Federal Legislative Developments

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On June 4, 2009, Representatives Gregory Meeks (D-NY) and Tom Price (R-GA) introduced H.R. 2733, the Indexed Annuities and Insurance Products Classification Act of 2009 (the “Bill”), in the U.S. House of Representatives.  If adopted, the Bill would nullify Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 151A which sought to classify indexed annuities as securities and subject them to federal regulation. …
Read More House of Representatives Introduces Bill to Nullify SEC Rule Regulating Indexed Annuities as Securities

On May 21, 2009, Representative Ron Klein (D-FL) reintroduced the Homeowners’ Defense Act of 2009, H.R. 2555 (the “Act”), which would allow states to join a national catastrophe insurance pool and would potentially reduce the cost and improve the availability of homeowners’ insurance in Florida and in other states.  As we reported here, the Act is similar to the legislation previously passed in the House, but failed to gain Senate support in 2007 and 2008. 

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Read More Representative Ron Klein (D-FL) Reintroduces the Homeowners’ Defense Act

According to industry reports, the U.S. Treasury Department is willing to inject up to $22 billion into the life insurance industry and has given preliminary approval to six life insurers to participate in the Troubled Asset Relief Program (“TARP”).  TARP is only available to life insurers with federally chartered banks, or savings-and-loan institutions. 

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Read More Treasury Opens TARP Funds to Certain Life Insurers

On Thursday, May 14, 2009, the House Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises (the “Subcommittee”) held a hearing titled, “How Should the Federal Government Oversee Insurance?” 

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Read More Hearing on Capitol Hill Asks Not Whether There Should be Federal Oversight of Insurance, but Rather How the Federal Government Should Oversee Insurance

Last month, the Obama Administration stated its position on the reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program (“NFIP”).  In a letter from Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to Representative Barney Frank, chairman of the House Committee on Financial Services, the Obama Administration announced that it “supports meaningful reforms to the NFIP and reauthorization of the NFIP through Fiscal Year 2014.” 

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Read More Obama Administration Announces Position on the National Flood Insurance Program

One of the proposed budget savings recently proposed by President Obama is a reduction in the federal government’s role in the terrorism insurance market via a reduction in funding of Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA). 

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Read More President Obama’s Proposed Budget Calls for Reduction to TRIA

On February 12, 2009, House Representative Henry “Hank” Johnson (D-GA) re-introduced legislation relating to the Federal Arbitration Act, which is now called the Arbitration Fairness Act of 2009.  In June 2008, we first reported on the initial introduction of this legislation, the Arbitration Fairness Act of 2007 (click here for previous post). …
Read More Proposed Senate Bill Seeks to Enact Significant Changes in Arbitration

On April 28, 2009, Democratic Representative Barney Frank, chairman of the U.S. House of Financial Services Committee, told the Reuters Global Financial Regulation Summit in Washington that a congressional panel will examine whether insurance companies should be regulated under an optional federal charter, which would give insurers a choice between state or federal regulation. …
Read More House Panel Hearings on Optional Federal Charter

United States Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) introduced a bill last week to provide a guarantee for the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund from the Federal Reserve.  The legislation would also provide federal guarantees for the catastrophe funds in Texas and Louisiana and the earthquake insurance pool in California (the “Cat Funds”). 

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Read More Senate Bill Seeks Federal Backstop for Four States’ Catastrophe Funds