Contact:	Caroline Fuller (202) 543-1440 c.fuller@att.net
For Release:	Immediate News Bulletin 06.22 July 27, 2006

House Financial Services Subcommittee
Approves Narrow Insurance Reform Legislation

Washington, D.C., July 27, 2006 — The House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises held a bill markup July 19 and approved H.R. 5637, insurance reform legislation, by a voice vote. The subcommittee is chaired by Rep. Richard H. Baker, R-La.

H.R. 5637 is the Non-admitted and Reinsurance Reform Act of 2006 introduced by Reps. Ginny Brown-Waite, R-Fla., and Dennis Moore, D-Kan. This very limited reform legislation will improve the regulation of non-admitted insurance and reinsurance, applying single-state regulation and uniform standards to this insurance marketplace.

The legislation would also:

• give sole regulatory and enforcement authority to the insured's home state for the placement of non-admitted insurance and create a uniform system for the collection and allocation of premium tax obligations related to non-admitted insurance;
• streamline eligibility requirements for non-admitted insurers and allow sophisticated commercial purchasers to directly access the surplus lines market;
• for reinsurance, give the ceding insurer's state of domicile sole regulatory authority for determining whether or not a particular insurer qualifies for credit for reinsurance;
• prohibit states from applying their laws in an extra-territorial manner; and
• provide uniform regulation of reinsurer solvency based upon National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) accreditation standards.

Providers of non-admitted insurance and reinsurance policies consistently encounter regulation issues, including extra-territorial application of state law, different licensing requirements that discriminate against non-resident brokers, and outdated state declination rules that deny sophisticated entities direct access to the surplus lines markets.

The Automotive Service Association is the largest not-for-profit trade association of its kind dedicated to and governed by independent automotive service and repair professionals. ASA serves an international membership base that includes numerous affiliate, state and chapter groups from both the mechanical and collision repair segments of the automotive service industry. ASA's headquarters is in Bedford, Texas.

ASA advances professionalism and excellence in the automotive repair industry through education, representation and member services. For additional information about ASA, including past news releases, go to www.asashop.org, or visit ASA's legislative Web site at www.TakingTheHill.com.

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