He said the industry's level of success came despite the progress of some of these bills and the fact that credit scoring has "become a political issue."

Late last week in Alaska, a Senate committee approved Senate Bill 320, which prohibits insurers from using credit-based insurance scores after amending the bill to make it apply to all insurance. SB 320 previously applied only to motor vehicle insurance.

As amended, SB 320 now mirrors the prohibition on the use of credit information contained in SB 286 and House Bill 395, noted the National Association of Independent Insurers, which is based in Des Plaines, Ill.

Yet another bill in Alaska, HB 476, would prohibit the use of credit information in determining an auto insurance premium, the NAII added.

Also late last week, the House Insurance Committee in Georgia unanimously approved legislation that, trade groups say, has the potential to reduce the availability and affordability of auto insurance in the state.

According to the Washington, D.C.-based American Insurance Association, HB 1115 would:

? Require approval of credit scoring models by the Insurance Commissioner.

? Prohibit use of a credit report or score as the sole basis for deciding whether to underwrite, cancel or otherwise terminate an automobile policy, and also would prohibit the use of credit information to non-renew a policy.

? Require a consumer's written authorization to use a credit score.

? Require insurers to establish an appeals process for consumers who experience an adverse action and to issue several other mandatory notices and communications.

Dick Dorsey, AIA southeast region vice president, said the bill "represents death by a thousand cuts." He surmised that "few insurers will be willing to endure its maze of legislative and regulatory requirements in order to use credit as an underwriting and rating tool in Georgia."

At the same time, in Utah, the Senate Transportation and Public Safety Committee approved HB 110, which would ban insurers' use of credit scores in auto insurance policies.

More specifically, the current version of HB 110 would ban the use of credit scores in the determination of eligibility, underwriting, renewal, non-renewal and termination of policies. It also would limit the use of credit scores in the rating process, reported the AIA.

HB 110 also would ban independent agents from using credit scores, the AIA said.

But direct writers, governed by the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, would be able to continue using credit scores as a loss predictor in Utah. The federal statute permits the use of credit reports for insurance underwriting.

"We believe that senators understand the unfair competitive advantages that would be created if the bill were approved in its current form," said Mark Sektnan, AIA assistant vice president, western region.

"We are working very closely to craft amendments that will resolve this problem before the bill is heard on the Senate floor."

The Utah legislature is set to adjourn tomorrow.

According to lists kept by the NAII and the Indianapolis-based National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, the issue of credit scoring is being or has been considered in 23 legislatures so far this year.

In total, legislatures in 42 states are currently in session, while sessions in Louisiana and North Carolina will not convene until late April or early May. Lawmakers in the remaining states of Arkansas, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon and Texas do not meet in this even-number year.

Robert Zeman, vice president and assistant general counsel of the NAII, identified Washington, Utah, Missouri, Minnesota, Indiana, Idaho and Georgia as the states closest to enacting "onerous legislation" that would affect whether and how insurers can use consumer credit information for underwriting or rating purposes.

David Snyder, assistant general counsel for the AIA, said absent "continued effort to achieve a fair middle ground," great damage would be done to the competitiveness of the market in those states, harming both consumers and agents.

Neil Allderedge, manager of state relations for NAMIC, noted that measures in Colorado and Virginia died, while a bill in South Dakota was tabled in the House Commerce Committee.

The AIA believes that both a house bill and a senate bill in Indiana are also now dead. The House Insurance Committee chairperson tacked credit language onto a Senate health bill, "but we think that germaneness issues are going to arise when the bill goes back to the Senate," said the AIA's Mr. McManamy.

Speaking in terms of what is happening nationally, he stated that "given the political landscape, I think that we've been able to reach some reasonable compromise in a lot of states."

While the industry is "not getting 100 percent" of what it wants, it has nevertheless been able to retain the use of the credit-insurance tool in a "useful" form, Mr. McManamy stated.

He pointed out that credit-scoring bills in many states first saw light as outright bans.

"While that's still alive in a few states, for the most part, through a process of education with legislators and regulators and open dialogue with agents' groups, we've been able to reign that in a little bit and find some areas of compromise we can all live with," he stated.

The states where "the more severe bills" are still in play are those where that educational process has not moved along as much as in other states, he said.

Meanwhile, antagonism is rising as both proponents and opponents of credit scoring pitch their positions.

NAII recently accused the Minnesota Department of Commerce, which regulates insurance, with using the consumer education section of its Web site to "spread disinformation regarding insurers' use of credit-based insurance scores."

The Department of Commerce has included information about insurance scoring in the consumer tips section of its Web site.

The Web site states in part, "The Minnesota Department of Commerce questions whether a person's credit history can accurately predict the person's driving skill, insurance claims activity or insurability."

"Commerce Commissioner Jim Bernstein believes that Minnesota law must be changed," the site continues. It states that while the law does not prohibit insurance credit scoring if used properly with other underwriting criteria, "it has yet to be determined if credit scoring discriminates against minorities, the elderly, the poor or other groups."

Finally, the site states that "the burden is on the insurance industry to demonstrate that credit scoring does not single out any one class of people."

Laura Kotelman, NAII counsel, declared, "We are outraged that the Department of Commerce would use what should be objective consumer information as a tool in its lobbying efforts.

"Commerce Director Bernstein has failed to be a true protector of the public interest and is now using taxpayer dollars to campaign for his agenda," Ms. Kotelman continued. "This type of communication is inappropriate and goes beyond his role as regulator," she said.