Regulators and others had plenty to say here about the State Modernization and Regulatory Transparency Act draft bill.[@@]
The SMART draft, also known as the insurance regulatory reform road map draft, was released in August by Reps. Michael Oxley, R-Ohio, and Rep. Richard Baker, R-La.
Here are some of the views about the draft that attendees shared at the fall meeting of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Kansas City, Mo.
- Joel Ario, NAIC secretary-treasurer and Oregon insurance administrator: Ario said there are 2 fundamental problems with the bill, including the issue of rate deregulation and the issue of preemption. But he added that there are other areas of the proposal such as market conduct which regulators can agree upon.
- Bruce Ferguson, a spokesman for the American Council of Life Insurers, Washington: Ferguson said an ACLI survey suggests that streamlining is an important issue and that there is support for the SMART Act. He noted that the interstate compact and market conduct provisions are positive features.