U.S., Gulf States Considering $16 Billion BP Oil Spill Deal: WSJ

February 24, 2013Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleCommentsThe U.S. government and Gulf Coast states are considering offering BP Plc a deal under which it pays $16 billion to settle civil suits stemming from the deadly 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

The deal would cover the company’s potential penalties under the Clean Water Act and payments under the Natural Resources Damage Assessment, the newspaper said, citing sources familiar with the discussions.

It was unclear if the deal has been formally offered to BP, and both the company and the U.S. Justice Department declined to comment.

A settlement could avert a bruising courtroom battle over the worst ever U.S. offshore oil spill slated to start on Monday in New Orleans, although the trial may begin as the terms of the deal are hammered out.

A settlement would also put a solid number on BP’s costs under the Clean Water Act, which range from $4.5 billion to $17.5 billion, as well as potential natural resources damage assessments to the states under the Oil Pollution Act.

BP has spent or committed $37 billion on cleanup, restoration, payouts, settlements and fines. That includes an estimated $8.5 billion deal with most plaintiffs and a record $4.5 billion in penalties, and a guilty plea to 14 criminal counts to resolve criminal charges from the Justice Department and civil claims from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

BP has said it would settle on “reasonable terms,” but was prepared to go to trial if the demands were “excessive and not based on reality.”

 

 

Copyright 2013 Reuters. Click for restrictions.Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetCategories: National NewsTopics: BP Justice oil spill, BP oil spill settlement, Gulf states oil spill settlementHave a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk

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States Urged to Require Ignition Locks for Drunk Drivers

December 14, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticle4 Comments

A federal safety board is recommending that all states require ignition interlock devices for convicted drunk drivers, including first-time offenders.

The five-member National Transportation Safety Board said the devices are currently the best available solution to reducing drunk driving deaths, which account for about a third of the nation’s 32,000 traffic deaths each year.

In particular, the board cited a new study by its staff that found some 360 people a year are killed in wrong-way driving crashes on high-speed highways. The study concluded that 69 percent of wrong-way drivers had blood alcohol levels above the legal limit of .08.

Seventeen states already have laws requiring use of the device by all convicted drunk drivers.

 

 

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetCategories: National NewsTopics: drunk drivers ignition locks, ignition locks, National Transportation Safety Board, ntsbHave a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk

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No Relief In Sight for Drought-Stricken Plains States

January 18, 2013Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleCommentsDry weather should continue through at least the end of January in the drought-stricken U.S. Plains and a blast of Arctic cold air in the Midwest early next week poses a threat to unprotected livestock and possibly some wheat, an agricultural meteorologist said on Friday.

“The hard red winter wheat belt in the Plains looks quiet, dry and cooler next week, but there shouldn’t be a cold air threat in the Plains,” said John Dee, meteorologist for Global Weather Monitoring.

Dee said temperatures would fall to zero (degrees Fahrenheit) or below early next week in the northern Midwest, roughly north of Interstate 80. Coldest readings will be in the northern states of North and South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, northern Iowa, Illinois and Michigan.

“There’s not a lot of snow cover so there is the potential for some damage. Zero readings could reach as far west as Nebraska,” he said.

Commodity Weather Group (CWG) on Friday said most of the United States remained dry near the end of the week and showers next week would be limited to the eastern Midwest.

“Drought relief will be limited,” said Joel Widenor, CWG meteorologist.

Cold air will push into the U.S. early next week and again late in January but the cold snaps do not appear to be strong enough to damage either U.S. wheat or Florida citrus, according to CWG’s Friday report.

A series of rain showers helped ease drought conditions in parts of the United States over the last week, but drought expanded slightly in parts of the U.S. Plains, according to a report issued on Thursday.

Officials in north-central Oklahoma declared a state of emergency due to record-low reservoir conditions. Public and private interests throughout the central United States hardest hit by drought were examining measures to try to cope with ongoing drought.

The government declared much of the central and southern U.S. Wheat Belt a natural disaster area on Wednesday last week due to persistent drought threatening the winter wheat harvest.

In its first disaster declaration of the new year, the Agriculture Department made growers in large portions of four major wheat-growing states – Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas – eligible for low-interest emergency loans.

(Additional reporting by Carey Gillam in Kansas City; Editing by Dale Hudson)

 

 

Copyright 2013 Reuters. Click for restrictions.Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetCategories: National NewsTopics: Colorado drought, Commodity Weather Group, crop insurance payouts, drought crop insurance, Federal Crop Insurance, Kansas drought, Oklahoma drought, Texas drought, U.S. droughts, Wheat BeltHave a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk

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Secretary of State’s Directive Allowing Early Voting During Three Days Before Election Day Long Overdue

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Monsoons Bring Hope, Caution to Wildfire Stricken Western States

June 26, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

Monsoons are about the only thing right now that could bring much needed relief to wildfire-plagued Western states like Colorado and New Mexico, which are both on track to have fire seasons on a historic level

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11 States Adopt Plan to Distribute Surplus Lines Premium Taxes

May 25, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

States participating in the Non-admitted Insurance Multi-state Agreement, or NIMA, have adopted a premium allocation method for distributing surplus lines premium taxes on casualty insurance.

The adopted method aims to streamlines the allocation and distribution process of surplus lines premium taxes for surplus lines brokers and member states, according to NIMA. NIMA expects to launch its Surplus Lines Clearinghouse on July 1, 2012.

The allocation methodology is based on a proposal initially created by the Kentucky Department of Insurance. The “Kentucky Proposal” excludes the majority of casualty surplus lines premium from multi-state allocation. The home state will continue to collect most surplus lines tax for casualty insurance unless a casualty policy is rated on a state or location-specific basis.

“In the spirit of compromise, NIMA members have once again worked together to integrate the best ideas of its members to create a streamlined process consistent with the provisions of Dodd-Frank,” said Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty. “I am hopeful that other states that have supported the Kentucky proposal in the past will recognize this achievement, and consider joining NIMA.”

The primary advantages of this approach, NIMA says, include increasing uniformity among states, streamlining the filing process for multi-state taxes, and making it easier for insurance brokers to transition to the new system. The new allocation methodology does not require brokers to collect any additional data elements at the time of policy issuance.

“Over the past several months, the NIMA states have engaged our brokers in a discussion regarding the allocation method that will be used for premium tax allocation,” said Merle Scheiber, director of the South Dakota Division of Insurance. “The feedback we received indicated the ‘Kentucky Proposal’ was the best option for our brokers. The NIMA states respected that feedback and took decisive action to work with our brokers.”

The Florida Surplus Lines Service Office (FSLSO), which was awarded the service and license agreements to act as the Surplus Lines Clearinghouse for NIMA, has given assurances to NIMA Inc. that these changes to the premium allocation methodology could easily be incorporated into the current system by the time for the Surplus Lines Clearinghouse launch date of July 1, 2012.

The proposal is supported by the National Association of Professional Surplus Lines Offices (NAPSLO) and states that joined the Surplus Lines Multistate Compliance Compact (SLIMPACT) as well as several trade and industry groups. NIMA members will meet on Tuesday, May 29 to incorporate the Kentucky Proposal to make corresponding revisions to the NIMA Exposure Allocation Methodology, and officially amend the NIMA Agreemen

NIMA Inc., is a non-profit corporation established by NIMA states that will provide a mechanism to report, collect, allocate and distribute surplus lines tax revenues consistent with the Non-Admitted and Reinsurance Reform Act (NRRA). The NRRA became part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform legislation passed in 2010 that allows only the home state to require premium tax payments for non-admitted insurance absent an agreement. Through the NIMA agreement, participating states will be able to collect premium taxes owed to their state when they are not the home state of the policy, thus protecting each participating state’s tax revenue on surplus lines policies.

 

 

 

 

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States Receive More Flexibility and Support to Implement Insurance Exchanges

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