Latest Legislation Headlines

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

Surplus Lines Tax Sharing Solution Still Up for Debate

Jul 21 2014 // Things have changed a bit for the surplus lines industry since the Non-admitted and Reinsurance Reform Act, (NRRA) part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform legislation, passed in 2010.The NRRA’s implementation has...

Firms Dropping Birth Control Coverage Must Inform Employees

Jul 18 2014 // Closely held companies that decide to drop insurance coverage of birth control for religious reasons have 60 days to tell their employees after they end the benefits, the Obama administration said.The Supreme Court ruled...

New York AG Proposes Bill to Blunt Effect of Hobby Lobby Ruling

Jul 17 2014 // New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and the state’s Senate Democratic Conference Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said today they would propose legislation that would help to shield New York women from the...

Senate Passes TRIA Renewal with Broker Licensing Provision

Jul 17 2014 // In a 93-4 vote, the Senate today passed the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2014 (S. 2244 ) that extends the federal reinsurance program for seven years.In addition to extending the Terrorism Risk...

New York Regulator Lawsky Proposes ‘BitLicense’ Regulatory Framework

Jul 17 2014 // New York’s financial regulation chief is proposing a “BitLicense” regulatory regime that he says will protect consumers and root out wrongdoing without stifling innovation by virtual-currency businesses...

NAIC Roadshow to Tout State Regulation to U.S., Foreign Policymakers

Jul 16 2014 // The nation’s organization of state insurance regulators is launching an educational program to sell U.S. and foreign leaders and the public on the virtues of the 150-year old state-based insurance regulatory...

Water Wasters in California Could Be Fined $500 A Day

Jul 16 2014 // In one of the most drastic responses yet to California’s drought, state regulators on Tuesday will consider fines up to $500 a day for people who waste water on landscaping, fountains, washing vehicles and other...

House Lawmakers Say ‘Too Big To Fail’ Panel Too Secretive

Jul 16 2014 // Democratic and Republican lawmakers are cooperating on legislation that would lift some of the secrecy around the U.S. council that decides which companies pose the biggest risks to the financial system.The proposed...

Miami Judge Nixes Ban on Lender Suits Against Fontainebleau Officers

Jul 15 2014 // The Fontainebleau Las Vegas LLC bankruptcy trustee may never win court approval for an $83.3 million settlement of lawsuits against former officers, directors and managers.U.S. Bankruptcy Judge A. Jay Cristol in Miami...

NAIC Hiring Consultant to Review Its Decision-Making, Governance

Jul 15 2014 // The national organization for state insurance regulators, which has been telling federal and international regulators how they should govern the industry, has decided to engage a consultant to audit its own governance and...

Former Dewey Law Firm Leaders Ask Judge to Dismiss Criminal Case

Jul 15 2014 // Former leaders of the defunct law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf have asked a New York state judge to dismiss criminal charges against them, saying they should not be made “scapegoats” for the firm’s...

North Carolina Looks to Grow Captive Insurance with Amended Law

Jul 11 2014 // North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin said North Carolina is now an even more attractive home for captive insurance companies with the enactment of a law allowing new captive types and providing some...

Judge Allows $1B Malpractice Claim Against PwC Over MF Global Collapse

Jul 11 2014 // A federal judge on Wednesday rejected PricewaterhouseCoopers’ request to dismiss a $1 billion lawsuit accusing the auditor of providing bad accounting advice that contributed to the October 2011 collapse of MF Global...

‘Share’ Economy to Bring Sweeping Changes to Pittsburgh

Jul 10 2014 // Jonathan Danial is a concierge, making sure guests have bottled water, crisp linens and the signature house banana bread — in his home.David Pavel has been a classic limo driver, chatting up his passengers as he gets...

Judge Dismisses Ex-Broker’s Privacy Claim Against Regulatory Website

Jul 10 2014 // A U.S. judge threw out a lawsuit against the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) by a former broker who alleged that disclosures on the regulator’s public database violated his privacy rights.The former...

‘Drafting Error’ Leads to Veto of Missouri Health Insurance Navigator Bill

Jul 9 2014 // Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon vetoed legislation that would have limited who could work in the state as a health insurance guide and blamed a national conservative group for injecting an error into the model legislation.The...

Court Ruling States Arizona Can’t Deny Immigrants Driver’s Licenses

Jul 8 2014 // Arizona’s policy of denying driver’s licenses to people who came to the U.S. illegally as children was blocked by a federal appeals court in San Francisco, which said the measure is probably...

Why Conservatives’ Climate Policy Won’t Work: Flavelle

Jul 8 2014 // There’s a lot to like about Eli Lehrer’s argument for National Review that conservatives should stop downplaying global warming and instead try to take advantage of it. But beyond demonstrating the promise of...

Judge Approves NFL Concussion Settlement

Jul 8 2014 // The National Football League won preliminary approval of a settlement worth at least $675 million resolving ex-players’ claims that officials failed to warn them about links between concussions and brain...

Swiss Re’s New SONAR Report Investigates 26 Emerging Risks

Jul 8 2014 // Swiss Re has released a report, “New emerging risk insights,” which is based on the reinsurer’s SONAR process, described as a “unique tool which uses Swiss Re’s internal risk management...