Latest Legislation Headlines

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

U.S. Judge Approves $14.7 Billion Settlement for VW Diesel Car Owners

Oct 26 2016 // A U.S. judge on Tuesday approved one of the biggest corporate settlements on record, Volkswagen AG’s $14.7 billion deal arising from its diesel emissions cheating scandal, and the German automaker said it would begin...

Industry Needs to Address Gaps in Workers’ Compensation, AMCOMP Panelists Say

Oct 25 2016 // At the American Society of Workers’ Compensation Professionals (AMCOMP) Fall Meeting held recently in New York, Mark Walls, vice president of communications and strategic analysis at Safety National, and Kimberly...

Insurers vow ‘muscular’ response to over-regulation

Oct 25 2016 // Insurers aren’t known for their aggressive pushback against overly meddlesome regulations. American insurance companies – like any massive industry – have a large lobbying presence. But they tend to tread...

AARP Suit Says Workplace Wellness Programs Raise Medical Privacy Concerns

Oct 25 2016 // A lobbying group representing older Americans sued the Obama administration on Monday claiming regulations for programs designed to rein in employee health care costs will subject workers to invasions of their medical...

Former Vermont Regulator Donegan Joins NCCI as Chief Regulatory Services Officer

Oct 25 2016 // Susan Donegan has been named as the new chief regulatory services officer for the NCCI. Donegan assumed the position on Sept. 19, and succeeds Helen Westervelt, who announced her retirement in January of this year....

Judge Says No New Defendants in Wrongful Death Suit in Iowa

Oct 24 2016 // The family of a Des Moines, Iowa woman who died of a prescription-drug overdose is appealing a judge’s rejection of their motion seeking to name the doctor’s former health system as defendants. Brandy...

Ex-California State Senator Calderon Gets Prison for Bribery

Oct 24 2016 // Former California state Sen. Ron Calderon was sentenced Friday to 31/2 years in prison in a corruption scandal in which he acknowledged taking bribes in exchange for his influence in Sacramento. U.S. District Court Judge...

Homesharing Giant Airbnb Faces Rising Legal, Regulatory Risks in Big Cities

Oct 24 2016 // Airbnb, the online lodging service that investors now believe is worth $30 billion, faces a reckoning. In eight years of torrid growth, the company has often clashed with local public officials seeking to minimize the...

Special Report: 6 Cyber Security Trends to Watch in 2017

Oct 24 2016 // As 2016 winds down and the insurance industry begins to adjust its business and marketing strategies for the new year, cyber criminals are doing exactly the same thing – reviewing their successes and failures, attempting...

Dangers in Data Collection: How Much Is Too Much?

Oct 24 2016 // How to Help Insureds Manage Customer Privacy Risk Insurance carriers and agents have come to learn that increased data can lead to greater risk for insureds, and they are increasingly advising businesses to disclose data...

New Mexico Driver’s License Revamp Draws Fresh Criticism

Oct 21 2016 // New Mexico officials ran into fresh criticism Tuesday about revisions to the state’s immigrant driver’s license law at a public hearing on the proposed regulations. The Department of Taxation and Revenue has...

Insurance Industry Collaboration Key to Facing Disruption, III CEO Says

Oct 21 2016 // In an increasingly connected and globalized world, the insurance industry needs to work together to understand and accommodate the many disruptions it faces today and in the future, according to Sean Kevelighan, CEO of the...

California Commissioner Issues Decision on Workers’ Comp Regulatory Filing

Oct 19 2016 // California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones issued a decision regarding the Workers’ Compensation Rating Bureau’s Jan. 1, 2017 regulatory filing submitted to the California Department of Insurance in...

Gender-Bias Case Against Can Microsoft Proceed, Judge Rules

Oct 19 2016 // A judge has allowed a class-action lawsuit alleging gender discrimination by Seattle, Wash.-based Microsoft Corp. to proceed. U.S. District Judge James Robart of Seattle in an order Friday denied the company’s...

Judge ‘Strongly’ Inclined to Approve Volkswagen $14.7 Billion Settlement

Oct 19 2016 // Volkswagen AG and car owners will likely secure a federal judge’s final sign-off on their $14.7 billion settlement as the automaker continues to seek regulators’ approval of a fix for 482,000 pollution-spewing...

New California Workers’ Comp Law on Excluded Employees Causing Headaches

Oct 17 2016 // In advance of a possible headache brewing for workers’ compensation providers, California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones on Monday notified all workers’ comp insurers writing policies in the state about...

Citing Shield Law, Judge Dismisses Sandy Hook Families’ Suit Against Gun Manufacturer

Oct 17 2016 // A Connecticut judge threw out a lawsuit by families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting, a major victory for the gun industry and in particular Remington Arms Co., maker of the assault weapon used in the...

U.S. Adjustments to Rules on Tax Inversions Include Exemption for Insurers

Oct 14 2016 // The U.S. Treasury Department softened new rules aimed at preventing multinational companies from shifting their profits offshore to lower-tax countries — a response to sustained criticism from big business and from...

OSHA Proposes 18 Changes to Safety Standards to Reduce Employer Costs

Oct 12 2016 // The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is proposing 18 changes to the agency’s recordkeeping, general industry, maritime and construction standards. The agency estimates that proposed revisions could save...

New Scrutiny for Oklahoma Workers’ Comp System

Oct 11 2016 // Three years after passage of sweeping legislation that revamped Oklahoma’s workers’ compensation system, courts are scrapping significant parts of the law in decisions that say the regulations violate the state...