Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Senate Committee Backs Monetary Incentives for Auto Defect Whistleblowers
Mar 2 2015 // A measure that would offer financial incentives for auto industry employees to expose safety defects won unanimous backing from a U.S. Senate panel on Thursday. The vote by 13 Republican and Democratic members of the...
3 GOP Senators’ OpEd: Keep Obamacare Subsidies Temporarily
Mar 2 2015 // Senior Republican senators said Sunday that Congress would extend Obamacare health insurance subsidies for a “transitional period” should the Supreme Court rule that they aren’t allowed in at least 34...
UK Regulators Toughen Vetting Process for Senior Financial Services Roles
Mar 2 2015 // More than one in 10 people picked for the top jobs in British finance pull out during a regulatory vetting process which has got tougher since the financial crisis. People put forward for chief executive, chairman and for...
China’s Draft Counter-Terrorism Law Alarms Foreign Technology Firms
Feb 27 2015 // China is weighing a far-reaching counter-terrorism law that would require technology firms to hand over encryption keys and install security “backdoors,” a potential escalation of what some firms view as the...
A.M. Best: New UAE Regulations Should Improve Risk Profile of Insurers
Feb 27 2015 // The Insurance Authority (IA) of the United Arab Emirates recently issued new financial regulations, which are well placed to improve the risk profile and policyholder security of UAE insurers, according to A.M. Best in a...
Increase in Kentucky Fracking Prompts Lawmakers to Update Rules
Feb 26 2015 // As Kentucky mines less coal and produces more natural gas, state lawmakers want to update the environmental protection rules that drilling companies are required to follow. But some landowners worry the state’s rush...
Florida Republicans Propose Medical Marijuana Bills to Appease Voters
Feb 26 2015 // Republicans lawmakers in Florida who once opposed medical pot are now embracing it, motivated by the strong show of support from voters and worried that another constitutional amendment during next year’s...
Car Cellphone Regulations Rejected by Arkansas House Committee
Feb 26 2015 // A dashboard video showing a state trooper narrowly avoiding a head-on collision with a driver who was using a cellphone wasn’t enough to sway an Arkansas House committee that tougher laws are needed. The Public...
Alaska Becomes 3rd State to Legalize it
Feb 26 2015 // Alaska has become the third U.S. state to legalize marijuana. But the historic day passed with little public acknowledgement in a state with a savvy marijuana culture that has seen varying degrees of legal acceptance of...
Canada’s New Rules Could Charge Railways that Cause Forest Fires
Feb 26 2015 // Canada’s new rail safety legislation would make it possible for governments to recover costs from railways for any fire they cause, not just accidents that involve crude oil, said Transport Canada, a change that...
Bill Banning Texting and Driving Passes Oklahoma House
Feb 25 2015 // The Oklahoma House has overwhelmingly approved restrictions on texting while driving, despite concerns among the measure’s strongest supporters that they don’t go far enough. House members voted 96-2 for the...
1st Cayman Portfolio Insurance Company Formed by Ascension Insurance
Feb 25 2015 // The first portfolio insurance company (PIC) has been formed in the Cayman Islands, as a direct result of new insurance regulations Cayman enacted in January to provide risk management alternatives for insurers incorporated...
N.H. Lawmakers Work to Tackle High Workers’ Comp Costs
Feb 23 2015 // If a worker in New Hampshire gets hurt on the job, an anesthetic injection can cost $763 under a workers’ compensation claim, compared to $298 for non-work related injuries. Surgical treatment for tendinitis in the...
Insurance Industry Needs Better Arguments for ‘Price Optimization’
Feb 23 2015 // Back in her high school days, my daughter got to be a pretty darned good field hockey player, eventually became the captain of her team. But in her sophomore year, Regina was still locked in a competition with another...
Georgia Lawmakers Eye Ridesharing Regulations
Feb 23 2015 // Georgia legislators have filed bills to force companies such as Uber to conduct more rigorous background checks on their drivers and raising liability insurance minimums for passengers. Uber spokesman Taylor Bennett said...
Earthquake Warning System in Obama Budget Pleases Lawmakers
Feb 23 2015 // President Barack Obama’s recommendation to spend $5 million next year on an early earthquake warning system for the West Coast represents a significant breakthrough, congressional supporters of the project...
New Mexico Bill Would Reduce Benefits if Workers Are High
Feb 23 2015 // A New Mexico lawmaker has introduced a bill to reduce workers’ compensation in cases when an employee’s death or injury results from being drunk or high on the job. Republican Rep. Dennis Roch of Logan said...
California Lawmaker Proposes Annual $52 Fee for Road Repairs
Feb 23 2015 // Most California drivers would pay an extra $52 a year under a proposal to raise $2 billion a year to fix the state’s crumbling roads, bridges and highways. Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins’ proposal released in...
Heading a National Ridesharing Outline a Political Gain for Jones?
Feb 23 2015 // A committee of regulators led by California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones is working on standards on ridesharing that departments of insurance in states across the U.S. can look to as an example. Whether the National...
Texas Lawmaker Urges Extension of Wind Insurance Inspection Waiver
Feb 22 2015 // A Texas lawmaker says thousands of coastal residents could lose their windstorm insurance coverage if the Legislature doesn’t extend a program that provides waivers for those who have been nonrenewed for coverage by...