NU Online News Service, April 16, 4:06 p.m. – Minnesota Gov. Jesse Venture, an Independent, has signed a bill, S.F. 3015, that could create an insurance fraud prevention unit at the Minnesota Department of Commerce.

The unit, which would have the ability to arrest suspects, would be responsible for investigating fraudulent claims against insurance companies.

But the legislature still has to enact a separate measure funding the unit before the Commerce Department can create it, according to Minnesota Commerce Commissioner Jim Bernstein.

Funding the unit makes sense, because insurance fraud of all types costs the average U.S. household about $200 per year, Bernstein says in a statement on the Minnesota department Web site.