II

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 837

To enable drivers to choose a more affordable form of auto insurance that

also provides for more adequate and timely compensation for accident

victims, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

APRIL 20, 1999

Mr. MCCONNELL (for himself, Mr. MOYNIHAN, Mr. LIEBERMAN, and Mr.

MCCAIN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

A BILL

To enable drivers to choose a more affordable form of auto

insurance that also provides for more adequate and timely compensation for accident victims, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Auto Choice Reform Act of 1999’’.

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for

7 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
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Sec. 2. Findings.

Sec. 3. Purposes.

Sec. 4. Definitions.

Sec. 5. Auto choice insurance system.

Sec. 6. Personal injury protection system.

Sec. 7. Tort maintenance system.

Sec. 8. Source of compensation in cases of accidental injury.

Sec. 9. Preservation of State and private rights.

Sec. 10. Applicability to States.

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

2 Congress finds that—

3 (1) auto insurance premiums are too high,

4 largely because the current auto liability insurance

5 system (referred to in this section as the ‘‘present

6 system’’)—

7 (A) encourages costly fraudulent claims

8 and unnecessarily contentious behavior by both

9 claimants and defendants; and

10 (B) often requires expensive lawyers on

11 both sides of a dispute to settle claims;

12 (2) the adversarial tort system that is in effect

13 in 37 States poorly compensates the most needy in14 dividuals, in that the system—

15 (A) pays no liability benefits to more than

16 30 percent of all accident victims;

17 (B) takes too long to pay victims when it

18 does pay them;

19 (C)(i) pays victims with minor injuries an

20 average of 2 to 3 times the cost of their medical

21 bills and lost wages; but
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1 (ii) pays victims with serious injuries an

2 average of less than 50 percent of those bills

3 and lost wages; and

4 (D) pays twice as much for plaintiff and

5 defense lawyers combined as it pays for victims’

6 medical bills and lost wages;

7 (3) the chance of winning the lawsuit lottery in

8 the present system—

9 (A) results in the filing of billions of dol10 lars of fraudulent or otherwise unnecessary

11 auto insurance claims annually;

12 (B) generates billions of dollars in unnec13 essary health care costs for private, Federal,

14 and State health care programs;

15 (C) raises auto insurance premiums for all

16 drivers, including drivers operating business ve17 hicles; and

18 (D) makes auto insurance premiums

19 unaffordable for many low-income individuals;

20 (4) the present system harms cities by—

21 (A) encouraging the filing of frivolous and

22 inflated claims that cities pay at the expense of

23 all taxpayers; and

24 (B) contributing to the abandonment of

25 cities by taxpayers who can achieve substantial
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1 reductions in their auto insurance premiums by

2 moving to the suburbs;

3 (5) the present system provides individuals little

4 incentive to purchase safer automobiles;

5 (6) all of the no-fault insurance reform laws

6 that exist in 13 States provide more timely and equi7 table compensation for medical bills and lost wages

8 to more accident victims;

9 (7) some of those no-fault insurance reform

10 laws, however, have not been successful in control11 ling insurance premiums, in large part because oppo12 nents of such reform have weakened the laws by cre13 ating loopholes for unnecessary and costly lawsuits;

14 (8) the alternative form of insurance, personal

15 injury protection, that may be offered to drivers by

16 reason of this Act, gives drivers the ability to—

17 (A)(i) insure themselves in all accidents for

18 their own medical bills and lost wages; and

19 (ii) sue other drivers on the basis of fault

20 for any economic losses that are not covered by

21 their insurance; and

22 (B) forgo lawsuits against other drivers for

23 noneconomic damages on the basis of fault in

24 return for being free from suit for noneconomic

25 damages by other drivers;
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1 (9) personal injury protection, by reducing the

2 need for auto liability lawsuits and the incentives for

3 fraudulent and otherwise questionable claims,

4 could—

5 (A) save drivers billions of dollars annu6 ally; and

7 (B) enable them to receive more adequate

8 and timely compensation when they are seri9 ously injured;

10 (10) personal injury protection would benefit

11 society by—

12 (A) increasing respect for the law by elimi13 nating the incentives of the adversarial present

14 system for fraudulent claims and unnecessarily

15 contentious behavior by both claimants and de16 fendants;

17 (B) saving precious health care resources;

18 (C) making it more affordable for low-in19 come individuals to operate an automobile to

20 get to better paying jobs;

21 (D) reducing the incentives for individuals

22 to abandon cities, by providing greater savings

23 for drivers who reside in cities;

24 (E) freeing city taxpayers’ dollars for re25 ductions in taxes or expanded city programs by
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1 reducing the amount of frivolous and unneces2 sary lawsuits against cities;

3 (F) encouraging drivers to own safer auto4 mobiles by giving insurers the opportunity to

5 reduce premiums for the owners of safe auto6 mobiles; and

7 (G) helping to free up court dockets that

8 are currently overburdened with personal injury

9 lawsuits fueled by the incentives for lawsuits

10 under the present system;

11 (11) a new auto insurance system that allows

12 drivers to select the form of auto insurance that best

13 meets their needs, by choosing between—

14 (A) a modified version of the present sys15 tem; or

16 (B) the personal injury protection system

17 described in paragraph (9);

18 would enable drivers to reduce the cost of auto in19 surance, increase the amount of average compensa20 tion in the event of a serious accident, and enhance

21 individual freedom;

22 (12) the Federal Government should encourage

23 consumer choice, but not exercise regulatory author24 ity over the business of auto insurance, including
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1 rates and insurer solvency, as that authority is ap2 propriately exercised by the States;

3 (13) during the period beginning January 1,

4 1957 and ending December 31, 1996—

5 (A) the Federal Government spent more

6 than $400,000,000,000 to facilitate highway

7 construction in the United States; and

8 (B) hundreds of thousands of individuals

9 have been killed in motor vehicle accidents on

10 highways constructed with those funds;

11 (14) the auto insurers who operate in interstate

12 commerce pay greater than 70 percent of the com13 pensation paid to accident victims;

14 (15) through programs such as medicare, med15 icaid, and social security, the Federal Government

16 pays a significant amount of the costs for compen17 sating motor vehicle accident victims; and

18 (16) it is necessary and proper for Congress, in

19 the exercise of its authority to establish post roads

20 and regulate commerce under section 8 of article I

21 of the United States Constitution, to provide drivers

22 throughout the United States with an alternative to

23 address the problems of the adversarial present sys24 tem and the inadequate no-fault insurance reforms.
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1 SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

2 The purposes of this Act are as follows:

3 (1) To enable consumers of auto insurance to

4 choose between 2 insurance systems, which are—

5 (A) a tort maintenance system based on

6 applicable State law that provides for substan7 tially similar—

8 (i) insurance premiums; and

9 (ii) compensation for injuries;

10 as compared to the auto insurance system in

11 existence in that State on the date of enactment

12 of this Act; and

13 (B) a personal injury protection system

14 that—

15 (i) compensates accident victims di16 rectly for their medical bills and lost wages

17 with substantially less need to pursue law18 suits; and

19 (ii) provides the opportunity for—

20 (I) substantial reductions in auto

21 insurance premiums;

22 (II) more comprehensive recovery

23 of medical bills and lost wages in a

24 shorter period of time; and
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1 (III) the right to sue negligent

2 drivers for any uncompensated med3 ical bills or lost wages.

4 (2) To preserve the rights of States to regulate

5 the business of auto insurance.

6 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

7 In this Act:

8 (1) ACCIDENT.—The term ‘‘accident’’ means an

9 unforeseen or unplanned event that—

10 (A) causes injury; and

11 (B) arises from the operation, mainte12 nance, or use of a motor vehicle.

13 (2) ADD-ON LAW.—The term ‘‘add-on law’’

14 means a State law that provides that persons in15 jured in motor vehicle accidents—

16 (A) are compensated without regard to

17 fault for economic loss; and

18 (B) have the right to claim without any

19 limitation for noneconomic loss based on fault.

20 (3) COLLATERAL SOURCE.—The term ‘‘collat21 eral source’’ means a person, other than a tortfeasor

22 or a motor vehicle insurer, that has a legal obliga23 tion to pay compensation for economic loss to a per24 son who is injured in an accident.
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1 (4) COMMON CARRIER.—The term ‘‘common

2 carrier’’ means a motorized vehicle of any kind, li3 censed for highway use, that is—

4 (A) required to be registered under the

5 provisions of applicable State law relating to

6 motor vehicles; and

7 (B) used in the business of transporting

8 persons.

9 (5) ECONOMIC LOSS.—The term ‘‘economic

10 loss’’ means objectively verifiable pecuniary loss

11 caused by an accident for—

12 (A) reasonable and necessary medical and

13 rehabilitation expenses;

14 (B) loss of earnings;

15 (C) funeral costs; and

16 (D) replacement services loss.

17 (6) ELECTRONIC SIGNATURE.—The term ‘‘elec18 tronic signature’’ means any letters, characters, or

19 symbols executed or adopted by a party with an in20 tent to authenticate a writing that are—

21 (A) manifested by—

22 (i) electronic means; or

23 (ii) any other similar means; and

24 (B) logically associated with that writing.
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1 (7) FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY LAW.—The

2 term ‘‘financial responsibility law’’ means a law (in3 cluding a law requiring compulsory coverage) penal4 izing motorists for failing to carry defined limits of

5 tort liability insurance covering motor vehicle acci6 dents.

7 (8) FIRST PARTY BENEFITS.—The term ‘‘first

8 party benefits’’ means benefits paid or payable by an

9 insurer to an insured of that insurer under a per10 sonal injury protection policy or a tort maintenance

11 coverage policy applicable to that insured.

12 (9) INJURY.—The term ‘‘injury’’ means bodily

13 injury, sickness, disease, or death.

14 (10) INSURER.—The term ‘‘insurer’’ means—

15 (A) any person who is engaged in the busi16 ness of issuing or delivering motor vehicle in17 surance policies (including an insurance agent,

18 if appropriate) under applicable State law; or

19 (B) any person who is self-insured within

20 the meaning of applicable State law.

21 (11) MOTOR CARRIER.—The term ‘‘motor car22 rier’’ means—

23 (A) a person who—
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1 (i) transports by motor vehicle goods

2 for another person or entity for compensa3 tion; and

4 (ii) is liable to the general public for

5 the operation of the vehicle under section

6 13906 of title 49, United States Code, and

7 regulations issued by the Secretary of

8 Transportation; or

9 (B) a person who transports such person’s

10 goods by a motor vehicle that such person owns

11 or leases.

12 (12) MOTOR VEHICLE.—The term ‘‘motor vehi13 cle’’ means a vehicle with 4 or more wheels licensed

14 for highway use that is required to be registered

15 under the provisions of the applicable State financial

16 responsibility law relating to motor vehicles.

17 (13) NAMED INSURED.—The term ‘‘named in18 sured’’ means a person designated by name in a per19 sonal injury protection policy or tort maintenance

20 coverage policy as the insured.

21 (14) NO-FAULT MOTOR VEHICLE LAW.—The

22 term ‘‘no-fault motor vehicle law’’ means a State law

23 that provides that—

24 (A) persons injured in motor vehicle acci25 dents are paid compensation without regard to
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1 fault for their economic loss that results from

2 injury; and

3 (B) in return for the payment referred to

4 in subparagraph (A), claims based on fault, in5 cluding claims for noneconomic loss, are limited

6 to a defined extent.

7 (15) NONECONOMIC LOSS.—The term ‘‘non8 economic loss’’ means subjective, nonmonetary losses

9 recognized under applicable State tort law.

10 (16) OCCUPY.—The term ‘‘occupy’’ means, with

11 respect to the operation, maintenance, or use of a

12 motor vehicle, to be in or on a motor vehicle or to

13 be engaged in the immediate act of entering into or

14 alighting from a motor vehicle.

15 (17) OPERATION, MAINTENANCE, OR USE OF A

16 MOTOR VEHICLE.—

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘operation,

18 maintenance, or use of a motor vehicle’’—

19 (i) means any activity involving or re20 lated to the transportation by a motor ve21 hicle; and

22 (ii) includes occupying or being en23 gaged in the immediate act of entering into

24 or alighting from a motor vehicle before or

25 after its use for transportation.
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1 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘operation,

2 maintenance, or use of a motor vehicle’’ does

3 not include—

4 (i) conduct within the course of a

5 business of manufacturing, sale, repairing,

6 servicing, or otherwise maintaining motor

7 vehicles, unless the conduct occurs outside

8 the scope of the business activity; or

9 (ii) conduct within the course of load10 ing or unloading a motor vehicle, unless

11 the conduct occurs while occupying or

12 being engaged in the immediate act of en13 tering into or alighting from a motor vehi14 cle before or after its use for transpor15 tation.

16 (18) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ means any

17 individual, corporation, company, association, firm,

18 partnership, society, joint stock company, or any

19 other entity, including any governmental entity.

20 (19) PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION.—The

21 term ‘‘personal injury protection’’ means insurance

22 that provides for—

23 (A) benefits to a personal injury protection

24 insured for economic loss without regard to
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1 fault for injury resulting from a motor vehicle

2 accident in accordance with this Act;

3 (B) a waiver of tort claims against other

4 drivers, other than—

5 (i) claims for uncompensated eco6 nomic loss based on fault; and

7 (ii) other tort claims exempted from

8 such a waiver under this Act;

9 (C) coverage against claims for uncompen10 sated economic losses based on fault by another

11 party that is entitled to recover those losses

12 under this Act; and

13 (D) coverage against claims for economic

14 or noneconomic losses of a third party with re15 spect to which the recovery of those losses is

16 not covered under this Act.

17 (20) PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION IN18 SURED.—The term ‘‘personal injury protection in19 sured’’ means a person covered by the form of insur20 ance described in section 6.

21 (21) PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION IN22 SURER.—The term ‘‘personal injury protection in23 surer’’ means an insurer who is engaged in the busi24 ness of providing personal injury protection.
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1 (22) PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION SYS2 TEM.—The term ‘‘personal injury protection sys3 tem’’ means the insurance system described in sec4 tion 6.

5 (23) REPLACEMENT SERVICES LOSS.—The

6 term ‘‘replacement services loss’’ means expenses

7 reasonably incurred in obtaining ordinary and nec8 essary services from other persons who are not mem9 bers of the injured person’s household, in lieu of the

10 services the injured person would have performed for

11 the benefit of the household.

12 (24) RESIDENT RELATIVE OR DEPENDENT.—

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘resident rel14 ative or dependent’’ means a person—

15 (i) who is related to the named in16 sured by blood, marriage, adoption, or oth17 erwise (including a dependent receiving fi18 nancial services or support from such in19 sured); and

20 (ii) who—

21 (I) resides in the same household

22 as the named insured at the time of

23 the accident; or

24 (II) usually makes a home in the

25 same family unit as the named in-
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1 sured, even though that person may

2 temporarily live elsewhere.

3 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term does not in4 clude any person who maintains or is required

5 to maintain insurance for a motor vehicle that

6 such person owns.

7 (25) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any

8 State of the United States, the District of Columbia,

9 the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the

10 United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, the

11 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,

12 the Trust Territories of the Pacific Islands, and any

13 other territory or possession of the United States.

14 (26) TORT LIABILITY.—The term ‘‘tort liabil15 ity’’ means the legal obligation to pay damages for

16 an injury in an accident adjudged to have been

17 caused by a tortfeasor, under applicable State law.

18 (27) TORT LIABILITY INSURANCE.—The term

19 ‘‘tort liability insurance’’ means a contract of insur20 ance under which an insurer agrees to pay, on behalf

21 of an insured, damages that the insured is obligated

22 to pay to a third person because of the liability of

23 the insured to that person.

24 (28) TORT MAINTENANCE COVERAGE.—The

25 term ‘‘tort maintenance coverage’’ means insurance
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1 coverage under which a tort maintenance insured, if

2 involved in an accident with a personal injury pro3 tection insured, may recover first party benefits for

4 economic and noneconomic losses from the insurer

5 of that insured, based on fault under applicable

6 State law.

7 (29) TORT MAINTENANCE INSURED.—The term

8 ‘‘tort maintenance insured’’ means a person covered

9 by the form of insurance described in section 7.

10 (30) TORT MAINTENANCE SYSTEM.—The term

11 ‘‘tort maintenance system’’ means an insurance sys12 tem described in section 7.

13 (31) UNCOMPENSATED ECONOMIC LOSS.—

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘uncompen15 sated economic loss’’ means any objectively

16 verifiable pecuniary loss payable based on fault

17 under applicable State tort law.

18 (B) ATTORNEY’S FEES.—The term in19 cludes a reasonable attorney’s fee calculated on

20 the basis of the time actually expended and the

21 value of the attorney’s efforts as reflected in

22 payment to the attorney’s client.

23 (C) EXCEPTION.—The term does not in24 clude any attorney’s fees when the uncompen25 sated economic loss is attributable only to a de-
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1 ductible for coverage specified in subparagraph

2 (D).

3 (D) EXCLUSIONS.—Subject to section

4 8(j)(2), the term does not include amounts paid

5 or payable under—

6 (i) personal injury protection;

7 (ii) tort maintenance coverage;

8 (iii) no-fault or add-on motor vehicle

9 insurance;

10 (iv) Federal, State, or private dis11 ability or sickness programs;

12 (v) Federal, State, or private health

13 insurance programs;

14 (vi) employer wage continuation pro15 grams; or

16 (vii) workers’ compensation or similar

17 occupational compensation laws.

18 (32) UNINSURED MOTORIST.—The term ‘‘unin19 sured motorist’’ means the owner of a motor vehicle,

20 including the resident relatives or dependents of the

21 owner, who is uninsured under either the personal

22 injury protection system described in section 6 or

23 the tort maintenance system described in section

24 7—
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1 (A) at the limits prescribed by the applica2 ble State financial responsibility law; or

3 (B) an amount prescribed under section

4 6(a)(1).

5 SEC. 5. AUTO CHOICE INSURANCE SYSTEM.

6 (a) OPERATION OF THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Under this Act, an insurer

8 may offer a choice between—

9 (A) the personal injury protection system

10 described in section 6; and

11 (B) the tort maintenance system described

12 in section 7.

13 (2) ELECTION BY SELF-INSURED PERSONS.—A

14 self-insured person may elect coverage under para15 graph (1) by filing a notice with the appropriate

16 State or Federal agency.

17 (3) EFFECT OF ELECTION BY ELECTRONIC

18 MEANS.—For purposes of making an election of an

19 insurance system under this subsection, unless pro20 hibited by applicable State law, an electronic signa21 ture shall have the same force and effect as a hand22 written signature.

23 (b) EFFECT OF CHOICE ON RESIDENT RELATIVES

24 OR DEPENDENTS.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), a person who chooses either the personal

3 injury protection system or the tort maintenance

4 system also binds the resident relatives or depend5 ents of that person.

6 (2) EXCEPTION.—An adult resident relative or

7 dependent of a person described in paragraph (1)

8 may select the form of insurance that such person

9 does not select if the adult resident relative or de10 pendent makes that selection expressly in writing to

11 the insurer.

12 (3) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Insurers may

13 specify reasonable terms and conditions governing

14 the commencement, duration, and application of the

15 chosen coverage depending on the number of motor

16 vehicles and owners of such vehicles in a household.

17 (c) UNIFORMITY RULES.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding subsection

19 (b)(2), and in order to minimize conflict between the

20 insurance options, an insurer may maintain and

21 apply underwriting rules that encourage uniformity

22 in the provision of insurance benefits within a house23 hold.

24 (2) UNIFORMITY IN INSURANCE IN EMPLOY25 MENT.—Except as provided in paragraph (6), an
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1 employer that elects an insurance option described

2 in subparagraph (A) or (B) of subsection (a)(1)

3 binds the employees of that employer for purposes

4 of coverage of that employee in the course of em5 ployment by that employer.

6 (3) UNIFORMITY IN INSURANCE FOR MOTOR

7 CARRIERS.—Except as provided in paragraph (6), a

8 motor carrier that elects an insurance option de9 scribed in subparagraph (A) or (B) of subsection

10 (a)(1) binds any owner, operator, or occupant of a

11 motor vehicle operated by that motor carrier.

12 (4) UNIFORMITY IN INSURANCE FOR COMMON

13 CARRIERS.—Except as provided in paragraph (6), an

14 owner of a common carrier that elects an insurance

15 option described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of sub16 section (a)(1) binds the owner and any operator or

17 occupant of that common carrier.

18 (5) UNIFORMITY IN INSURANCE FOR MOTOR

19 VEHICLE RENTALS.—

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

21 subparagraph (B), a person who is engaged in

22 the business of renting motor vehicles and who

23 elects an insurance option described in subpara24 graph (A) or (B) of subsection (a)(1) binds any

25 operator or occupant of the rented motor vehi-
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1 cle with respect to the operation of that vehicle.

2 Such insurance under such an option shall be

3 in excess of any insurance elected pursuant to

4 subparagraph (A) or (B) of subsection (a)(1) by

5 a customer who rents a motor vehicle.

6 (B) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraph (A) shall

7 not apply if a customer who rents a motor

8 vehicle—

9 (i) specifically elects to obtain cov10 erage within the rental agreement other

11 than the coverage elected by the person en12 gaged in the business of renting the motor

13 vehicle; and

14 (ii) pays a separate charge for that

15 optional coverage.

16 (6) RIGHT OF EMPLOYEES, OPERATORS, AND

17 CERTAIN OCCUPANTS TO PURCHASE ADDITIONAL

18 COVERAGE.—

19 (A) EMPLOYEES.—An employee under

20 paragraph (2) may elect to purchase separate

21 personal injury protection or tort maintenance

22 coverage in excess of the insurance provided by

23 the employer in the scope of the employment of

24 that employee.
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1 (B) OPERATORS AND OCCUPANTS OF

2 MOTOR CARRIERS.—An operator or occupant of

3 a motor carrier under paragraph (3) may elect

4 to purchase separate personal injury protection

5 or tort maintenance coverage in excess of the

6 insurance provided to that operator or occupant

7 by the motor carrier as an operator or occupant

8 of that motor carrier.

9 (C) OPERATORS AND OCCUPANTS OF COM10 MON CARRIERS.—An operator or occupant of a

11 common carrier under paragraph (4) may elect

12 to purchase separate personal injury protection

13 or tort maintenance coverage in excess of the

14 insurance provided to that operator or occupant

15 by the owner of the common carrier as an oper16 ator or occupant of the common carrier.

17 (D) EFFECT OF ELECTION.—The election

18 by an employee, operator, or occupant to pur19 chase insurance coverage under this paragraph

20 shall not affect the liability of an employer,

21 motor carrier, or common carrier.

22 (d) FAILURE TO ELECT TYPE OF INSURANCE.—

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub24 section (b)(1), any person who fails to elect a type

25 of insurance under subsection (a)(1) shall be deemed
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1 to have elected insurance under the tort mainte2 nance system in effect in the State of that person’s

3 residence.

4 (2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—This subsection

5 shall not be construed to prevent a State from en6 acting a law that deems a person who fails to elect

7 a type of insurance under this section to have elect8 ed insurance under the personal injury protection

9 system.

10 (e) CONSUMER INFORMATION PROGRAM.—

11 (1) STATE PROGRAM.—The State official

12 charged with jurisdiction over insurance rates for

13 motor vehicles may establish and maintain a pro14 gram designed to ensure that consumers are ade15 quately informed concerning—

16 (A) the comparative cost of insurance

17 under the personal injury protection system and

18 the tort maintenance system; and

19 (B) the benefits, rights, and obligations of

20 insurers and insureds under each such system.

21 (2) INSURER PROGRAM.—An insurer that offers

22 a choice of insurance systems under subsection

23 (a)(1) shall provide to each consumer, before that

24 consumer chooses motor vehicle insurance, written
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1 consumer information to ensure that consumers are

2 adequately informed about—

3 (A) the comparative cost of insurance

4 under the personal injury protection system and

5 the tort maintenance system; and

6 (B) the benefits, rights, and obligations of

7 insurers and insureds under each system.

8 (3) ADEQUATE NOTICE.—If an insurer files

9 consumer information forms under paragraph (2)

10 with the State official charged with jurisdiction over

11 insurance rates for motor vehicles, and such forms

12 are not disapproved within a reasonable period of

13 time after that filing, such filing and use of the in14 formation in accordance with paragraph (2) shall be

15 presumed to be adequate notice.

16 (f) SUPERSEDING PROVISION.—Subject to section

17 10, this Act supersedes a State law to the extent that the

18 State law is otherwise inconsistent with the requirements

19 of this Act.

20 SEC. 6. PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION SYSTEM.

21 (a) MINIMUM POLICY REQUIREMENTS.—In order to

22 constitute a personal injury protection policy covered by

23 this Act, a motor vehicle insurance policy issued by an in24 surer shall, at a minimum—
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1 (1) for each accident, provide personal injury

2 protection benefits to each personal injury protection

3 insured in amounts equal to—

4 (A) the minimum per person limits of li5 ability insurance for personal injury under the

6 relevant State financial responsibility law appli7 cable to private passenger vehicles; or

8 (B) in a State covered by a no-fault motor

9 vehicle law, the minimum level of insurance re10 quired for no-fault benefits;

11 (2) contain provisions for a waiver of tort

12 claims against drivers other than the insured,

13 except—

14 (A) claims for uncompensated economic

15 loss based on fault; or

16 (B) other tort claims exempted from such

17 a waiver under this Act;

18 (3) contain provisions for third party liability

19 coverage in amounts equal to the minimum limits re20 quired under applicable Federal or State financial

21 responsibility law for—

22 (A) property damage; and

23 (B) bodily injury to cover—
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1 (i) uncompensated economic losses for

2 parties who are entitled to recover such

3 losses under this Act; and

4 (ii) economic and noneconomic losses

5 of third parties whose recovery is not af6 fected by this Act.

7 (b) PRIMACY OF PAYMENT.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—

9 (A) PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION BENE10 FITS.—

11 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided

12 in subparagraph (B), in any case in which

13 a personal injury protection insurer and a

14 collateral source are obligated to pay bene15 fits for the same economic loss under this

16 Act, the personal injury protection insurer

17 shall be liable for the primary payment of

18 benefits to cover that economic loss.

19 (ii) LIABILITY OF COLLATERAL

20 SOURCES.—A collateral source shall be lia21 ble for economic loss only to the extent

22 that that loss exceeds benefits paid or pay23 able by an insurer under an applicable per24 sonal injury protection insurance policy.
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•S 837 IS

1 (B) EXCEPTION.—Personal injury protec2 tion benefits shall be reduced by an amount

3 equal to any benefits provided or required to be

4 provided under—

5 (i) an applicable Federal or State law

6 for workers’ compensation;

7 (ii) any State-required nonoccupa8 tional disability insurance; or

9 (iii) any occupational disability insur10 ance covering professional drivers of motor

11 vehicles who are independent contractors.

12 (2) REIMBURSEMENT OF PAYORS.—

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—A personal injury pro14 tection insurer may take appropriate measures

15 to ensure that any person otherwise eligible for

16 personal injury protection benefits who has

17 been paid or is being paid for losses payable by

18 personal injury protection from a source other

19 than the applicable personal injury protection

20 insurer shall not receive multiple payment for

21 those losses.

22 (B) ACCRUAL OF RIGHTS.—Any right to

23 payment for losses referred to in subparagraph

24 (A) from a personal injury protection insurer

25 accrues only to that payor. Payments by a
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•S 837 IS

1 payor referred to in subparagraph (A) shall not

2 be counted against personal injury limits for

3 personal injury protection until such time as

4 the payor is reimbursed under this subpara5 graph.

6 (3) PROTECTION AGAINST DUPLICATION.—

7 Upon receipt of reasonable notice, a personal injury

8 protection insurer shall reimburse a collateral source

9 for payments made by that collateral source for eco10 nomic loss for injury resulting from a motor vehicle

11 accident, to the extent that the personal injury pro12 tection insurer is obligated to pay for that economic

13 loss.

14 (c) PROMPT AND PERIODIC PAYMENT.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—A personal injury protection

16 insurer may pay personal injury protection benefits

17 periodically as losses accrue.

18 (2) LATE PAYMENT.—A personal injury protec19 tion insurer that does not pay a claim for personal

20 injury protection benefits during the 30-day period

21 beginning on the date on which that insurer receives

22 a submission of reasonable proof of the loss for

23 which those benefits are payable, shall pay—

24 (A) the loss compounded at a rate of 24

25 percent per annum as liquidated damages; and
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•S 837 IS

1 (B) a reasonable attorney’s fee calculated

2 on the basis of the time actually expended and

3 the value of the attorney’s efforts as reflected

4 in payment to the attorney’s client.

5 (3) ADMINISTRATION OF PERSONAL INJURY

6 PROTECTION BENEFITS.—To the extent consistent

7 with this Act, any applicable provision of a State no8 fault motor vehicle law or add-on law governing the

9 administration of payment of benefits without ref10 erence to fault shall apply to the payment of benefits

11 under personal injury protection under this sub12 section.

13 (d) AUTHORIZATIONS FOR DEDUCTIONS AND EXCLU14 SIONS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—A personal injury protection

16 insurer may write personal injury protection—

17 (A)(i) without any deductible; or

18 (ii) subject to a reasonable deductible; and

19 (B) with an exclusion of coverage for first

20 party benefits to cover the losses of the per21 sonal injury protection insured caused by that

22 insured’s—

23 (i) driving under the influence of alco24 hol or illegal drugs; or
32

•S 837 IS

1 (ii) driving while seeking to inten2 tionally injure another person.

3 (2) APPLICABILITY OF DEDUCTIBLES.—The

4 deductibles and exclusions described in paragraph

5 (1) shall apply only to—

6 (A) the person named in the applicable in7 surance policy; and

8 (B) the resident relatives or dependents of

9 the person described in subparagraph (A).

10 SEC. 7. TORT MAINTENANCE SYSTEM.

11 (a) MINIMUM POLICY REQUIREMENTS.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The coverage for a person

13 who chooses insurance under section 5(a)(1)(B)

14 shall include—

15 (A) the type of motor vehicle insurance

16 that is otherwise required under applicable

17 State law; and

18 (B) tort maintenance coverage at a level

19 that is at least equivalent to the level of insur20 ance required under the applicable State finan21 cial responsibility law for bodily injury liability.

22 (2) RESPONSIBILITY FOR PAYMENT UNDER

23 TORT MAINTENANCE COVERAGE.—The responsibility

24 for payment for any claim under tort maintenance

25 coverage is assumed by the insurer of the person
33

•S 837 IS

1 with tort maintenance coverage to the extent of such

2 coverage.

3 (b) ADDITIONAL PAYMENTS FROM UNINSURED MO4 TORIST COVERAGE AND UNDERINSURED MOTORIST COV5 ERAGE.—A tort maintenance insured who also purchases

6 an insurance policy that provides uninsured motorist cov7 erage or underinsured motorist coverage may recover

8 under the terms of that policy for any economic or non9 economic loss arising from an accident involving a per10 sonal injury protection insured, in any case in which the

11 amount of those economic or noneconomic losses exceed

12 the aggregate amount recovered or recoverable from the—

13 (1) tort maintenance insured; and

14 (2) personal injury protection insured.

15 SEC. 8. SOURCE OF COMPENSATION IN CASES OF ACCI16 DENTAL INJURY.

17 (a) ACCIDENTS INVOLVING PERSONS CHOOSING THE

18 TORT MAINTENANCE SYSTEM.—

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—A tort maintenance insured

20 who is involved in an accident with another person

21 shall be subject to applicable State law for injury ex22 cept that, based on fault, that person may, upon

23 submission of proof of insurance—
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•S 837 IS

1 (A) recover from any personal injury pro2 tection insured for uncompensated economic

3 loss (and not for noneconomic loss); and

4 (B) be liable to a personal injury protec5 tion insured for uncompensated economic loss

6 (and not for noneconomic loss).

7 (2) ALLOCATION OF TORT MAINTENANCE PAY8 MENTS.—In determining the extent of recovery of a

9 tort maintenance insured from a personal injury

10 protection insured under subsection (b), the pay11 ments made to the tort maintenance insured from

12 tort maintenance coverage shall first be allocable to

13 economic loss, and any remainder may be allocable

14 to noneconomic loss.

15 (b) ACCIDENTS INVOLVING PERSONS CHOOSING THE

16 PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION SYSTEM.—

17 (1) RIGHT TO RECOVER ECONOMIC LOSS.—A

18 personal injury protection insured who is injured in

19 an accident may recover under the policy of that in20 sured only for economic loss, without regard to fault.

21 (2) RIGHT TO SUE FOR UNCOMPENSATED ECO22 NOMIC LOSS BASED ON FAULT.—A personal injury

23 protection insured who is involved in an accident

24 with a tort maintenance insured, or another personal

25 injury protection insured, may recover based on fault
35

•S 837 IS

1 from that other insured for uncompensated economic

2 loss (and not for noneconomic loss).

3 (c) ALLOCATION OF COMPARATIVE FAULT.—In any

4 case in which a claim is made under this Act for uncom5 pensated economic loss on the basis of comparative fault

6 under applicable State law, the recovery of damages shall

7 be based on the percentage of fault with respect to the

8 amount of uncompensated economic loss.

9 (d) ACCIDENTS INVOLVING PERSONS CHOOSING THE

10 PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION SYSTEM AND PERSONS

11 WHO ARE UNLAWFULLY UNINSURED.—

12 (1) RIGHTS OF PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION

13 INSUREDS.—A personal injury protection insured

14 who is involved in an accident with an uninsured

15 motorist—

16 (A) shall be compensated under the in17 sured person’s policy for economic loss without

18 regard to fault; and

19 (B) may recover from the uninsured mo20 torist (other than under uninsured or under21 insured motorist coverage) for economic loss

22 and for noneconomic loss based on fault.

23 (2) LIMITATIONS ON LAWSUITS BY UNINSURED

24 MOTORISTS.—An uninsured motorist may not re-
36

•S 837 IS

1 cover from a personal injury protection insured for

2 noneconomic loss.

3 (e) ACCIDENTS INVOLVING MOTORISTS UNDER THE

4 INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL OR ILLEGAL DRUGS OR IN5 FLICTING INTENTIONAL INJURY.—Notwithstanding any

6 other provision of this Act, a personal injury protection

7 insured who is in an accident may—

8 (1) recover all damages based on fault under

9 applicable State law from a person who—

10 (A) at the time of the accident, was driving

11 under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs

12 (as those terms are defined under applicable

13 State law); or

14 (B) caused an injury while seeking to in15 tentionally injure another person; and

16 (2) be liable for all damages based on fault

17 under applicable State law, if such insured—

18 (A) at the time of the accident, was driving

19 under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs

20 (as those terms are defined under applicable

21 State law); or

22 (B) caused an injury while seeking to in23 tentionally injure another person.

24 (f) RIGHTS OF LAWFULLY UNINSURED PERSONS.—

25 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to affect the tort
37

•S 837 IS

1 rights or obligations of any person lawfully uninsured

2 under the terms of an applicable State law for insurance

3 under either the personal injury protection system or tort

4 maintenance system under section 5(a)(1).

5 (g) RIGHTS OF PERSONS OCCUPYING MOTOR VEHI6 CLES WITH FEWER THAN 4 LOAD-BEARING WHEELS.—

7 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to affect the tort

8 rights or obligations of a person who occupies a motor ve9 hicle with fewer than 4 load-bearing wheels or an attach10 ment thereto, unless an applicable contract for personal

11 injury protection under which that person is insured speci12 fies otherwise. The preceding sentence applies without re13 gard to whether the person is otherwise legally insured for

14 personal injury protection or tort maintenance coverage.

15 (h) FORFEITURE OF FRAUDULENT CLAIMS.—An

16 owner, operator, or occupant of a motor vehicle involved

17 in an accident forfeits the right to make a claim against

18 an insured motorist for economic or noneconomic loss re19 sulting from injury incurred by that owner, operator, or

20 occupant if that owner, operator, or occupant knowingly

21 participated in a scheme to obtain insurance payments for

22 any accident that was staged with the intent to commit

23 insurance fraud.

24 (i) PRIORITY OF BENEFITS.—
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•S 837 IS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), a personal injury protection insured or a

3 tort maintenance insured may recover first party

4 benefits only under the coverage of that insured in

5 effect at the time of the accident.

6 (2) EXCEPTIONS.—

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

8 subparagraph (B), with respect to an accident

9 that occurred while an injured individual was

10 occupying a motor vehicle—

11 (i) furnished by an employer, the pri12 mary coverage shall be the coverage appli13 cable to the motor vehicle; or

14 (ii) that was being used in the busi15 ness of transporting individuals or prop16 erty, the primary coverage shall be the cov17 erage applicable to that motor vehicle.

18 (B) CERTAIN CLAIMANTS.—A claimant

19 may claim first party benefits in an amount

20 greater than the amounts determined under the

21 limits under the primary insurance coverage de22 scribed in clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (A),

23 if that claimant would otherwise be able to re24 ceive those increased benefits by reason of in25 surance coverage of that claimant that would
39

•S 837 IS

1 otherwise apply, but for the operation of sub2 paragraph (A).

3 (j) REIMBURSEMENT RIGHTS OF PERSONAL INJURY

4 PROTECTION INSURERS AND COLLATERAL SOURCES.—

5 (1) REIMBURSEMENT RIGHTS OF PERSONAL IN6 JURY PROTECTION INSURERS.—

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—A personal injury pro8 tection insurer may seek reimbursement under

9 subparagraph (B), from—

10 (i) an uninsured motorist who is liable

11 for damages caused by the accident;

12 (ii) a motorist who was under the in13 fluence of alcohol or illegal drugs at the

14 time of the accident;

15 (iii) a person who caused an injury

16 while seeking to intentionally injure an17 other person; or

18 (iv) any other person who is not af19 fected by the limitations on tort rights and

20 liabilities under this Act.

21 (B) REIMBURSEMENT.—A personal injury

22 protection insurer may seek reimbursement

23 under this subparagraph to the extent of the

24 obligations of that insurer, with respect to pay25 ments for a personal injury protection insured
40

•S 837 IS

1 of that insurer with respect to an accident

2 caused in whole or in part, as determined in ac3 cordance with applicable State law, from a per4 son referred to in subparagraph (A), for the

5 losses that insurer—

6 (i) has paid or reimbursed; or

7 (ii) under applicable law, is obligated

8 to pay.

9 (2) REIMBURSEMENT RIGHTS OF COLLATERAL

10 SOURCES.—With respect to an accident, a collateral

11 source may seek reimbursement from an insurer in

12 a civil action based on fault.

13 (3) PROHIBITION ON MULTIPLE RECOVERY.—In

14 any action to recover losses arising out of an acci15 dent, a person may not recover or introduce into evi16 dence in a civil action against another person any

17 amount of a loss that a collateral source or personal

18 injury protection insurer—

19 (A) has paid or reimbursed; or

20 (B) is obligated to pay.

21 (k) CHOICE OF LAW.—

22 (1) APPLICABLE LAW.—With respect to a claim

23 relating to a motor vehicle accident involving persons

24 from different States, the choice-of-law principles
41

•S 837 IS

1 applicable under the law of the State of competent

2 jurisdiction shall apply.

3 (2) APPLICABLE COVERAGE IN AN AUTO

4 CHOICE STATE.—With respect to an accident that

5 involves a person from a State in which this Act

6 does not apply and a person from a State in which

7 this Act applies, in any case in which the accident

8 occurs in a State in which this Act applies, the cov9 erage of the person from the State in which this Act

10 does not apply shall be deemed to be the form of in11 surance (whether personal injury protection or tort

12 maintenance coverage) that most closely reflects the

13 form of insurance that that person maintains in the

14 State of residence of that person.

15 (l) JURISDICTION.—This Act shall not confer juris16 diction on the district courts of the United States under

17 section 1331 or 1337 of title 28, United States Code.

18 (m) STATUTES OF LIMITATIONS.—

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2),

20 nothing in this Act shall supersede an applicable

21 State law that imposes a statute of limitations for

22 claims related to an injury caused by an accident,

23 except that such statute shall be tolled during the

24 period during which any personal injury protection

25 or tort maintenance coverage benefits are paid.
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•S 837 IS

1 (2) CLAIMS.—Unless otherwise provided by

2 State law, a claim for personal injury protection

3 benefits under this Act shall be filed not later than

4 2 years after the economic loss that is the subject

5 of the claim is incurred.

6 (n) LIMITATIONS ON NONRENEWAL, CANCELLATION,

7 AND PREMIUM INCREASES.—An insurer shall not cancel,

8 fail to renew, or increase the premium of a person insured

9 by the insurer solely because that insured person or any

10 other injured person made a claim for—

11 (1) personal injury protection benefits; or

12 (2) tort maintenance coverage benefits in any

13 case in which there is no basis for ascribing fault to

14 the insured or one for whom the insured is vicari15 ously liable.

16 (o) NEGLIGENT DRIVER RATINGS.—Nothing in this

17 Act shall be construed to limit insurers from canceling,

18 failing to renew, or increasing premiums for an insured

19 person if there is a basis for ascribing moving traffic viola20 tions or fault for an accident caused by that insured or

21 any resident relative or dependent, or employee of that in22 sured.

23 (p) IMMUNITY.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para25 graph (2), no insurer, insurance agent or broker, in-
43

•S 837 IS

1 surance producer representing a motor vehicle in2 surer, automobile residual market plan, or attorney

3 licensed to practice law within a State, or any em4 ployee of any such person or entity, shall be liable

5 in an action for damages on account of—

6 (A) an election of—

7 (i) the tort maintenance system under

8 section 5(a)(1)(B); or

9 (ii) the personal injury protection sys10 tem under section 5(a)(1)(A); or

11 (B) a failure to make a required election.

12 (2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not

13 apply in any case in which—

14 (A) a person described in that

15 paragraph—

16 (i) willfully and intentionally mis17 represents the insurance choices available

18 to a customer or client of that person; or

19 (ii) willfully and with the intent to de20 fraud, induces the election of 1 motor vehi21 cle insurance system described in para22 graph (1)(A) over the other motor vehicle

23 insurance system described in that para24 graph; and
44

•S 837 IS

1 (B) the misrepresentation or inducement

2 under subparagraph (A) was the proximate

3 cause of that customer or client’s electing or

4 failing to make an election of an insurance sys5 tem under subparagraph (A) or (B) of section

6 5(a)(1).

7 SEC. 9. PRESERVATION OF STATE AND PRIVATE RIGHTS.

8 (a) RIGHTS OF STATES.—Nothing in this Act shall

9 be construed—

10 (1) to waive or affect any defense of sovereign

11 immunity asserted by any State under any law or by

12 the United States;

13 (2) to preempt State choice-of-law rules with re14 spect to claims brought by a foreign nation or a cit15 izen of a foreign nation;

16 (3) to affect the right of any court to transfer

17 venue, to apply the law of a foreign nation, or to dis18 miss a claim of a foreign nation or of a citizen of

19 a foreign nation on the ground of inconvenient

20 forum;

21 (4) to preclude a State from enacting a law

22 that mandates that claims by personal injury protec23 tion insureds for uncompensated economic loss be

24 submitted for nonbinding alternative dispute resolu25 tion before any action may be maintained;
45

•S 837 IS

1 (5) to preclude a State from requiring personal

2 injury protection insurers to offer first party insur3 ance that establishes a dollar value for noneconomic

4 loss in objectively verifiable defined classes of cases

5 involving death or serious and permanent bodily in6 jury;

7 (6) to preclude a State from enacting a law ap8 plicable to all motor vehicle accident cases, including

9 cases covered by this Act, to establish a minimum

10 dollar value for economic losses for defined classes

11 of cases involving death or serious bodily injury;

12 (7) to preclude a State from providing that

13 forms of insurance other than those listed in section

14 6(b) shall be subtracted from personal injury protec15 tion insurance benefits otherwise payable for injury;

16 or

17 (8) to preclude a State from enacting a law

18 that—

19 (A) allows litigation by tort maintenance

20 insureds against personal injury protection in21 sureds for economic and noneconomic loss; and

22 (B) assures through a reallocation device

23 that the advantage of tort claim waivers by per24 sonal injury protection insureds against tort
46

•S 837 IS

1 maintenance insureds is reflected in the pre2 miums of personal injury protection insureds.

3 (b) PRESERVATION OF STATE REGULATORY AU4 THORITY.—Nothing in this Act may be construed—

5 (1) to preclude a State or State official charged

6 with regulatory authority over the business of insur7 ance from fully exercising that regulatory authority,

8 including adopting regulations and procedures

9 regarding—

10 (A) rates;

11 (B) policy forms;

12 (C) company solvency;

13 (D) consumer protection;

14 (E) underwriting and marketing practices;

15 and

16 (F) carrying out the requirements of this

17 Act; or

18 (2) to allow or provide for Federal regulation of

19 motor vehicle insurance.

20 (c) RIGHTS OF PRIVATE PARTIES.—Nothing in this

21 Act may be construed—

22 (1) to require a personal injury protection in23 surer to offer, or a personal injury protection in24 sured to purchase, any coverage for bodily injury in

25 addition to the coverage required under this Act, in-
47

•S 837 IS

1 cluding uninsured motorist coverage, underinsured

2 motorist coverage, or coverage for medical payments;

3 (2) to prevent insurers and insureds from con4 tracting to limit recovery for the loss of earnings

5 under personal injury protection by—

6 (A) limiting such recovery to only 60 per7 cent or more of lost wages or income;

8 (B) limiting the amount of such recovery

9 payable per week; or

10 (C) limiting the period of time after an ac11 cident during which the benefits referred to in

12 this paragraph are payable to a period of not

13 less than 1 year;

14 (3) to prevent an insurer from contracting with

15 personal injury protection insureds to limit the

16 amounts payable for replacement services loss on a

17 per day or per week basis;

18 (4) to prevent an insurer from contracting with

19 insureds, as permitted by applicable State law, to

20 have submitted to arbitration any dispute with re21 spect to payment of personal injury protection or

22 tort maintenance coverage;

23 (5) to affect the worker classification of a per24 son, either as an employee or an independent con25 tractor, on the basis of the election of an employer
48

•S 837 IS

1 or motor carrier of an insurance system under sec2 tion 5(a); or

3 (6) to affect the awarding of punitive damages

4 under any applicable State law.

5 SEC. 10. APPLICABILITY TO STATES.

6 (a) ELECTION OF NONAPPLICABILITY BY STATES.—

7 Subject to subsections (c) through (e), this Act shall apply

8 with respect to a State, unless—

9 (1) by not later than the earlier of the date that

10 is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act or

11 the expiration of the first regular legislative session

12 of the State beginning after the date of enactment

13 of this Act, the State enacts a statute that—

14 (A) cites the authority of this subsection;

15 (B) declares the election of that State that

16 this Act shall not apply with respect to that

17 State; and

18 (C) contains no other provision; or

19 (2)(A) the State official charged with jurisdic20 tion over insurance rates for motor vehicles makes a

21 finding that this Act does not apply by reasons of

22 the applicability of the conditions described in sub23 section (b)(1)(A); and
49

•S 837 IS

1 (B) that finding is made and any review de2 scribed in subsection (b)(1)(B) is completed not

3 later than the date specified in subsection (b)(1)(C).

4 (b) NONAPPLICABILITY BASED ON STATE FIND5 ING.—

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—This Act shall not apply

7 with respect to a State, if—

8 (A) the State official charged with jurisdic9 tion over insurance rates for motor vehicles

10 makes a finding that the statewide average

11 motor vehicle premiums for bodily injury insur12 ance in effect immediately before the date of

13 enactment of this Act will not be reduced by an

14 average of at least 30 percent for persons

15 choosing the personal injury protection system,

16 in the amounts required under section 6 (with17 out including in the calculation for personal in18 jury protection insureds any costs for unin19 sured, underinsured, or medical payments cov20 erage)’’;

21 (B) the finding described under subpara22 graph (A) is supported by evidence adduced in

23 a public hearing and reviewable under the appli24 cable State administrative procedure law; and
50

•S 837 IS

1 (C) the finding described under subpara2 graph (A) is made, and any review of such find3 ing under subparagraph (B) is completed, not

4 later than 120 days after the date of enactment

5 of this Act.

6 (2) COMPARISON OF BODILY INJURY PRE7 MIUMS.—For purposes of making a comparison

8 under paragraph (1)(A) of premiums for personal

9 injury protection with preexisting premiums for bod10 ily injury insurance (in effect immediately before the

11 date of enactment of this Act), the preexisting bodily

12 injury insurance premiums shall include premiums

13 for—

14 (A) bodily injury liability, uninsured and

15 underinsured motorists’ liability, and medical

16 payments coverage; and

17 (B) if applicable, no-fault benefits under a

18 no-fault motor vehicle law or add-on law.

19 (c) IMPLEMENTATION PERIOD.—Except as provided

20 in subsection (d), if a State fails to enact a law by the

21 applicable date specified in paragraph (1) of subsection

22 (a) or if a finding described in paragraph (2) of that sub23 section is not made and reviewed by the date specified in

24 subsection (b)(1)(C), this Act shall apply to that State be-
51

•S 837 IS

1 ginning on the date that is 270 days after the later of

2 those dates.

3 (d) ACCELERATED APPLICABILITY.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), a

5 State may enact a law that provides for the imple6 mentation of the provisions of this Act in that State

7 before an otherwise applicable date determined

8 under subsection (a).

9 (2) APPLICABILITY.—If a State makes an elec10 tion under paragraph (1), this Act shall apply to

11 that State beginning on the date that is 270 days

12 after such election.

13 (e) ELECTION OF NONAPPLICABILITY BY A STATE

14 AFTER THIS ACT BECOMES APPLICABLE WITH RESPECT

15 TO THE STATE.—After this Act becomes applicable with

16 respect to a State under subsection (c) or (d), this Act

17 shall cease to apply with respect to that State if the State

18 enacts a statute that meets the requirements of subpara19 graphs (A) through (C) of subsection (a)(1).

Æ