Declarations

Politics as Usual

“I have always run the Insurance Department with the utmost integrity and ethics, and now it’s been proven.”

—Former North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Jim Poolman voices satisfaction after a proposal to regulate the resale of life insurance policies, which he supported and played a key role in drafting, was deemed clean and not subject to improper outside pressure, a national regulatory agency has concluded. Opponents of the measure, joined by some consumer advocates, had questioned whether it was written to favor some elements of the life insurance industry, and whether its provisions were influenced by campaign contributions to Poolman and the North Dakota Republican Party. In 2006, Poolman was chairman of an NAIC committee that drafted the model legislation. The association approved its final language in June 2007. Poolman resigned this fall to work in the private sector.

Protection From Drunk Drivers

“The clients get a benefit of getting their license back early, and then the public gets the benefit of them not being able to drink and drive.”

—Repeat drunken drivers in two Minnesota counties can get back behind the wheel sooner if they pay to have blow-in-the-tube devices installed in their vehicles. In Hennepin County, 18 DWI offenders have gotten the devices installed in their vehicles. The county’s program supervisor, Emil Carlson-Clark, explained the benefits in her comments and expects more to follow. Hennepin County’s DWI court requires those who get the device to use it for at least a year. So far, results in the two pilot programs are mixed. County officials say there’s no question the ignition interlock devices keep repeat offenders from driving while impaired. But some offenders are steering clear because they can’t afford the installation or monthly fees on top of the fines, higher car insurance premiums and other costs associated with DWIs. More than 500,000 Minnesota residents have DWI arrests on their record.

Parents Need to Look Elsewhere

“Parents look to the law to provide guidance about when and how their children should be restrained but, in many cases, the laws are letting them down. State laws vary greatly throughout the U.S. and, although every state has a provision for children under age four, just 18 states and the District of Columbia require children up to the age of eight or older to be restrained in a booster seat.”

—Robert L. Darbelnet, president and CEO of AAA comments on a research study recently release by the AAA. The study showed that 30 years after the enactment of the nation’s first child safety seat law, a new survey shows parents still strongly support child safety seats and child seat laws. Yet nearly 100 children under age five die every year in crashes they could have survived if they had been using child safety seats, said AAA in calling for states to close gaps in their child passenger safety laws. According to a survey released by AAA to coincide with the 30th anniversary of Tennessee’s first-in-the-nation child safety seat law, more than half of all parents (54 percent) look to their state law for guidance on how to restrain their children.