Colo. election might affect key insurance issues

Colorado faced a controversial election day, with record lines to cast ballots. Ultimately, the tide turned in the Rocky Mountain state from red to blue, marking the first time in nearly 50 years that Democrats will control the House and Senate.

Democrat Bill Ritter was elected governor, meaning there will be some changes in leadership, including the position of insurance commissioner. “We believe Ritter will name new person, but we don’t know who that will be,” said Kelly Campbell, regional manager for the Property Casualty Insurers Association Rocky Mountain region based in Denver.

As a result of the election, Amendment 41 dubbed the “ethics in government” amendment, passed by about 60 percent of voters, according to Campbell.

The amendment had four major parts and will:

1. Ban lobbyists from giving gifts or meals to public officials, government employees, and their immediate family members.

2. Prohibit public officials and government employees from accepting any amount of money or any gift worth more than $50.

3. Prohibit officeholders and state legislators from lobbying certain elected state officials for pay for two years after leaving office.

4. Create an ethics commission to hear state and local complaints, assess penalties, and issue advisory opinions. Each commissioner would have subpoena power.

Campbell said the amendment is the strictest measure of its type in the country, and could have a “chilling impact” on dialogue on such issues as medical mandates, workers’ comp reforms and credit scoring.

While there is no deadline for implementation of the bill, the governor is expected to sign it in mid-December or January.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.