All the headlines from our Politics Topic Page, ordered by recency.
May 31 2011 // A plan to overhaul workers’ compensation to cut business costs and curb corruption emerged May 28 and was approved by the Illinois Senate.The measure, which came after six months of negotiations and now heads to the...
May 27 2011 // The Oregon Senate has passed a bill that makes insurance fraud in claims a crime. According to the insurance fraud bill, SB 401, fraud warnings would be mandatory on policies, noting that presenting a fraudulent claim for...
May 23 2011 // The Texas Senate has voted to renew the state Department of Insurance and give it stronger enforcement penalties when companies lose challenges to their rates.Lawmakers are considering competing bills to extend the life of...
May 19 2011 // The Oklahoma Senate has approved a more than 200-page bill that completely overhauls Oklahoma’s workers’ compensation laws. The proposal emerged in the Oklahoma House just three days before lawmakers are...
May 12 2011 // Responding to objections from Gov. Jay Nixon, Missouri lawmakers passed a revised bill that would restrict the ability of neighboring property owners to bring nuisance lawsuits against large, smelly hog farms.The...
May 4 2011 // In a renewed attack against President Barack Obama’s healthcare overhaul program, House Republicans voted Tuesday to deny funding for a central element of the law that sets up marketplaces for people to shop for...
Apr 29 2011 // The Florida Senate has passed a property insurance overhaul aimed at creating more competition in the private marketplace and also cut down on fraudulent sinkhole claims. The measure (SB 408) passed on a 25-12 vote after...
Apr 28 2011 // Gov. Bill Haslam’s proposal to limit lawsuit damages is advancing in the Tennessee Legislature.The measure was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee 6-3 on Tuesday and will now be scheduled for a vote on the...
Apr 18 2011 // A Republican plan to overhaul the Illinois workers’ compensation system failed April 14 in the state Senate, largely over the question of whether workers should be required to prove injuries are...
Apr 15 2011 // Pigs. Unicorns. Money?A scathing U.S. Senate panel report faulting Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Deutsche Bank AG and others for contributing to the financial crisis may provide ammunition for investor lawsuits accusing the...
Apr 14 2011 // A pair of bills aimed at cracking down on the runaway fraud that has vexed automobile insurers in recent years moved through a key Senate panel this week.The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee narrowly approved the...
Apr 14 2011 // Moody’s Corp. and Standard and Poor’s triggered the worst financial crisis in decades when they were forced to downgrade the inflated ratings they slapped on complex mortgage-backed securities, a U.S....
Apr 5 2011 // In an 87-12 vote, the Senate has passed a repeal of the new IRS 1099 tax reporting provision contained in the major federal healthcare reform law. The bill — H.R.4, the Small Business Paperwork Mandate Elimination Act of...
Apr 4 2011 // Legislation in Oklahoma aimed at eliminating joint and several liability, requiring that juries be provided with information on the tax impact of potential awards, and capping noneconomic damages in lawsuits have advanced...
Mar 29 2011 // The Montana Senate has passed a workers’ compensation reform bill that supporters claim will bring nearly $100 million in savings its first year.The Senate passed HB 334 by a 45-5 vote in its third reading on March...
Mar 28 2011 // A bill that would deny workers’ compensation to illegal immigrants who have jobs in Montana was tabled by a Senate committee after several insurers and businesses warned it would do more harm than good to...
Mar 24 2011 // Oklahoma state lawmakers seem to be serious about reforming the state’s tort environment. Legislation aimed at eliminating joint and several liability, requiring that juries be provided with information on the tax...
Mar 17 2011 // The Florida Senate has approved a bill that would change the apportionment of damages in product liability cases so that a judge or jury must consider the fault of all parties. The bill is designed to shield or limit the...
Mar 17 2011 // The full Senate has given its support to a bill that would make it illegal to text while driving. State Sen. Jerry Ellis is the author of Senate Bill 146 which was approved on a vote of 32 to 9.“This isn’t a...
Mar 17 2011 // Missouri senators have given first-round approval to legislation that restricts employees from suing co-workers over injuries incurred on the job.The legislation also expressly states that occupational diseases, such as...