Ask Your Elected Officials to Co-Sponsor the Insurance Data Protection Act

For: All NAMIC members

Deadline: Friday, December 15, Close of Business

Action: Ask Your Elected Officials to Co-Sponsor the Insurance Data Protection Act

Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., led 16 senators on Nov. 28 in introducing S. 3349, the Insurance Data Protection Act, critical legislation that would eliminate the subpoena authority of the Federal Insurance Office. The bill builds on the work of the U.S. House of Representatives, where Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, R-Wis., introduced a House version of the measure, H.R. 5535, in September.

FIO announced Nov. 2 its intent to move forward with its unprecedented and duplicative climate data call. Originally proposed in October 2022, the massive data collection effort would require certain property/casualty insurers to report homeowner policy data on an annual basis.

Before subpoenaing insurers directly, FIO is required by law to first make use of publicly available information wherever possible. It also requires coordinating with state regulators, who continue to collect and refine their extensive climate-related work and have announced their own data call through the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

FIO is operating under a broader climate mandate seeking to leverage the insurance industry to achieve its goals while ignoring statutory guidance and years of climate work carried out by the industry’s functional state regulators. The office’s mission creep into this space has drawn a steady drumbeat of criticism from a diverse set of stakeholders, including the industry, Congress, and state regulators individually and collectively through the NAIC. FIO’s overreaching data call will also inflict unnecessary costs on consumers at a time when they can ill afford it.

The Insurance Data Protection Act sends a strong message to FIO by stripping its subpoena and enforcement powers, prohibiting it from collecting data directly from an insurance company.

Stand up for our industry by asking your elected officials in Washington to Co-Sponsor the Insurance Data Protection Act (H.R.5535/S.3349)!