Latest Legislation Headlines

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

Popular Climate Change Mitigation, Clean Energy Financing Plan Has Its Fans and Foes

Mar 4 2020 // A decade ago, if a Floridian wanted extra cash to replace a roof, install solar panels or a brand new air conditioner, the most common choice was a bank loan. But for the last few years, homeowners also have had a...

Nebraska to Feds: Make Flood Control on Missouri River a Priority

Mar 3 2020 // Nebraska lawmakers have sent a nearly unanimous message to federal officials who control the flow of the Missouri River: focus on preventing floods above all else. Lawmakers voted 43-1 on a resolution calling on Congress...

Mom Asks South Carolina Lawmakers To Require Balcony Inspections After Son’s Death

Mar 2 2020 // Jennifer Mykytyn has been fighting to honor her son for five years and finally got a hearing to ask South Carolina lawmakers to require inspections for balconies so no one else would die the way her son was...

Supreme Court Ruling on Fate of Obamacare Likely After November Election

Mar 2 2020 // The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a politically explosive case on whether Obamacare is lawful, taking up a bid by 20 Democratic-led states including New York and California to save the landmark healthcare...

Hazard Mitigation Legislation Moves Forward in Oklahoma House

Mar 2 2020 // Legislation that would create the Oklahoma Hazard Mitigation Assessment District Act has passed out of committee and moved to the full House for consideration. The House County and Municipal Government Committee passed...

Missouri Senate Backs New Limits on Punitive Damages

Feb 28 2020 // Missouri’s Republican-led Senate swiftly advanced a bill tightening standards for punitive damages in liability lawsuits after an all-night filibuster by Democrats successfully blocked a separate bill limiting...

Arizona Court Rules Workers’ Comp OK for Cops’ High-Stress Situations

Feb 28 2020 // An Arizona court ruling stemming from a sheriff’s deputy’s encounter with a shotgun-wielding man says law enforcement officers can claim workers’ compensation benefits if diagnosed with PTSD or other...

Congress Urged to Uphold, Not Override, State Privacy Laws

Feb 27 2020 // California Attorney General Xavier Becerra on Tuesday sent a letter to four top U.S. lawmakers urging them not to pre-empt the state’s new privacy law with a watered down federal legislation. The California Consumer...

Nicolopoulos Confirmed as New Hampshire Insurance Commissioner

Feb 27 2020 // The New Hampshire Insurance Department has announced that Chris Nicolopoulos was confirmed by the New Hampshire Executive Council as insurance commissioner succeeding John Elias, who resigned in December less than two...

Ohio Bill Would Lift Pain-and-Suffering Caps in Rape Cases

Feb 26 2020 // Proposed legislation in the Ohio House would lift caps on pain-and-suffering awards in lawsuits brought by rape victims. The bill introduced this month by two Democratic lawmakers stems from a 2016 Ohio Supreme Court...

Florida Carriers Seek Staggering Rate Increases Amid Market Turmoil

Feb 25 2020 // It’s no surprise that Florida carriers are raising homeowners’ insurance rates given several years of catastrophes and losses from litigation related to assignment of benefits and water damage claims. What may...

Judge Wants Questions Answered on Plan to Remove Capsized Ship in Georgia

Feb 24 2020 // A federal judge on Friday ordered attorneys for the U.S. Coast Guard and a maritime salvage company to answer detailed questions about plans to remove an overturned cargo ship on the Georgia coast by sawing it into eight...

Federal Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Involving Firefighter Deaths in Delaware

Feb 24 2020 // A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Delaware’s largest city involving deaths and injuries of firefighters who responded to an arson. The lawsuit sought to hold Wilmington officials liable for the deaths...

But Wait. Here’s ‘The Rest of The Story’ on Buffett’s Lubrizol

Feb 24 2020 // In his firm’s annual report released this weekend, Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett included a side note on one of the companies his conglomerate bought in 2011 for $9 billion, a company called...

Kentucky House Clears the Way for Legalizing Medical Marijuana

Feb 24 2020 // After years of setbacks, medical marijuana advocates cleared a historic hurdle Thursday when the Kentucky House voted to legalize the use of cannabis for medical purposes. The measure won House passage on a 65-30 vote...

Hold the Phone: Massachusetts’ Hands-Free Driving Law to Take Effect

Feb 21 2020 // Massachusetts’ new hands-free driving law takes effect this Sunday, February 23rd. The law, signed by Governor Charlie Baker in November, is intended to reduce the number of distracted driving injuries and deaths in...

Judge Rules Army Corps Not Responsible for Harvey Flooding Damage

Feb 21 2020 // A federal judge has ruled the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers isn’t liable to damage to thousands of Houston homes that were inundated by two federally owned reservoirs in the days following Hurricane Harvey because...

Lawmakers to Introduce Bipartisan Bill Aimed at Internet Firms’ Liability Shield

Feb 21 2020 // U.S. legislation will be introduced in the coming weeks that could hurt technology companies’ ability to offer end-to-end encryption, two sources with knowledge of the matter said, and it aims to curb the...

California FAIR Plan Can Offer Only Fire Insurance, Judge Says

Feb 21 2020 // A fund that offers only fire insurance to California residents in wildfire-prone areas can’t be required to provide coverage for other hazards such as flooding or theft, a judge ruled this week. Superior Court Judge...

China Ends Two-Year State Custody of Troubled Anbang Insurance

Feb 21 2020 // China’s two-year state custody of Anbang Insurance Group Co., the group that became a poster child for private companies with too much debt and lofty global ambitions, is set to end this weekend. Authorities took...