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Legislative Update/IIAA Insider - March 15, 2019
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DUE TO AN EARLY RECESS FOR SPRING BREAK,
THERE WILL NOT BE A LEGISLATIVE UPDATE NEXT WEEK!
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NINE WEEKS DOWN!
We completed the Constitutionally required 60-day session on Thursday...but it appears to be far from over. There have been one thousand five hundred and sixty-six bills introduced and earlier in the session they eliminated a deadline when bills could no longer be introduced. So, the door for good intentions along with the possibility of mischief, remains open. We're still hoping for an early April end to the session.
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ON THE FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE FRONT
Big 'I' Testifies Before Congress on NFIP Reauthorization
Big 'I' agent encourages Congress to modernize and reauthorize the NFIP.
WASHINGTON, D.C., March 13, 2019- the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (the Big "I") testified at a hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services entitled "Preparing for The Storm - Reauthorization of The National Flood Insurance Program." Chris Heidrick, CPCU, ANFI, CFP®, principal of Heidrick & Company Insurance and Risk Management Services in Sanibel, Florida and Big "I" Flood Insurance Task Force chairman, testified on behalf of the association.
"While it is most important that the NFIP does not lapse, the Big 'I' also encourages Congress to work together to pass a true long-term reauthorization of the program as soon as possible," Hedrick said in his testimony. "Flooding is the most common and costly natural disaster and yet most property owners do not have flood insurance. As such, the Big 'I' encourages Congress to consider policies that would help more Americans obtain flood insurance coverage."
The Big "I" was the only insurance group to testify at the hearing and stressed the critical need for a long-term reauthorization as well as modernizing the NFIP and increasing flood insurance take-up rates.
The association also commented on private market involvement in the NFIP. "FEMA has publicly acknowledged on multiple occasions that we need both the NFIP and an expanded private market if we want to increase flood insurance coverage for the country because an insured survivor recovers more quickly and fully," Hedrick said. "Specifically, the Big 'I' urges Congress to consider modest policy changes that would help protect consumers and give them more choices, such as clarifying that private flood insurance can satisfy NFIP continuous coverage requirements."
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Big "I" Statement on New DOL Overtime Rule Proposal
WASHINGTON, D.C., March 8, 2019 -The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (the Big "I") today released the following statement by Charles Symington, Big "I" senior vice president of external, industry & government affairs:
"Yesterday the Department of Labor (DOL) released a notice of proposed rulemaking to update federal overtime regulations. Previously the Big 'I' joined more than 55 other business groups, as well as 21 state governments, in filing a legal challenge against the DOL related to a 2016 overtime regulation. The Big 'I' was the only insurance trade association to sue the DOL.
In November 2016, the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Texas granted an injunction to stop a previous overtime rule from taking place. As a result of the lawsuit, the DOL worked to revise the previous rule within the bounds of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Big 'I' is currently reviewing the new proposal and looks forward to working with the Trump Administration and Congress to ensure that any final overtime regulations work for all insurance agencies and brokerages and their employees."
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IN THE ARKANSAS LEGISLATURE
THE FINAL "T" IS ON A FAST TRACK
Governor Hutchinson's 2019 legislative platform was comprised of the four T's: Taxes, Teachers, Transportation and Transformation.
- Early on he passed the tax bill that lowered the top rate for upper level tax payers from 6.9% to 5.9%.
- Next, he passed his bill to increase starting teachers' salaries $1000 per year for four years.
- Last week he passed his Highway bill (Transportation) with the end goal of raising $400 million for highway construction.
- And, this week his goal is to pass his Transformation package to reduce the number of state agencies that report to him from 42 down to 15.
HB 1763
by Rep. Andy Davis and Sen. Bart Hester is a 2049-page bill that blew through the House State Agency Committee on Wednesday and passed the full House by a vote of 82 to 0 on Thursday. Among its components, it would establish the Department of Commerce as a cabinet-level department and assign powers and duties under the Transformation and Efficiencies Act of 2019. The bill would transfer 26 state departments, names the executive head as Secretary of the Department of Commerce, and authorizes the secretary to delegate functions, powers and duties to other personnel as necessary. This bill includes the Arkansas Insurance Department. Contrary to earlier reports that the individual state agencies would operate in the same manner as currently, the proposal gives broad powers to the Secretary of the Department of Commerce, including the hiring of employees for the affected departments and the possibility of naming him or herself as the Department Director. We testified against the proposal before the Senate State Agency Committee and several of the Senators supported our concerns. HOWEVER, Governor Hutchinson is putting the full court press on for the passage of this legislation. The bill was amended this week to include Rep. Matthew Shepherd, the Speaker of the House, and Sen. Jim Hendren, the President Pro Tem of the Senate, as co-sponsors. This adds even greater pressure on the House and Senate to pass the bill.
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NEW HOUSE INTRODUCTIONS
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The Transformation and Efficiencies Act of 2019
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Amends the definition of all-terrain vehicle within the prohibition against their operation on highways and streets, increasing maximum wheel and engine sizes and including utility task vehicles; allows operation by employees near state parks.
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Requires autonomous vehicles to be designed to safely negotiate railroad crossings in compliance with state and federal law and regulations.
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Provides that all-terrain-vehicle users on assume all responsibility for risk when using an all-terrain-vehicle on private property.
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Prohibits the State Insurance Department from various activities related to advertising or encouraging enrollment for the Arkansas Health Insurance Marketplace or the Arkansas Works Program.
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Updates provisions for multiple-employer health plans to comply with current federal law.
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Deletes the provision that exempts operation of motor vehicles, boats and aircraft, if doing so without the intent to cause harm, from the definition of an act of criminally injurious conduct.
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Adds vehicles that are transferred in an insurance settlement to the sales tax exemption for used vehicle purchases.
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NEW SENATE INTRODUCTIONS
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Requires health insurance companies to issue an identification card to a member that indicates whether the health benefit plan is insured or self-funded..
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Amends laws relating to distracted driving to comply with federal law, defines the offense and associated fines, limits enforcement as a secondary offense and makes various other changes.
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Amends the Uniform Contribution Among Torttfeasors Act, requiring several liability to be determined after consideration of the fault of all persons or entities.
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Limits the recovery of damages for necessary medical care, treatment or services to those costs actually paid by or on behalf of the plaintiff or which remain unpaid and for which the plaintiff or any third party is legally responsible.
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Provides that a statement of law in the American Law Institute's Restatement of the Law, Liability Insurance does not constitute the public policy of this state if inconsistent with an Arkansas statute, common law or Arkansas case law.
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In the recovery of judicial benefits, provides that an insurer paying said benefits shall have a lien upon the recovery to the extent of the payment amount and grants a right of subrogation to the insurer in certain cases.noneconomic damages in civil actions.
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| CONTACT INFORMATION State Senators: 501-682-2902 State Representatives: 501-682-6211 To view schedules, calendars, bill information and legislator information, visit: www.arkleg.state.ar.us. To view live stream video and audio from the Arkansas House of Representatives, visit www.arkansashouse.org. Independent Insurance Agents of Arkansas phone: (501) 221-2444 IIAA web site: www.iiaar.org
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| The Weekly Legislative Update is written by Lynn Zeno; edited and distributed by Kari McAfee. |
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As a reminder, the Legislative Update is sent to all IIA of Arkansas members via electronic communications unless you notify us otherwise at
kmcafee@iiaar.org or by telephone at 501-221-2444
The Legislative Update is a publication of the Independent Insurance Agents of Arkansas to members and associate members of this Association. Reproduction, by any means, of material appearing in the Legislative Update is strictly forbidden without permission.
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