P&C Legislative Round-Up: June 2020

From a new pandemic act to bills addressing insurance fraud, here are the latest insurance-related legislative updates from around the U.S.

Updates from the U.S. House and across the country, including the latest pandemic-related legislation. (Photo: Shutterstock)

Editor’s Note: At the start of each month, we publish insurance legislative and regulatory news and updates from around the nation.

National updates

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Paycheck Protection Flexibility Act of 2020 (HR 7010) that will extend several deadlines for small businesses receiving PPP loans. Among its provisions, the Act will extend the program from June 30 to December 31, 2020.

On May 15, the House passed the Heroes Act (HR 6800), a $3 trillion stimulus package; however, experts assert the package is unlikely to pass in the Senate in its current form. The House bill includes measures such as making expenses covered by forgiven Paycheck Protection Loan funds tax-deductible, providing student loan aid, making an additional round of $1,200 payments, extending federal unemployment benefits and providing employers tax breaks for keeping workers on the payroll, along with suspending the cap on state and local tax, or SALT, deductions for two years.

The U.S. House adopted new rules in May that allows lawmakers to cast votes and conduct committee meetings remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-N.Y.) introduced the Pandemic Risk Insurance Act of 2020 that would create the Pandemic Risk Reinsurance Program, a system of shared public and private compensation for business interruption losses resulting from future pandemics or public health emergencies.

In a statement on the Act, Jon Gentile, VP of government relations at the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents, said: “PIA has been involved in developing this legislation and thanks Rep. Maloney for leading on such an important issue. This bill is a step in the right direction, but it’s not where it needs to be yet. We support many of its current provisions, particularly that it’s voluntary for carriers. However, we will continue to advocate for improvements to the bill throughout the legislative process.”

State updates

Arizona passed Senate Bill 1087, which increases the required auto insurance coverage limits from $15,000/$30,000/$10,000 to $25,000/$50,000/$15,000. “In the past, drivers carried insurance with a combined limit of $55,000. The bill goes into effect on July 1, 2020.

Assembly Bill 4079 was introduced in New Jersey. It would require the Department of Banking and Insurance to publish and maintain a webpage containing specific information on the ‘most wanted persons’ list for certain insurance crimes.

The Pennsylvania Senate introduced SB 1127 that would require insurers to pay business interruption claims that standard property policies do not typically cover. Specifically, the bill states that if a covered property is located within a municipality where “the presence of the COVID-19 coronavirus has otherwise been detected” then that property is “deemed to have experienced property damage.”

Louisiana introduced HB 828 that would extend fraud bureau findings under the state’s Insurance Fraud Prevention Act through 2024.

House Bill 368 passed in the Ohio House. If passed in the Senate, the legislation will form new state penalties for illegal hacking and other cybercrimes.

Illinois is movies forward with SB 3639 that states, “insurance companies offering travel insurance to residents of [Illinois] are subject to provisions of the Code concerning unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices.”

The California Department of Insurance issued Bulletin 2020-4 to extend previous requirements on directing insurers to issue premium refunds for March, April and May.

The New Jersey Department of Insurance and Banking issued Bulletin 20-22 and Order A20-03 to direct all licensed, admitted and surplus lines insurers to make an initial premium refund or other adjustments to all adversely-impacted New Jersey policyholders by June 15.

Hawaii’s SB 3159 is before the House Consumer Protection and Commerce Committee. The legislation would make it a crime to market or install counterfeit airbags.

The Hawaii House is also considering SB 2876, which would require written public adjuster contracts that must fully disclose fees, and detail the services included.

Oklahoma passed SB 1375 that amends the state’s workers’ compensation act to allow chiropractic services to the list of medical treatments allowed under the fee schedule of the state and would authorize licensed chiropractors to the list of medical providers approved to treat injured workers. The law goes into effect on November 1, 2020.

Lawmakers in Oklahoma also passed Senate Bill 1946 that gives businesses liability immunity from lawsuits that allege the business exposed an individual to COVID-19. For protection to apply, companies must comply with written COVID-19 guidance issued by the CDC, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Oklahoma Department of Health, the Oklahoma Department of Commerce, or any other state agency, board, or commission.

In May, several states enacted new legislation in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19), including:

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