Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt this week signed a bill that gives the insurance department the authority to review insurance rate changes before they can go into effect.
Under House Bill 3781, all rates in competitive markets shall be filed 30 days before their effective date, along with supplementary information providing support for the rate change. For non-competitive markets, insurers must provide rate filings 60 days before implementation.
The legislation, takes effect July 1, 2027, moves Oklahoma from a use-and-file system to a file-and-wait system.
The new law allows the insurance commissioner to review filings and request actuarial data when rates appear excessively high, unfair or discriminatory. Notices for rate increases affecting personal auto, homeowner’s multi-peril or dwelling fire policies must be posted on the insurance department’s website.
The Oklahoma Senate and House of Representatives both overwhelmingly passed the bill earlier this month. Co-author Rep. Stacy Jo Adams, R-Duncan, said the legislation will provide a strong process to oversee rate increases in a state that faces some of the highest property insurance rates in the country.
“Oklahomans deserve to understand what is driving these insurance increases and to know that rates are based on real data, not just timing or process,” Adams said in a statement.
Senator Aaron Reinhardt, R-Jenks, another co-author, said the bill modernizes Oklahoma’s rate-regulation framework without overregulating the property/casualty market.
“Families across our state are struggling with rising insurance premiums, and this measure gives the Insurance Commissioner stronger tools to review, scrutinize and potentially disapprove excessive rates before they impact policyholders,” he said.
A G Equipment Company, a Broken Arrow, Oklahoma compressor packaging manufacturer, will pay $4,250,000 to over 40 workers and provide other relief to settle a religious and disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced.
According to the EEOC’s suit, in the fall of 2021, A G Equipment mandated that all employees receive a COVID-19 vaccination and told workers no exemptions would be permitted for any reason. Nonetheless, several employees requested exemptions based on their religious beliefs. One worker supplemented their request with a doctor’s note requesting an exemption due to a medical condition. The company refused to discuss the employees’ requests and fired all individuals who did not provide proof of vaccination, on Oct. 15, 2021, including workers who requested accommodations.
Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibit religious and disability-based discrimination. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC, et al., v. A G Equipment Company, Case No. 24-cv-00403-SEH) in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.
