An Act to Make Corrections to the Maine Insurance Code
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 0036
Committee: Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services
Sponsors: BRENNER
Amends: 24-A MRSA §220, 24-A MRSA §1106, 24-A MRSA §1155, 24-A MRSA §1481, 24-A MRSA §2808-B, 24-A MRSA §2839-B

Legislative Document
No. 36
S.P. 28
In Senate, December 30, 2022
An Act to Make Corrections to the Maine Insurance Code
Submitted by the Department of Professional and Financial Regulation pursuant to Joint 
Rule 204.
Reference to the Committee on Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services 
suggested and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator BRENNER of Cumberland.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  24-A MRSA §220, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 1991, c. 26, is amended to 
read:
2.  Response to inquiries.  All insurers and other persons required to be licensed 
pursuant to this Title and Title 24 shall respond to all lawful inquiries of the superintendent 
that relate to resolution of consumer complaints involving the licensee within 14 days of 
receipt of the inquiry and to all other lawful follow-up inquiries of the superintendent within 
5 days of receipt.  If a substantive response can not cannot in good faith be provided 
within the required time period, the person required to respond shall so advise the 
superintendent and provide the reason for the inability to respond. The superintendent may 
adopt routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A to 
implement the requirements of this subsection.
Sec. 2.  24-A MRSA §1106, sub-§4, as amended by PL 2001, c. 524, §2, is further 
amended to read:
4.   Except as otherwise expressly provided, an insurer may not invest more than 10% 
of its assets in the securities of any one person, other than investments eligible under the 
following sections:
A.  1107 (public obligations);
B.  1108 (obligations, stock of certain federal and international agencies); and
C.  1120 (common trust funds, mutual funds), but as to this exception, only with the 
prior approval of the superintendent and only in index mutual funds in an amount up 
to 20% of the insurer's assets.; and
D.  1115 (stocks of subsidiaries), but only with the prior approval of the superintendent.
Sec. 3.  24-A MRSA §1155, as amended by PL 2001, c. 524, §3, is further amended 
to read:
§1155.  Diversification
Investments of an insurer shall be subject to the following diversification requirements 
and limitations.
1.  Real estate; personal property; equity interests; subsidiaries.  Not more than 
40% of the insurer's assets in aggregate amount may consist of investments described in 
the following subdivisions paragraphs:
A.  Real estate, section 1156, subsection 2, paragraph D, subparagraph (1);
B.  Personal property, section 1156, subsection 2, paragraph E;
C.  Equity interests, section 1156, subsection 2, paragraph F; and
D.  Subsidiaries, section 1157, except as provided in that section.
If, on or after the effective date of this subsection, the insurer makes investments of those 
types in institutions or property located within the State aggregating 1% or more of its 
assets, the 40% limitation in this subsection shall must be increased by an equal amount up 
to 45%, exclusive of those investments in institutions or property located within the State, 
thus providing for a maximum limit on the investments described in those subdivisions 
paragraphs of 50% of the insurer's assets.
2.  Government obligations; policy loans; other Counter-party limitations.  Except 
as otherwise expressly provided, an insurer may not invest in or may not incur counter-
party exposure to any one person if, after giving effect to those investments and that 
counter-party exposure, the aggregate of those investments in and that counter-party 
exposure to that person would exceed 10% of the insurer's admitted assets, with the 
following exceptions:
A.  Government obligations pursuant to section 1156, subsection 2, paragraph A;
B.  Policy loans pursuant to section 1158; and
C.  Index mutual funds, but as to this exception, only with the prior approval of the 
superintendent and limited to 20% of the insurer's admitted assets.
3.  Other investment limitations.  Other investment limitations shall be are as 
provided in particular sections of this chapter.
Sec. 4.  24-A MRSA §1481, as enacted by PL 1997, c. 457, §23 and affected by 
§55, is amended to read:
§1481.  Continuing education advisory committee Education Advisory Committee
The Continuing Education Advisory Committee is established and consists of 6 
members appointed by the superintendent for terms of 3 years each, on a staggered-term 
basis to prevent the terms of more than 2 members from expiring in any one year.  A person 
may not be reappointed to the committee for more than one 3-year term.  A person is 
ineligible for appointment to the committee unless that person is an active, full-time 
insurance producer or consultant.  Committee members are eligible for reimbursement of 
expenses. The superintendent may remove a committee member for cause.
Sec. 5.  24-A MRSA §2808-B, sub-§2-A, ¶C, as amended by PL 2019, c. 653, Pt. 
B, §5, is further amended to read:
C.  Rates for small group health plans must be filed in accordance with this section and 
subsections 2‑B and 2‑C or section 2792, as applicable, for premium rates effective on 
or after July 1, 2004, except that the rates for small group health plans are not required 
to account for any payment or any recovery of that payment pursuant to subsection 
2‑B, paragraph D and former section 6913 for rates effective before July 1, 2005.
Sec. 6.  24-A MRSA §2808-B, sub-§2-B, ¶A, as amended by PL 2009, c. 244, Pt. 
G, §2, is further amended to read:
A.  Rates subject to this subsection must be filed for approval by the superintendent. 
The superintendent shall disapprove any premium rates filed by any carrier, whether 
initial or revised, for a small group health plan unless it is anticipated that the aggregate 
benefits estimated to be paid under all the small group health plans maintained in force 
by the carrier for the period for which coverage is to be provided will return to 
policyholders at least 75% of the aggregate premiums collected for those policies, as 
determined in accordance with accepted actuarial principles and practices and on the 
basis of incurred claims experience and earned premiums. For the purposes of this 
calculation, any payments paid pursuant to former section 6913 must be treated as 
incurred claims.
Sec. 7.  24-A MRSA §2808-B, sub-§2-B, ¶D, as amended by PL 2007, c. 629, Pt. 
M, §8, is repealed.
Sec. 8.  24-A MRSA §2839-B, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2007, c. 629, Pt. M, §11, 
is further amended to read:
2.  Annual filing.  Every carrier offering group health insurance specified in subsection 
shall annually file with the superintendent on or before April 30th a certification signed 
by a member in good standing of the American Academy of Actuaries or a successor 
organization that the carrier's rating methods and practices are in accordance with generally 
accepted actuarial principles and with the applicable actuarial standards of practice as 
promulgated by an actuarial standards board.  The filing must also certify that the carrier 
has included in its experience any savings offset payments or recovery of those savings 
offset payments consistent with former section 6913. The filing also must state the number 
of policyholders, certificate holders and dependents, as of the close of the preceding 
calendar year, enrolled in large group health insurance plans offered by the carrier. A filing 
and supporting information are public records except as provided by Title 1, section 402, 
subsection 3.
SUMMARY
This bill amends the Maine Insurance Code in the following ways.
1.  It clarifies the laws governing domestic insurer investments concerning investments 
in stocks of subsidiaries.
2.  It  removes the prohibition on members of the Continuing Education Advisory 
Committee being reappointed and allows the Superintendent of Insurance to remove a 
member of the committee for cause.
3.  It removes from the small and large group health insurance rating laws obsolete 
references to the Dirigo Health savings offset payments program.
4.  It requires licensees under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 24-A and Title 24 to 
respond to all inquiries of the superintendent within 14 days of receipt of the inquiry. 
Current law requires licensees under Title 24-A to respond to inquiries that relate to 
resolution of consumer complaints involving the licensee within the 14-day time frame and 
to all other inquiries within 30 days. The bill also requires licensees to respond to follow-
up inquiries within 5 days of receipt.
5.  It makes other technical corrections.