Minnesota Legislature
HF 2112
as introduced - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 02/09/2010 01:58am
KEY: stricken = removed, old language.
underscored = added, new language.
Current Version - as introduced
1.1A resolution
1.2memorializing the Congress of the United States to oppose enactment of legislation of
1.3the substance and tenor of S. 40/H.R. 3200 -- the National Insurance Act of 2007 --
1.4proposed optional federal charter legislation.
1.5WHEREAS, the current financial crisis facing the United States and the world is causing
1.6Congress and the Administration to review the current regulatory structure presently in force
1.7with the object of revising it; and
1.8WHEREAS, the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Comptroller of the Currency,
1.9Securities and Exchange Commission, and other federal regulatory institutions failed their
1.10responsibility, causing great harm to the financial system of the United States; and
1.11WHEREAS, the prime example of the failure of the federal regulatory institutions to
1.12exercise their responsibility is AIG; and
1.13WHEREAS, the failure of AIG has been caused by the actions and activities of its holding
1.14company, the regulation of which is the sole responsibility of the federal government; and
1.15WHEREAS, the regulation of AIG's insurance company subsidiaries has been the
1.16responsibility of the state regulators who have fulfilled their responsibilities, which is
1.17demonstrated by the fact that none of the approximately 170 insurance subsidiaries has failed; and
1.18WHEREAS, regulation, oversight, and consumer protection have traditionally and
1.19historically been powers reserved to state governments under the McCarran-Ferguson Act of
1.201945; and
1.21WHEREAS, state legislatures are more responsive to the needs of their constituents and the
1.22need for insurance products and regulation to meet their state's unique market demands; and
2.1WHEREAS, many states, including Minnesota, have recently enacted and amended state
2.2insurance laws to modernize market regulation and provide insurers with greater ability to
2.3respond to changes in market conditions; and
2.4WHEREAS, state legislatures, the National Conference of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL),
2.5the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), and the National Conference of
2.6State Legislators (NCSL) continue to address uniformity issues between states by the adoption
2.7of model laws that address market conduct, product approval, agent and company licensing,
2.8and rate deregulation; and
2.9WHEREAS, new federal legislation to create a national insurance charter is expected to be
2.10introduced in 2009 that will have the potential to fundamentally alter the role of state governments
2.11in the insurance industry, thereby creating an unwieldy and unnecessary federal bureaucracy
2.12proposed without consumer and constituent demand; and
2.13WHEREAS, such initiatives as S. 40/H.R. 3200 -- the National Insurance Act of 2007 --
2.14proposed optional federal charter legislation may bifurcate insurance regulation and result in a
2.15labyrinth of federal and state directives that would promote ambiguity and confusion among
2.16consumers; and
2.17WHEREAS, bills such as S. 40/H.R. 3200 would allow insurance companies choosing a
2.18federal charter to avoid state insurance regulatory oversight and evade important state consumer
2.19protections; and
2.20WHEREAS, the mechanism that would have been set up under S. 40/H.R. 3200 cannot
2.21respond to the unique insurance market dynamics and local constituent concerns present in each
2.22of the 50 states as state regulation does; and
2.23WHEREAS, bills such as S. 40/H.R. 3200 have the potential to compromise state guaranty
2.24fund coverage, and employers could end up absorbing losses otherwise covered by these safety
2.25nets for businesses affected by insolvencies; and
2.26WHEREAS, bills such as S. 40/H.R. 3200 would ultimately impose the costs of a new and
2.27needless federal bureaucracy upon businesses and the public; and
2.28WHEREAS, many state governments derive general revenue dollars from the regulation
2.29of the business of insurance, including nearly $14 billion in premium taxes and $2.7 billion in
2.30fees and assessments generated in 2006 -- of which the state of Minnesota generated over $348
2.31million; and
3.1WHEREAS, bills such as S. 40/H.R. 3200 threaten the loss of state revenues from
3.2insurance fees and assessments, thereby putting at risk the funding of a wide array of essential
3.3state services; NOW, THEREFORE,
3.4BE IT RESOLVED by the Legislature of the State of Minnesota that it joins the National
3.5Conference of Insurance Legislators in expressing its strong opposition to creation of a federal
3.6insurance charter as proposed in S. 40/H.R. 3200 and any other such federal legislation that
3.7would threaten the power of state legislatures, governors, insurance commissioners, and attorneys
3.8general to oversee, regulate, and investigate the business of insurance, and to protect consumers.
3.9BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of State of the State of Minnesota is
3.10directed to prepare copies of this memorial and transmit them to the President and the Secretary of
3.11the United States Senate, the Speaker and the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives,
3.12the chair and members of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
3.13Affairs, the chair and members of the United States House of Representatives Committee on
3.14Financial Services, and Minnesota's Senators and Representatives in Congress.
1.2memorializing the Congress of the United States to oppose enactment of legislation of
1.3the substance and tenor of S. 40/H.R. 3200 -- the National Insurance Act of 2007 --
1.4proposed optional federal charter legislation.
1.5WHEREAS, the current financial crisis facing the United States and the world is causing
1.6Congress and the Administration to review the current regulatory structure presently in force
1.7with the object of revising it; and
1.8WHEREAS, the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Comptroller of the Currency,
1.9Securities and Exchange Commission, and other federal regulatory institutions failed their
1.10responsibility, causing great harm to the financial system of the United States; and
1.11WHEREAS, the prime example of the failure of the federal regulatory institutions to
1.12exercise their responsibility is AIG; and
1.13WHEREAS, the failure of AIG has been caused by the actions and activities of its holding
1.14company, the regulation of which is the sole responsibility of the federal government; and
1.15WHEREAS, the regulation of AIG's insurance company subsidiaries has been the
1.16responsibility of the state regulators who have fulfilled their responsibilities, which is
1.17demonstrated by the fact that none of the approximately 170 insurance subsidiaries has failed; and
1.18WHEREAS, regulation, oversight, and consumer protection have traditionally and
1.19historically been powers reserved to state governments under the McCarran-Ferguson Act of
1.201945; and
1.21WHEREAS, state legislatures are more responsive to the needs of their constituents and the
1.22need for insurance products and regulation to meet their state's unique market demands; and
2.1WHEREAS, many states, including Minnesota, have recently enacted and amended state
2.2insurance laws to modernize market regulation and provide insurers with greater ability to
2.3respond to changes in market conditions; and
2.4WHEREAS, state legislatures, the National Conference of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL),
2.5the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), and the National Conference of
2.6State Legislators (NCSL) continue to address uniformity issues between states by the adoption
2.7of model laws that address market conduct, product approval, agent and company licensing,
2.8and rate deregulation; and
2.9WHEREAS, new federal legislation to create a national insurance charter is expected to be
2.10introduced in 2009 that will have the potential to fundamentally alter the role of state governments
2.11in the insurance industry, thereby creating an unwieldy and unnecessary federal bureaucracy
2.12proposed without consumer and constituent demand; and
2.13WHEREAS, such initiatives as S. 40/H.R. 3200 -- the National Insurance Act of 2007 --
2.14proposed optional federal charter legislation may bifurcate insurance regulation and result in a
2.15labyrinth of federal and state directives that would promote ambiguity and confusion among
2.16consumers; and
2.17WHEREAS, bills such as S. 40/H.R. 3200 would allow insurance companies choosing a
2.18federal charter to avoid state insurance regulatory oversight and evade important state consumer
2.19protections; and
2.20WHEREAS, the mechanism that would have been set up under S. 40/H.R. 3200 cannot
2.21respond to the unique insurance market dynamics and local constituent concerns present in each
2.22of the 50 states as state regulation does; and
2.23WHEREAS, bills such as S. 40/H.R. 3200 have the potential to compromise state guaranty
2.24fund coverage, and employers could end up absorbing losses otherwise covered by these safety
2.25nets for businesses affected by insolvencies; and
2.26WHEREAS, bills such as S. 40/H.R. 3200 would ultimately impose the costs of a new and
2.27needless federal bureaucracy upon businesses and the public; and
2.28WHEREAS, many state governments derive general revenue dollars from the regulation
2.29of the business of insurance, including nearly $14 billion in premium taxes and $2.7 billion in
2.30fees and assessments generated in 2006 -- of which the state of Minnesota generated over $348
2.31million; and
3.1WHEREAS, bills such as S. 40/H.R. 3200 threaten the loss of state revenues from
3.2insurance fees and assessments, thereby putting at risk the funding of a wide array of essential
3.3state services; NOW, THEREFORE,
3.4BE IT RESOLVED by the Legislature of the State of Minnesota that it joins the National
3.5Conference of Insurance Legislators in expressing its strong opposition to creation of a federal
3.6insurance charter as proposed in S. 40/H.R. 3200 and any other such federal legislation that
3.7would threaten the power of state legislatures, governors, insurance commissioners, and attorneys
3.8general to oversee, regulate, and investigate the business of insurance, and to protect consumers.
3.9BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of State of the State of Minnesota is
3.10directed to prepare copies of this memorial and transmit them to the President and the Secretary of
3.11the United States Senate, the Speaker and the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives,
3.12the chair and members of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
3.13Affairs, the chair and members of the United States House of Representatives Committee on
3.14Financial Services, and Minnesota's Senators and Representatives in Congress.