House Passes International Insurance Standards Bill by a Voice Vote

Members of the House approved an international insurance standards bill by a voice vote Tuesday, in spite of opposition to the bill from the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) and the Reinsurance Association of America (RAA).

The bill, H.R. 4537, the ”International Insurance Standards Act of 2017,” would encourage the people representing U.S. interests in talks at international insurance standards groups, such as the Insurance Association of Insurance Supervisors, to seek standards that would be consistent with the U.S. state-based insurance regulation system.

The bill would also create procedures Congress could use to review and block the adoption of international insurance standards in the United States.

(Related: Life Insurers, P&C Insurers Clash Over International Standards Bill)

The bill was introduced by Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wis., and Rep. Denny Heck, D-Wash.

Members of the House Financial Services Committee voted 56-4 to approve the bill in December. Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., was one of the committee members who voted against H.R. 4537 in December. He is continuing to try to rally opposition to the bill.

The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America and the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies have lobbied for H.R. 4537.

The ACLI and the RAA wrote a  joint letter opposing the bill July 6, according to a copy of the letter provided by Royce. The groups said in the letter that the latest version of the bill they had seen would make U.S. efforts to adopt international insurance standards too difficult.

Before the bill can become law, it must also be passed by the Senate.

— Read Insurance Trade Negotiation Bill May Split Industryy, on ThinkAdvisor.

— Connect with ThinkAdvisor Life/Health on Facebook and Twitter.