Wis. Stat. § 601.41 — WI Code / Chapter 601 / Section 601.41
General duties and powers.
Status: in_force

(1) Duties. The commissioner shall administer and enforce chs. 600 to 655 and ss. 59.52 (11) (c) , 66.0137 (4) and (4m) , 100.203 , and 120.13 (2) (b) to (g) and shall act as promptly as possible under the circumstances on all matters placed before the commissioner.

(2) Powers. The commissioner shall have all powers specifically granted to the commissioner, or reasonably implied in order to enable the commissioner to perform the duties imposed by sub. (1) .

(3) Rules.

(a) The commissioner shall have rule-making authority under s. 227.11 (2) .

(b) The commissioner may, without the consent of the attorney general as required under s. 227.21 (2) , adopt standards of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners by incorporating by reference in rules promulgated by the commissioner any materials published, adopted, or approved by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, without reproducing the standards in full. The standards referred to in this paragraph do not include any model act or model regulation proposed or adopted by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Any materials of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners that are incorporated by reference in rules promulgated by the commissioner shall be obtainable from, and are only required to be kept on file at, the office, which shall be stated in any rule containing such an incorporation by reference. Nothing in this paragraph prohibits the commissioner from adopting standards of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners through incorporation by reference in rules in the manner provided under s. 227.21 (2) .

(4) Enforcement proceedings.

(a) The commissioner shall issue such prohibitory, mandatory, and other orders as are necessary to secure compliance with the law. An order requiring remedial measures or restitution may include any of the following:

1. Remedial measures or restitution under s. 628.347 (5) .

2. Remedial measures or restitution to enforce s. 611.72 or ch. 617 , including seizure or sequestering of voting securities of an insurer owned directly or indirectly by a person who has acquired or who is proposing to acquire voting securities in violation of s. 611.72 or ch. 617 .

(b) On request of any person who would be affected by an order under par. (a) , the commissioner may issue a declaratory order to clarify the person’s rights or duties.

(5) Informal hearings and public meetings. The commissioner may at any time hold informal hearings and public meetings, whether or not called hearings, for the purposes of investigation, the ascertainment of public sentiment, or informing the public. No effective rule or order may result from the hearing unless the requirements of ch. 227 are satisfied.

(6) Regulation of risk retention groups and risk purchasing groups.

(a) The commissioner may by rule regulate the condition and conduct of risk retention groups and risk purchasing groups doing business in this state. The commissioner may by order prohibit a risk retention group or risk purchasing group from doing business in this state.

(b) The regulation of risk retention groups and risk purchasing groups under ss. 601.72 , 618.41 , 618.415 , 618.43 , 628.02 , 628.03 and 628.48 is in addition to any other provisions of chs. 600 to 655 which apply to risk retention groups or risk purchasing groups and does not authorize a risk retention group or risk purchasing group to do an insurance business except as permitted under chs. 600 to 655 .

(7) Information and technical assistance to employees and former employees who lose health care coverage. The commissioner shall provide to employees and former employees who lose health care coverage under a group health insurance plan or self-insured health plan information and technical assistance regarding all of the following:

(a) Any rights that the individuals may have under state or federal laws affecting health benefit plans, including laws that relate to portability or continuation coverage or conversion coverage under s. 632.897 .

(b) The availability of individual health benefit plans in the area in which the individual resides.

(9) Uniform claim processing form.

(a) In this subsection, “health care provider” has the meaning given in s. 146.81 (1) (a) to (p) .

(b) If the federal government has not developed by July 1, 2003, a uniform claim processing form that must be used by all health care providers for submitting claims to insurers and by all insurers for processing claims submitted by health care providers, the commissioner shall develop, by December 31, 2003, a uniform claim processing form for that purpose.

(11) Prelicensing training.

(a) In this subsection:

1. “Instruction” means education, training, instruction, or other experience related to an occupation or profession.

2. “License” means a license, certificate, or permit issued by the commissioner under chs. 601 to 655 for an occupation or profession.

(b) In connection with the issuance of a license, the commissioner shall count any relevant instruction that an applicant for a license has obtained in connection with military service, as defined in s. 111.32 (12g) , toward satisfying any requirements for instruction for that license, if the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the commissioner that the instruction obtained by the applicant is substantially equivalent to the instruction required for the license.

(12) Fraudulent insurance acts.

(a) No person may commit a fraudulent insurance act.

(b) For purposes of this subsection, “fraudulent insurance act” includes knowingly presenting a false or fraudulent claim for payment of a loss or benefit or knowingly presenting false information in an application for insurance.

(c) If, based on an investigation, the commissioner has a reasonable basis to believe that a violation of s. 943.20 , 943.38 , 943.39 , 943.392 , 943.395 , 943.40 , or any other criminal law has occurred, the commissioner may refer the results of the investigation to the department of justice or to the district attorney of the county in which the alleged violation occurred for prosecution.

(13) Interstate regulatory reviews; consultant contracts. Notwithstanding ss. 16.70 to 16.78 , the commissioner may enter into a contract for the services of a consultant if all of the following apply:

(a) The office and the insurance department of another state are coordinating a review on a regulatory matter.

(b) The other state’s insurance department has already procured the services of the consultant.

History: 1977 c. 339 s. 43 ; 1979 c. 89 , 102 , 177 ; 1983 a. 358 s. 14 ; 1985 a. 29 ; 1985 a. 182 s. 57 ; 1987 a. 247 ; 1989 a. 187 s. 29 ; 1989 a. 201 , 336 ; 1991 a. 39 ; 1993 a. 16 ; 1995 a. 201 ; 1997 a. 27 , 51 , 252 ; 1999 a. 150 s. 672 ; 2001 a. 16 , 65 , 109 ; 2003 a. 261 , 302 ; 2005 a. 74 , 249 ; 2007 a. 170 ; 2009 a. 28 ; 2011 a. 120 ; 2013 a. 20 ; 2023 a. 19 , 212 .