Latest Legislation Headlines

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

Calif. Governor, Commissioner Propose Legislation To Oversee State Fund

Aug 16 2006 // California’s Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi have jointly submitted legislation to establish oversight responsibility and regulatory authority for the State Compensation...

Associations Oppose Eliminating Contingent Commissions

Aug 16 2006 // The Alliance of Insurance Agents and Brokers has joined the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (IIAB) and Western Insurance Agents Association (WIAA) in criticizing regulators and public officials who seek...

N.Y. Looks to Speed Comp Benefits to Ill 9/11 Rescue Workers

Aug 15 2006 // New York State has adopted a trio of laws designed to speed workers’ compensation benefits for workers and their families with claims related to 9/11 rescue efforts. The first new law enables many workers who became...

Judge Rules in Favor of Insurer in Miss. Wind vs. Water Case

Aug 15 2006 // In a highly anticipated ruling in one of the first wind vs. water insurance claims arising out of Hurricane Katrina, a Mississippi judge has upheld the exclusion for damage caused by water and water-borne materials in an...

Agents Association Accuses Garamendi of Using Office to Win Votes

Aug 14 2006 // The Western Insurance Agents Association, Rancho Cordova, Calif., has issued a statement responding to California Insurance Commissioner Garamendi’s auto rate regulations. It reads: Americans would be hard pressed to...

Vermont’s Captive Industry Celebrates 25th Birthday

Aug 11 2006 // More than 1,200 people showed up in South Burlington, Vermont this week to celebrate the 25th anniversary of an idea cooked up in Al Moulton’s kitchen that has grown into a multi-million-dollar industry and top...

California Imposes New Ethics Regulations on Broker-Agents

Aug 11 2006 // The California Department of Insurance has issued a notice informing insurance producers of new ethics regulation requiring all fire and casualty broker-agents and life agents to complete four- hour “ethics...

Mass. Becomes 28th State to Join Interstate Compact

Aug 10 2006 // Massachusetts has become the 28th state to join a program designed to modernize state regulation of life insurance, annuity, disability and long term care products. Gov. Mitt Romney signed legislation into law today that...

Judge Denies California Insurers’ Lawsuit to Stop Auto Rate Regs

Aug 10 2006 // A Sacramento Superior Court judge has decided to reject the insurance industry’s request for an injunction against auto insurance rate regulation reforms in California, but the legal challenges will not end...

Lawmakers Told Miss. Wind Pool Law Needs Changing

Aug 9 2006 // Revamping laws governing the Mississippi Windstorm Underwriting Association is one of the options legislators are considering in Jackson, Miss. to help stabilize the state’s post Hurricane Katrina insurance...

Maine Judge Upholds State on Dirigo Savings; Appeal Likely

Aug 9 2006 // A Superior Court judge has rejected an appeal of last fall’s decision by Insurance Superintendent Alessandro Iuppa that Maine’s Dirigo Health Agency initiatives produced savings of $44 million in the...

Some Utah Legislators Plan Measures on Illegal Immigration

Aug 8 2006 // Some Utah lawmakers are thinking about measures to crack down on illegal immigration. Ideas include holding employers accountable for hiring illegal immigrants, requiring proof of citizenship or legal status to receive...

Optional Federal Charter ‘legislation of the worst kind,’ says PIA exec

Aug 7 2006 // The National Insurance Act of 2006 would undermine key insurance consumer protections, constrict the availability of insurance, create market instability and prompt a flood of litigation, according to Leonard C. Brevik,...

Linda Watters

Aug 7 2006 // Michigan Insurance Director of Insurance Linda Watters wants to make sure drivers in urban areas get a fair shake on the premiums they pay for auto and homeowners insurance. She has developed an initiative that would...

It figures

Aug 7 2006 // 100 The number of federal lawmakers from both parties that asked the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to put a hold on the efforts of various U.S. companies, including Wal-Mart, to open banks. Federal bank regulators halted...

Exemption protection

Aug 7 2006 // The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee has received testimony on whether to continue the insurance antitrust exemption contained in the 1945 McCarran-Ferguson Act. This law placed responsibility for insurance regulation with...

California insurers sue department to stop auto insurance regulations

Aug 7 2006 // Three insurance trade groups filed a lawsuit seeking declaratory and injunctive relief to stop enforcement of California Department of Insurance auto rating regulations they said will harm millions of policyholders. On...

Christina Urias

Aug 7 2006 // Wildfires, captives, credit scoring, and broker compensation and disclosure have been hot topics lately especially since wildfire season in particular extends through September. But the Arizona Department of Insurance...

House bill would establish national disaster commission with agent member

Aug 7 2006 // Legislation that would establish a bipartisan national commission tasked with recommending policies to help the federal government prepare for and manage disaster response has been introduced in the House of...

Best’s 2006 European review highlights common industry concerns

Aug 7 2006 // For the insurance industry, global controversies tend to obscure some equally important debates going on in smaller forums around the globe. The principal controversy in the U.S. revolves around state vs. federal...