They’re Baaaaack!

The lawmakers are back, at least in Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas. Louisiana has to wait until April for the pleasure. For now, though, bars and restaurants in Little Rock, Oklahoma City and Austin will rejoice in the increase in receipts from lawmakers and lobbyists as the legislative processes in their respective states play themselves out.

Modernization of insurance regulatory systems is an ongoing process. Louisiana and Texas in recent years have enacted major changes in the way insurance regulation is handled, but both states can expect further fine-tuning during the 2009 legislative sessions.

In Texas, the Texas Department of Insurance is up for Sunset Review, which means lawmakers are obligated by state law to OK the continual existence, or dissolution, of that agency and enact a bill accordingly. TDI isn’t going anywhere, obviously, but legislators are unlikely to resist mandating adjustments they believe will make the agency’s operations stronger and more effective.

Funding of the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association will once again be on the legislative table. After the physical and financial devastation left by Hurricane Ike — the giant storm that hit Galveston on Sept. 13, 2009 — Texas officials will be pressed to address the issue decisively. The state’s financial condition has the potential to be severely stressed once property insurers begin requesting the premium tax credits for a good portion of the $530 million in assessments from TWIA last year to pay claims from Hurricanes Dolly and Ike.

In Oklahoma, workers’ compensation and tort reform are issues that are destined to be taken up by lawmakers. Leaders in the Oklahoma Senate have stated that they intend to improve “the legal system and business climate by reforming the workers’ compensation system and continuing the charge to reform our tort process, thereby lowering costs, creating jobs, attracting more physicians and protecting the rights of all Oklahomans.”

In Arkansas, legislators will consider restricting the use of cell phones while driving, an issue that is not exactly insurance but definitely has an impact on the industry. One bill would allow the use of a hands-free device; another would prohibit texting while driving; others focus on restricting teenage drivers. Although the Arkansas Senate approved a measure last year that would have banned drivers under the age of 18 from using a cell phone while driving, House members rejected it.

In Louisiana, anything can happen — and usually does. The state began the year under its new file-and-use regulatory system, which replaced what Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon has called “the last-in-America political body,” the Louisiana Insurance Rating Commission. Donelon said the move to a new regulatory system has been well-received by the insurance industry. The state’s Legislature convenes April 27, but with committee meetings already underway in Baton Rouge, more changes are sure to come.

Topics Texas Legislation Louisiana Oklahoma Arkansas