On May 9, the New York state Assembly passed S.8127, which would simplify the excess-line insurance placement affidavit requirements brokers must complete before placing insurance in the excess marketplace. The bill passed the state Senate on March 23, so the final stop is the governor’s desk.
PIANY has worked diligently with the Excess Lines Association of New York and other insurance associations in the state to get this bill passed this session. It is rare that a bill passes both houses the first session it is introduced, but that is what happened here. If the bill is signed and becomes law, brokers will have a much easier time placing insurance in the excess-line market when they need to do so.
More about the bill
As stated in the sponsors’ memo, “The bill would reduce the number of data elements that a broker is required to collect and report for each of three declining licensed insurers from seven to three. The insurer name, NAIC number and the reason the broker believed the licensed insurer would consider underwriting the risk would still be recorded in an affidavit.”
As the sponsors’ memo mentions, “fewer than 20% of New York-licensed retail brokers place excess-lines business … and of those retail brokers, 70% place less than 10 transactions,” thus demonstrating that brokers only go to the excess-lines market when they need to do so.
What’s next?
The bill was returned to the Senate once the Assembly passed it, where it now awaits a call from the Gov. Kathy Hochul. PIANY and ELANY will be calling on members to help urge the governor to sign the bill in the coming months, so watch your email.
Get involved
If you want to get involved with PIANY’s legislative and advocacy work, there are many ways to engage with the association:
- participate in PIANY’s District Office Visit Program;
- become a member of Agents Advocacy Coalition; and
- watch your PIA Northeast publications and PIA Northeast’s social-media channels for important New York updates, and share them with your followers.
Katherine “Kat” Slye-Hernandez, Ph.D.
Katherine “Kat” Slye-Hernandez received her Ph.D. in political science from the State University of Albany, Albany, N.Y., in May 2020. She also has her Master of Arts from SUNY Albany and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and History from Elmira College, Elmira, N.Y.
