U.S. Senator Katie Britt Leads Legislation to Prevent Federal Overreach into State-Regulated Insurance Industry

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.), a member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, today led 10 of her Senate colleagues in introducing S. 1544, the Insurance Data Protection Act. 

This legislation, which Senator Britt first introduced last Congress, would correct the Federal Insurance Office’s (FIO) efforts to overstep into the state-regulated insurance industry and return FIO to its original intent of supporting our state insurance officials.

“Our state insurance regulators have more than proven their ability to effectively and responsibly supervise the American insurance industry for over a century,” said Senator Britt. “FIO should work with, not around, state insurance officials. Over the last few years, FIO not only blatantly overstepped its lawful authority and undermined Congressional intent, but the Office sought to utilize private insurance data to advance the Biden Administration’s political agenda. This commonsense legislation would ensure the state-regulated insurance market remains strong, and would prevent redundant and unnecessary data reporting that would needlessly cost millions of dollars and put consumers’ sensitive information at risk.”

The bill would eliminate the FIO Director’s subpoena authority. FIO was created in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act with an explicit provision stating that the Office does not have general supervisory or regulatory authority over the business of insurance, which is supervised and regulated by state insurance regulators across the United States. Senator Britt’s legislation simply clarifies that FIO does not need subpoena power since it is intended to function as an informational and supportive body.

Additionally, the bill would require FIO to coordinate any data collection efforts with state insurance regulators and to assess all publicly available data and sources regarding the data being sought prior to any collection efforts. These provisions would limit unnecessary and duplicative data inquiries across state and federal landscapes and ensure federal regulators do not encroach on state efforts.

Finally, the bill sets forth confidentiality procedures and requirements governing the manner in which data can be used by financial regulators if collected from insurers. This would ensure consumers’ information remains secure. 

“For decades, our state-based insurance regulation system has resulted in highly competitive and fair markets, and we must continue to address local problems with local solutions. Unfortunately, the Biden administration’s Federal Insurance Office (FIO) overstepped its authority and pushed a radical climate agenda in insurance regulation. The Insurance Data Protection Act will take important steps to push back against federal government overreach, preserve state-based insurance regulation, and protect Americans’ data,” said Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-S.C.).

During the Biden Administration, FIO blatantly overstepped state regulators by issuing a “Climate-Related Financial Risk Data Collection,” which required industry to provide highly detailed climate-related information on a zip code-level basis. This politically driven effort undermined state-level efforts and created conflicting expectations for industry, while adding unnecessary costs ultimately just passed onto the consumer.

Cosponsors of this legislation include Chairman Scott and U.S. Senators Mike Rounds (R-S.Dak.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), John Kennedy (R-La.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Pete Ricketts (R-Nebr.), Jim Banks (R-Ind.), and Kevin Cramer (R-N.Dak.). Full text of the legislation can be viewed here.

The American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI), American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA), Association for Independent Agents (Big I), National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC), and Professional Insurance Agents (PIA) have endorsed this legislation.

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