Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Arkansas’ Kerr Named Chair of NAIC’s Market Regulation, Consumer Affairs Committee
Jan 22 2020 // Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Allen Kerr has been named chairman of the Market Regulation and Consumer Affairs (D) Committee of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) for 2020. This is the second time...
Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Appointed as NAIC Committee Chair
Jan 22 2020 // Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Jessica Altman has been selected for the second consecutive year to serve as chair of the Health Insurance and Managed Care Committee of the National Association of Insurance...
IBM Calls For Rules to Curb Bias in Artificial Intelligence
Jan 22 2020 // IBM called for rules aimed at eliminating bias in artificial intelligence to ease concerns that the technology relies on data that bakes in past discriminatory practices and could harm women, minorities, the disabled,...
Arizona Lawmakers Vow to Boost Firefighter Cancer Coverage
Jan 21 2020 // A group of Arizona lawmakers has vowed to boost protections for firefighters and other first responders who are diagnosed with a cancer linked to the workplace to address concerns that some cities are denying...
Judge Cuts Johnson & Johnson Damages in Risperdal Case From $8 Billion to $6.8 Million
Jan 21 2020 // A Pennsylvania judge on Friday slashed to $6.8 million from $8 billion a punitive damages award against Johnson & Johnson to a man who said it failed to warn that boys using its antipsychotic drug Risperdal could grow...
California Lawmaker Wants Probe of PG&E’s Chief Regulator
Jan 17 2020 // A state lawmaker is demanding an extensive review of the California Public Utilities Commission to determine whether regulators’ lax oversight enabled neglect at Pacific Gas & Electric that triggered catastrophic...
Judge Presses PG&E on How It Will Protect Wildfire Victims’ Funds Given FEMA Demand
Jan 17 2020 // PG&E Corp. needs to explain how it will keep a promise to pay fire victims $13.5 billion in the face of a demand from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for a cut of that money, a bankruptcy judge said...
Reuters Report: How Secrecy in Courts Stymies Safety Regulators
Jan 17 2020 // LEBANON, Ohio — Something wasn’t right with the Rhino. Reports started trickling in to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in 2005 of people being killed or injured in the Yamaha Motor Co. off-road...
Global Cannabis Revenue Pushed by Sales Doubling in Some U.S. States
Jan 16 2020 // The green rush in the global cannabis market continued in 2019, with sales doubling in seven U.S. states as well as Canada, and you can expect that trend to continue this year, a report out on Thursday shows. The report...
Lawmaker Says Maine Cannabis Needs Bank, Insurance Access
Jan 16 2020 // A Maine legislator is calling on the state’s legislative body to push the U.S. Congress to make banking and insurance accessible to legalized cannabis businesses. Republican Rep. John Andrews of Paris, Maine, said he...
Florida Legislative Preview 2020: Industry Calls On Lawmakers to Reform Lawsuit Abuse
Jan 16 2020 // The Florida Legislature started its 2020 legislative session this week and lawmakers are set to consider a number of insurance-focused issues over the course of the 60-day period. At the top of the list for industry and...
Finance, Insurance Sector ‘Wins’ in U.S.-China Trade Deal Seem Familiar
Jan 15 2020 // The long-awaited U.S.-China trade deal touted wins for U.S. companies looking to access China’s $40 trillion financial sector, but many of the changes were already in the works, with Beijing having stepped up the...
Gig Economy Law Talk of California Insurance Wholesalers Conference
Jan 15 2020 // A sweeping California gig economy law was the focus of a lot of the talk this year during an annual insurance wholesalers conference. Assembly Bill 5, California’s gig worker law was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in...
Alabama Attorney General Opposed to Anticipated Medical Marijuana Bill
Jan 15 2020 // The Alabama attorney general is opposing medical marijuana legislation expected to be introduced in the upcoming legislative session. In a Jan. 6 letter to lawmakers, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall called...
Judge Orders Opioid Distributor to Turn Over Corporate Records to Shareholders
Jan 15 2020 // A Delaware judge has ordered one of the world’s largest distributors of opioid painkillers to turn over corporate records to shareholders investigating whether the company engaged in wrongdoing. The judge ruled...
Cyber Ranks as Top Peril for Companies Globally for 1st Time: Allianz Survey
Jan 15 2020 // Cyber incidents rank for the first time as the most important business risk globally, pushing the perennial top peril, business interruption (BI), into second place, according to the ninth Allianz Risk Barometer...
Judge Refuses to Stop Idaho Tribe Lawsuit Against Mining Company
Jan 14 2020 // A Clean Water Act lawsuit filed by the Nez Perce Tribe that seeks to force a Canadian gold mining company to acquire permits for pollution discharged from its central Idaho facility will be allowed to continue, a federal...
Oklahoma Bill Would Create Entity Focused on Natural Disaster, Hazard Mitigation
Jan 13 2020 // Legislation filed in Oklahoma would establish an organizational framework for addressing mitigation of natural disasters in that state. House Bill 2776, The Oklahoma Hazard Mitigation Assessment District Act, provides the...
Judge: Survivors of Tennessee Wildfire Can Sue National Park Service
Jan 13 2020 // Survivors of a historically deadly Tennessee wildfire that killed 14 people can sue the National Park Service for failing to warn them of the danger, a federal judge has ruled. The fire began in the Great Smoky Mountains...
Industry Trends to Exploit for 2020
Jan 13 2020 // The insurance industry is so intertwined into the economy and society, that just about any noticeable change in either will have some impact for the insurance industry. That is why it is imperative for agency owners to...
