Regulation/Legislation

California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner, saying there is plenty of room for private insurers to cut costs, angrily rejected an industry request for a big hike in workers' compensation rates.

The Texas Legislature has voted to reauthorize the operations of the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) during a special session last week called by Gov. Rick Perry.

The jury that must decide the dispute between American International Group and Starr International Company over SICO's use and ownership of a block of AIG stock began deliberations today.

Insurance products would be mostly exempt from oversight by the proposed U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Agency under legislation submitted to Congress last week by the Treasury Department.

The Obama administration's initial comprehensive white paper on financial services regulatory reform explicitly acknowledged that traditional property and casualty insurers did not cause the current fiscal crisis.

An insurance industry official told a congressional panel that lawmakers must be careful to ensure any expanded federal insurance does not artificially suppress rates or crowd out private carriers.