cos. from refusing to write new homeowners and commercial...

Insurers halt move to block Fla. emergency rule

Feb 25 2007 // Insurance companies dropped a court challenge to a new Florida rule preventing them from immediately canceling some homeowners policies or raising rates. The rule, which took effect Jan. 31, is a stopgap until a new law...

Editor’s Note: Bullies and barons

Feb 25 2007 // State Farm has been in a fight since Hurricane Katrina and, to be fair, Hood didn’t start it. The insurer threw the first punch when it took a hard-line stance on wind and water claims from Katrina. We’re...