NCOIL meets with Congressional members to discuss state-based insurance regulations

The National Conference of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL) recently met with members of Congress to discuss preserving the McCarran-Ferguson Act and a state-based system of insurance regulation, according to a Monday press release. 

“It was great for NCOIL legislators to be back on The Hill to educate Members of Congress on the importance of preserving the state-based system of insurance regulation,” said Minnesota Sen. Paul Utke, and NCOIL’s president, in the release. “Allowing states to act as ‘laboratories of democracy’ has been essential in ensuring that we are well equipped to create solutions that are best suited for protecting consumers and meeting the needs of our state’s unique insurance markets.”

Montana U.S. Rep. Troy Downings started the day by speaking to NCOIL legislators about his McCarran-Ferguson Restoration Act. The bill, H.R. 7130, would eliminate the Federal Insurance Office and establish a U.S. Insurance Representative within the Department of the Treasury. 

The representative would coordinate federal efforts and policy regarding international insurance matters. It would also make state insurance measures preempted. 

Other meetings focused on artificial intelligence, title insurance, healthcare matters, the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), and the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA). 

“It’s essential that state legislators maintain an ongoing dialogue at the federal level to ensure that insurance public policy continues to reflect the needs of our communities and the realities of the marketplace,” said Michigan Rep. Brenda Carter, and NCOIL’s secretary, in the release. “For more than 80 years, the state-based system of insurance regulation has provided a strong foundation for consumer protection, insurer solvency, and market stability. By bringing the perspectives of state legislators directly to Congress, we reinforced the value of this proven framework to ensure it remains the cornerstone of insurance regulation for many more years to come.”

NCOIL CEO Will Melofchik notes that as the insurance sector navigates evolving risks and increasingly complex policy challenges, it is essential that state legislators have a leading voice in the national conversation and continue to educate those at the federal level about the McCarran Ferguson Act.

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