Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Appeals Court Rules for Miss. Lawmakers in Raid on Insurance Fund
Jan 18 2008 // The Mississippi Legislature had authority to raid an insurance fund in 2004 to balance the state budget, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled. The Mississippi Surplus Lines Association sued the state after the...
AAA Calls Child Safety Laws Inadequate
Jan 18 2008 // Thirty years after the enactment of the nation’s first child safety seat law, a new survey shows parents strongly support child safety seats and child seat laws. Yet nearly 100 children under age five die every year...
Tennessee Restaurant Owners Looking at $4.8M Worker’s Comp Bill
Jan 18 2008 // Restaurant owners across Tennessee may have to pay thousands each to shore up a workers’ compensation fund that the state says was mismanaged. The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance is suing Ronnie Hart,...
Nearly 1M in Tenn. Drive without Insurance; Lawmaker Wants Change
Jan 18 2008 // Cardella Cummings’ car wreck left her dizzy and confused. Her insurance paid for the damage, but not because the accident was her fault. “I thought you had to have insurance because it’s the law,”...
House Democrats Pass Mine Safety Bill Despite Bush Veto Threat
Jan 18 2008 // Defying White House veto threats, the Democratic-controlled House this week passed sweeping mine safety legislation aimed at preventing future underground disasters like the one that took nine lives last year at Crandall...
Va. Takes Step Toward Repeal of Costly Bad Driver Fees
Jan 18 2008 // The costly bad-driving fees on Virginians took a first step toward repeal in a chaotic proceeding this week, barely six months after they took effect. Lawmakers, however, stripped the bill of reimbursements for people who...
Fla. Halts Allstate from Writing New Business in All Lines; Insurer Appeals
Jan 18 2008 // The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation issued a final order immediately suspending Allstate Insurance Co. and its subsidiaries from writing any new business in all lines of insurance in Florida – including auto...
New Federal Mine Safety Legislation up for Vote
Jan 17 2008 // More than two dozen Appalachian families who have lost loved ones in coal accidents are supporting a federal bill that would mandate more safety measures. Among the supporters are the widows of the 2006 Kentucky Darby...
Pa. Senate Panel Advances Long-Delayed Mine Safety Measure
Jan 17 2008 // A bill that would install a slew of safety measures into Pennsylvania’s long-outdated law protecting coal miners received unanimous approval from a state Senate committee this week. The bill, which is headed for a...
Fla. Senate ‘Invites’ 5 Insurance Co. Execs to Provide Sworn Testimony
Jan 16 2008 // The Florida Senate Select Committee on Property Insurance Accountability sent letters to five property and casualty insurance company executives Tuesday requesting their presence in Tallahassee on Feb. 4 and Feb. 5 to...
Allstate Responds to Fla. Insurance Commissioner’s Regulatory Actions
Jan 16 2008 // In a written statement responding to the Florida Insurance Commissioner suspending Allstate’s certificate of authority Wednesday, the insurer said it is committed to working diligently with the Office of Insurance...
Fla. Regulator Vows Enforcement of 2007 Law, Insurers Weigh In
Jan 15 2008 // Florida’s requiring that insurance company executives testify publicly about why their property insurance rates have not gone down proves the state is serious about its efforts to make property insurance available...
Wis. Judge Orders $715,000 Restitution from Man Who Caused Crash
Jan 15 2008 // A Sussex man convicted of injuring a 59-year-old woman in a drunken vehicle crash was ordered to pay more than $715,000 in restitution. Jeffrey D. Thieme Jr., 27, was sentenced to five years in prison after he pleaded no...
Okla. Bill Would Require Cigarettes to Be ‘Fire Safe’
Jan 15 2008 // Oklahoma State Rep. Joe Dorman filed a measure for the upcoming legislative session that would make Oklahoma the 31st state to require cigarettes sold within the state to be so-called “fire-safe cigarettes,”...
Judge Cancels Former Okla. Commissioner’s Tax-Evasion Trial
Jan 14 2008 // A judge in Tulsa is calling off former Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner Carroll Fisher’s tax-evasion trial that was to start Feb. 11. Associate District Judge Dana Kuehn says Fisher must have another preliminary...
Declarations
Jan 13 2008 // Frankel-y Speaking “I consider the role the Mississippi Insurance Department has played in bringing Mr. Frankel and his co-conspirators to justice to be one of the finest accomplishments during my time in...
Stronger Earthquake Code Rules For Ark. On Hold
Jan 13 2008 // An Arkansas legislative committee in early January 2008 put off a review of the state’s building code after lawmakers questioned costs related to making structures withstand earthquakes that come once every 2,500...
Texas Establishes Performance Incentives for Workers’ Comp Carriers, Providers
Jan 13 2008 // The Texas Department of Insurance Division of Workers’ Compensation now has in place a rule establishing incentives for performance-based oversight for workers’ comp carriers and health care providers. The...
Montana High Court Rules in Favor of Employees in Workers’ Comp Cases
Jan 13 2008 // The Montana Supreme Court has ruled in favor of two employees in recent workers’ compensation decisions, saying they are due insurance for injuries received while on break and at a company party. In one case, a woman...
Aiming to Improve Alaska
Jan 13 2008 // A small state like Alaska sometimes has trouble convincing the property/casualty insurance industry of creating opportunities in its state. So Alaska Director of Insurance Linda Hall relies on her experiences as a former...
