Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Banks Having to Defend Credit Card Insurance
Nov 16 2011 // When Mariya Kruseck broke her tailbone snowboarding and lost her part-time job five years ago, the then 19-year-old college student was relieved she had bought payment protection to go with her credit card. But she said...
Tennessee Alters Surplus Lines Licensing
Nov 15 2011 // The expiration date for surplus lines licenses in Tennessee will soon have to coincide with the expiration of an agent’s primary insurance producer license. All surplus lines license expiration dates will be moved...
Oregon Pays Big Bucks to Contractors
Nov 15 2011 // Oregon may be in the middle of a budget crisis, but that hasn’t stopped state officials from committing nearly $10 billion to outside contractors, an Oregonian investigation has found. While talking about furlough...
Texas Surplus Lines Professionals: Late-file Bill a Victory but Issues Remain
Nov 15 2011 // The passage of a bill addressing late filing of surplus lines policies in the 2011 Texas legislative session was a victory for surplus lines professionals in the state. Senate Bill 1806 was backed by the Texas Surplus...
North Dakota Senate Approves $600M Disaster Package
Nov 15 2011 // North Dakota’s Senate unanimously approved a $639 million disaster relief measure that includes money for low-interest home loans, road construction and repairs to public works. The measure’s centerpiece is a...
Factory Dust Explosions Killing Workers While Safety Rules Lag
Nov 15 2011 // Each year, people are killed and maimed by explosions of finely powdered wood, metal or chemicals at factories around the country. Safety experts have studied the threat posed by dust at industrial sites for nearly a...
Judge Allows Alabama, Louisiana to Seek Punitive Damages in Oil Spill
Nov 14 2011 // A federal judge Monday said Alabama and Louisiana may seek punitive damages from companies including BP Plc for damages arising from last year’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The decision by U.S....
North Dakota House Rejects Health Insurance Exchange
Nov 14 2011 // Angered by a federal health care law that most of them despise, North Dakota House Republicans defeated legislation to give state officials authority over a health insurance marketing agency that the law requires states to...
Best Issues Special Report on New Zealand’s Non-Life Insurance Market
Nov 14 2011 // A new report from A.M. Best examines New Zealand’s non-life insurance market, which it describes as being “in a state of transformation as it grapples with prolonged earthquake activity in addition to...
FERMA Pushes Brazil to Relax Reinsurance Regulatory Restrictions
Nov 14 2011 // The Federation of European Risk Management Associations (FERMA) announced that it has sent “specific recommendations to the Brazilian insurance regulator SUSEP to limit the impact of regulations 225 and 232 on market...
Bank of North Dakota May Offer Homeowners Low-Interest Disaster Loans
Nov 10 2011 // A key provision in the North Dakota Legislature’s disaster aid bill would provide low-interest, unsecured loans of up to $30,000 for homeowners hit especially hard by this year’s flooding, the Bank of North...
Former Louisiana Lawmaker Shepherd Released to Halfway House
Nov 10 2011 // A former Louisiana state senator who pleaded guilty to money laundering in a fraudulent security bond fraud case has been released from federal prison into a halfway house. The Federal Bureau of Prisons said Derrick...
Insurance Executives Turn Pessimistic Over Business Outlook: Survey
Nov 10 2011 // Many U.S. insurance executives believe that business conditions have worsened compared to a year ago. Faced with continuing economic sluggishness and a changing regulatory environment, they remain guarded about their...
North Dakota Governor Asks Legislature to Approve Disaster Help
Nov 9 2011 // North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple has unveiled a $569 million plan to provide disaster aid to flood-stricken areas and to help western North Dakota towns struggling to cope with oil development. Speaking to a joint session...
UK Court Rules Catholic Church Liable for Priest Wrongs
Nov 9 2011 // A British court has ruled that Roman Catholic priests are equivalent to employees, a decision that could pave the way for victims of sexual abuse to win damages from the church. Tuesday’s ruling involved a...
Lawmakers Urge U.S. Caution on Japan Trade Talks
Nov 9 2011 // Four senior U.S. lawmakers Tuesday urged President Barack Obama’s administration not to make a hasty decision to begin free trade talks with Japan if that country should request this week to join negotiations on a...
Oklahoma Lawmaker: State Needs to Review Earthquake Issues
Nov 8 2011 // In light of the increasing number and severity of earthquakes in Oklahoma, state Rep. Mike Shelton said lawmakers need to review disaster preparedness-and-response policies. “I represent much of eastern Oklahoma...
Appeals Court Upholds Obama Healthcare Law
Nov 8 2011 // President Barack Obama’s signature healthcare law got a boost Tuesday when a U.S. appeals court agreed with a lower court that dismissed a challenge and found the law’s minimum coverage requirement was...
Moody’s Reports on Proposed Systemic Risk Rules for Insurers
Nov 8 2011 // A key ratings agency says that recently proposed guidelines for identifying which insurers would qualify as systemic risks represent an important first step in improved federal regulation of financial institutions. The...
Congress Eyes New Income Insurance for Farmers
Nov 8 2011 // Farm-state lawmakers are moving to create a whole new subsidy that would protect farmers when their revenue drops — an unprecedented program that critics say could pay billions of dollars to farmers now enjoying...
