Colorado Wildfire Compensation Compromise Moving Along

May 9, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

A compromise proposal to allow Colorado wildfire victims to seek state compensation in excess of liability limits remains on track for approval in the Legislature.

A Senate committee voted 5-0 Monday in favor of a bill to retroactively add state-set wildfires to the list of state immunity exemptions. The change would give victims of the recent Lower North Fork Fire the chance to seek state compensation beyond a $600,000 liability cap.

The measure already cleared the House and appears likely to reach the desk of Gov. John Hickenlooper, who supports the compromise.

A separate bill pushed by House Republicans on fire liability was amended by the Senate committee, giving that measure a longer road to becoming law.

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetCategories: West NewsTopics: Colorado wildfire, Liability, Lower North Fork Fire, wildfireHave a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk

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Missouri Senate Backs Study of State-Created Workers’ Compensation Insurer

April 6, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

The Missouri Senate has endorsed the establishment of a special committee to study whether to change a state-created workers’ compensation insurer.

Senators gave initial approval on April 4 to a bill creating a five-member Senate panel to analyze whether Missouri Employers Mutual Insurance Co. should be sold, privatized or restructured.

The Columbia-based company was created under a 1993 law at a time when many small businesses were having trouble getting reasonable rates on workers’ compensation coverage. The company has flourished to the point that it now has the largest market share among Missouri’s workers’ compensation insurers.

A recent state audit noted that the company benefits from a federal tax exemption and has built up a surplus of more than $160 million. Some lawmakers question whether that tax exemption should continue.

Insurance agents in the state have asked lawmakers to avoid a hasty response to the state audit.

 

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetCategories: Midwest NewsTopics: legislative, Missouri Employers Mutual Insurance Co., study, workers' compensationHave a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk

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