Committee advances captive-insurance bill adding reporting and reserve requirements

A legislative committee voted to report favorably on an amended bill that would impose reporting obligations and minimum cash/reserve thresholds on captive insurance companies to reduce the risk they cannot pay policyholder claims.

Committee members discussed the lawmaking history behind the measure, noting a 2021 moratorium on captives and saying the state has since grown to 96 captive insurers. Committee debate centered on tightening oversight for newly formed captives and adding technical clarifications to the statute rather than new policy expansions.

Representative Carvin read a lengthy amendment that replaces multiple lines in the bill text, covering requirements such as loss expense reserves, the use of approved independent certified public accountants and actuaries, descriptions of reinsurance, underwriting, claims and investment policies, and rate-making procedures. The amendment sets an effective date in the act: June 1, 2026.

The committee adopted the amendment after Representative Ensler moved adoption and Representative Sers seconded. Later, a motion by Representative Sers, seconded by Representative Thatcher, gave the bill a favorable report as amended; the committee chair called the vote and members signaled in favor.

The discussion included explicit concern about firms that may not be able to sustain claims payments; committee members framed the bill as a way to ensure captives disclose sufficient information and hold adequate reserves. The transcript does not record individual roll-call tallies for the votes taken.

The committee moved on to other insurance-related housekeeping items and adjourned. The bill's text, as read into the record, places new emphasis on documented actuarial and accounting oversight and expanded reporting to the insurance commissioner.

Next steps: the bill was reported favorably out of committee and will proceed according to the legislature's process for reported measures.