A disbanded congressional committee said the federal government should end its “special tax deal” with American International Group (AIG) that has resulted in $17.7 billion in profits for the company since 2008.

An insurance association member questioned a “closed door” meeting among consumers groups and a National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (NAIC) joint working group on automobile insurance.

A congressman from California is asking the organization representing state insurance commissioners to explain what it meant last summer when it said it wanted to “to brand itself as a ‘standard-setting organization.”

A federal judge ruled Congress’ Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional in a case over whether a government workers should be permitted to enroll her same-sex spouse in federal health insurance coverage.

A group of insurance associations is concerned about the implications that new taxes included in President Obama‘s 2013 budget proposal, introduced Feb. 13, will have on the life insurance industry.

A letter, signed by a coalition of Republican and Democratic senators, asks Senate leadership to bring a long-term reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program to the floor for a vote as soon as possible.

As a direct result of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) – also known as ObamaCare – health insurance agent and broker commissions have been slashed by as much as 50%. Agencies have been forced to lay off employees, limit products and services, shift to other lines, and have seen significant drops in compensation.

The American Center for Law and Justice has filed a second brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, this time arguing against the individual mandate in the federal health reform law.

A bipartisan, companion Senate bill to the House bill excluding insurance agent compensation from medical loss ratio (MLR) calculations will be introduced in a few days, although the political environment makes its passage uncertain.

A report expected from the Federal Insurance Office later this month, addressing how to modernize and improve insurance regulation, could significantly affect the insurance industry, according to an industry regulatory expert.