Legislators with an interest in insurance and financial services are wondering what more they can do to defend their states’ financial services rules from federal agencies.
State lawmakers have included a number of states’ rights measures on the agenda for the National Council of Insurance Legislators’ 2018 annual meeting.
(Related: 5 Reasons This Week’s NAIC Meeting Is… Different)
NCOIL members began the four-day meeting today in Oklahoma City.
The members are meeting as the Nov. 6 general election results have given control of the U.S. House to Democrats, and given Democrats control over the House, the Senate, the governorship or some combination of those entities in some states that had been dominated completely by Republicans.
Political analysts had been predicting before the elections took place that an increase in dysfunction in Washington could give state-level policymakers more clout.
The NCOIL Agenda
Many of this week’s NCOIL sessions deal with federal agency efforts to bend or ignore federal laws and traditions that are supposed to leave regulation of the business of insurance, and some other matters, in the hands of states.
Under federal law, for example, the McCarran-Ferguson Act of 1945 is supposed to give states authority over insurance.
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) gives the federal government the authority to preempt state benefits rules.