I
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 3169
To provide for public access to information regarding the availability of
insurance, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
SEPTEMBER 29, 1993
Mr. KENNEDY (for himself and Mr. GONZALEZ) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs
A BILL
To provide for public access to information regarding the
availability of insurance, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the
‘‘Insurance Disclosure Act’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—
Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings and purposes.
Sec. 3. Establishment of general requirements to submit information.
Sec. 4. Reporting of noncommercial insurance information.
Sec. 5. Study of commercial insurance for residential properties and small busi-
nesses.
Sec. 6. Reporting of bid, performance, and payment bonds for small businesses.
Sec. 7. Reporting of rural insurance information.
Sec. 8. Waiver of reporting requirements.
Sec. 9. Reporting by private mortgage insurers.
Sec. 10. Use of data contractor and statistical agents.
Sec. 11. Reporting of information regarding investments by insurers.
Sec. 12. Submission of information to Secretary and maintenance of informa-
tion.
Sec. 13. Compilation of aggregate information.
Sec. 14. Availability and access system.
Sec. 15. Designations.
Sec. 16. Improved methods and reporting on basis of other areas.
Sec. 17. Annual reporting period.
Sec. 18. Disclosures by insurers to applicants and policyholders.
Sec. 19. Enforcement.
Sec. 20. Reports.
Sec. 21. Task force on agency appointments.
Sec. 22. Studies.
Sec. 23. Exemption and relation to State laws.
Sec. 24. Regulations.
Sec. 25. Definitions.
Sec. 26. Effective date.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) there are disparities in insurance coverage
provided by some insurers between areas of different
incomes and racial composition;
(2) such disparities in affordability and avail-
ability of insurance severely limit the ability of quali-
fied consumers to obtain credit for home, business,
and automobile purchases; and
(3) the lack of affordable and adequate com-
mercial insurance for small businesses severely cur-
tails the establishment and growth of such busi-
nesses.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to establish a nationwide database for deter-
mining the availability, affordability, and adequacy
of insurance coverage for consumers and small busi-
nesses;
(2) to facilitate the enforcement of Federal and
State laws that prohibit illegally discriminatory in-
surance practices; and
(3) to determine whether the extent and charac-
teristics of insurance availability, affordability, and
coverage require public officials to take any actions
(A) to remedy redlining or other illegally or unfairly
discriminatory insurance practices, or (B) regarding
areas underserved by insurers.
(c) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act is intended
to, nor shall it be construed to, encourage unsound under-
writing practices.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF GENERAL REQUIREMENTS TO
SUBMIT INFORMATION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Housing and
Urban Development shall, by regulation, establish require-
ments for insurers to compile and submit information to
the Secretary for each annual reporting period, in accord-
ance with this Act.
(b) CONSULTATION.—In establishing the require-
ments for the submission of information under this Act,
the Secretary shall consult with Federal agencies having
appropriate expertise, the National Association of Insur-
ance Commissioners, State insurance regulators, statis-
tical agents, representatives of small businesses, rep-
resentatives of insurance agents (including minority insur-
ance agents), representatives of property and casualty in-
surers, and community, consumer, and civil rights organi-
zations, as appropriate.
SEC. 4. REPORTING OF NONCOMMERCIAL INSURANCE IN-
FORMATION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The requirements established pur-
suant to section 3 to carry out this section shall—
(1) be designed to ensure that information is
submitted and compiled under this section as may be
necessary to permit analysis and comparison of—
(A) the availability and affordability of in-
surance coverage and the quality or type of in-
surance coverage, by MSA and applicable re-
gion and race and gender of policyholders; and
(B) the location of the principal place of
business of insurance agents and the race of
such agents, and the location of the principal
place of business of insurance agents termi-
nated and the race of such agents, by MSA and
applicable region; and
(2) specify the data elements required to be re-
ported under this section and require uniformity in
the definitions of the data elements.
(b) DESIGNATED INSURERS.—
(1) AGGREGATE
INFORMATION.—The regula-
tions issued under section 3 shall require that each
designated insurer for a designated line of insurance
under subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 15(c)(1)
compile and submit to the Secretary, for each an-
nual reporting period—
(A) the total number of policies issued in
such line, total exposures covered by such poli-
cies, and total amount of premiums for such
policies, by designated line and by designated
MSA and applicable region in which the insured
risk is located;
(B) the total number of cancellations and
nonrenewals (expressed in terms of policies or
exposures, as determined by the Secretary), by
designated line and by designated MSA and ap-
plicable region in which the insured risk is lo-
cated;
(C) the total number and racial character-
istics of—
(i) licensed agents of such insurer sell-
ing insurance in the designated line, by
designated MSA and applicable region in
which the agent’s principal place of busi-
ness is located; and
(ii) such agents who were terminated
by the insurer, by designated MSA and ap-
plicable region in which the agent’s prin-
cipal place of business was located; and
(D) for such designated line of insurance,
information that will enable the Secretary to as-
sess the aggregate loss experience for the in-
surer, by designated MSA and applicable region
in which the insured risk is located.
(2) SPECIFICATION
OF
INFORMATION
FOR
ITEMIZED DISCLOSURE.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The regulations issued
under section 3 regarding annual reporting re-
quirements for designated insurers for a des-
ignated line of insurance under subparagraph
(A) or (B) of section 15(c)(1) shall, with re-
spect to policies issued under the designated
line or exposure units covered by such policies,
as determined by the Secretary—
(i) specify the data elements that shall
be submitted;
(ii) provide for the submission of in-
formation on an individual insurer basis;
(iii) provide for the submission of the
information with the least burden on insur-
ers, particularly small insurers, and insur-
ance agents;
(iv) take into account existing statis-
tical reporting systems in the insurance in-
dustry;
(v) require reporting by MSA and ap-
plicable region in which the insured risk is
located;
(vi) provide for the submission of in-
formation that identifies the designated
line, and subline or coverage type;
(vii) provide for the submission of in-
formation that distinguishes policies writ-
ten in a residual market from policies writ-
ten in the voluntary market;
(viii) specify—
(I) whether information shall be
submitted on the basis of policy or ex-
posure unit; and
(II) whether information, when
submitted, shall be aggregated by like
policyholders with like policies, except
that the Secretary shall not permit
such aggregation if it will adversely
affect the accuracy of the information
reported;
(ix) provide for the submission of in-
formation regarding the number of can-
cellations and nonrenewals of policies
under the designated line by MSA and ap-
plicable region in which the insured risk is
located, by race and gender of the policy-
holder (if known to the insurer), and by
whether the policy was issued in a vol-
untary or residual market; and
(x) provide for the submission of in-
formation on the racial characteristics and
gender of policyholders at the level of de-
tail comparable to that required by the
Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975
(and the regulations issued thereunder).
(B) RULES REGARDING OBTAINING RACIAL
INFORMATION.—With respect to the informa-
tion specified in clause (x), applicants for, and