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Committee advances insurance 'cleanup' bill to modernize licensing, notices and remove outdated disclosure
Summary
Senate File 52, a multi-point cleanup bill from the Wyoming Department of Insurance, passed committee to modernize code language: remove requirement for hard-copy certificates of authority, require updated insurer contact details, change service method from registered to certified mail, and repeal an outdated wellness-benefit disclosure.
The Senate Corporations Committee advanced Senate File 52, a Department of Insurance cleanup bill that revises multiple sections of the insurance code to modernize licensing and notice requirements.
Tana Howard, Deputy Commissioner of Insurance, told the committee the bill is intended to remove obsolete requirements and clarify existing definitions. "This is Senate File 52, Insurance Amendments, or as internally we call this at the insurance department, our cleanup bill," she said. The committee voted to advance the bill by roll call; recorded ayes were unanimous among committee members present.
Major changes
- Certificates of authority: The bill removes statutory language that requires insurers to receive and return a hard-copy ("original") certificate of authority. The department will continue to verify licensure online or by phone and will provide hard copies on request.
- Contact information requirement: Insurers will be required to provide and promptly update contact information so the department can reach licensed companies quickly when complaints or legal service needs arise. Howard told the committee the change aims to speed complaint resolution by avoiding delays locating current company contacts.
- Method of service: The bill replaces a requirement for sending legal notices by "registered mail" with "certified mail," a change the department described as aligning statutory language with common postal usage; both methods provide delivery confirmation.
- Cancellation/nonrenewal clarification: The draft clarifies that statutorily prescribed cancellation/nonrenewal notice timelines do not apply to short-term temporary insurance contracts that are inherently shorter than the notice period.
- Removal of wellness-benefit disclosure: The bill repeals an outdated statutory requirement that health insurers place a prominent disclosure on policy forms stating that the policy "may contain wellness benefits." Deputy Commissioner Howard said that wellness benefits are now common and that insurers continue to disclose benefits in the contract itself; the standalone disclosure causes consumer confusion and is unique to Wyoming.
Committee action and testimony
No opposition testimony was recorded in committee. Industry representatives present described the bill as noncontroversial"cleanup"; committee members characterized it as a routine modernization that had been vetted with industry in the interim. Senator Bonar moved the bill; the committee recorded ayes from Senators Bonar, Dockstader, Landon, Steinmetz and Chairman Case.
Next steps
The committee advanced the bill to the Senate floor; members anticipated prompt floor consideration. Deputy Commissioner Howard said staff will work with the committee members who carry the bill to provide final materials and talking points.
