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Who cares
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Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to insurance
- Returned to senate
- Died in assembly
- Referred to insurance
- Delivered to assembly
- Passed senateVote 62–0
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.1022
- Print number 4043a
- Amend and recommit to insurance
- Referred to insurance
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S4043A
Title of bill
An act to amend the insurance law, in relation to encouraging modernization of mutual and cooperative insurance companies' information systems technology
Purpose
Domestic mutual and co-operative property/casualty insurance companies are bound by New York law to hold their management expenses below a certain percentage of their net written premium income. These caps can inhibit companies from making necessary upgrades and improvements to their computer systems and software. This bill is designed to permit both mutuals and cooperative property/casualty insurers to make such important expenditures by temporarily raising the management expenses cap when computer upgrade expenses result in exceeding such cap. An additional protection against excessive costs being incurred for such upgrades is contained in the bill by providing that in no event shall the cap be raised by more than 5 percentage points.
Read the full memo (617 words)
Summary of provisions
Section 1. Amend Insurance Law section 4110(a) to temporarily raise the management expenses limit for domestic mutual property/casualty insurance companies if they incur expenses upon making a new system upgrade which places the insurer's total management expenses over the limit. This temporary increase in the limit could not exceed 5 percentage points and would be subject to approval by the superintendent. In essence, this would allow such expenses to be made even if they cause the mutual insurer to exceed the statute's management expenses cap.
Section 2. Amend Insurance Law section 6613(a) to similarly increase the management expenses limit for cooperative property/casualty insurance companies if they incur expenses upon making a new system upgrade which places their total management expenses over the limit. This temporary increase in the limit could not exceed 5 percentage points. In essence, this would allow such expenses to be made even if they cause the cooperative insurer to exceed the statute's management expenses cap.
Section 3. Effective date is immediately upon enactment.
Justification
Domestic mutual property/casualty insurance companies are important drivers of the New York state economy, employing well over 2,000 New Yorkers. In addition, they provide important property/casualty coverage to numerous New York businesses and individuals as well as businesses and individuals in other states. This legislation would assist mutual insurers by encouraging these companies to acquire state of the art, modem computer and information technology systems for purposes of maximizing customer service. In today's world, insurance consumers increasingly want "24/1" access to their insurer and its services, whether reporting a claim or filling
out a renewal for their policy. Since the vast majority of these mutual insurance companies are providing services to residents and businesses in other states, this measure helps keep these insurers thriving in New York as they engage in competition with non-New York domiciled property/casualty insurers to keep those other states' residents and businesses using insurance products created, sold and managed by New York domestic companies employing New Yorkers.
In a similar vein, this bill would also help cooperative insurance companies to continue to serve their vital role in the New York property/casualty insurance market. Cooperatives are the major insurance writers of farm owners' coverage and agricultural-related small businesses, small contractors' liability insurance, seasonal businesses, as well as small diners and taverns. Co-ops also provide employment for over 2,200 professional and clerical staff in New York State, with the vast bulk of these jobs spread throughout Upstate New York. Furthermore, New York cooperative insurance companies provide necessary property/casualty coverage to over 70,000 New York State small businesses.
In sum, this proposed legislation would help both domestic mutual insurance companies and cooperative insurance companies to upgrade their computer hardware and software in order to provide their customers with the most efficient and effective means of doing business.
Legislative history
New bill.
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
Immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.