INSURANCE CODE TASK FORCE

Agency History #3187

CREATION On February 25, 1985, the Utah State Legislature created the Insurance Code Task Force (ICTF) when it passed S.B. 232, the state's recodified insurance law. The bill charged the ICTF with reviewing, amending , and receiving public comment on the new code before its effective date of July 1, 1986 (Laws of Utah, 1985, Ch. 242). The Legislature created the Insurance Law Revision Commission (ILRC) on March 11, 1981 to rewrite Utah's insurance laws in an effort to encourage the growth of the state's insurance industry (Laws of Utah, 1981, Ch. 141). The ILRC completed its revisions on February 25, 1985 with the passing of S.B. 232. Following their eight month review of the ILRC's recodification, the Legislature passed ICTF proposed amendments as S.B. 91 on February 26, 1986 . See Agency 3182, Insurance Law Revision Commission for more information.

FUNCTIONS The creation of the Insurance Code Task Force was, in part, an attempt to involve all of the detractors to S.B. 232 (1985) in an additional review process before the bill became law. The primary functions of the task force included: "1. - to provide a[n additional - eight month] forum for the public airing of suggestions concerning the new Insurance Code; 2. - study the [sixteen contentious] issues described under subsection 8; 3. - give periodic reports and recommendations to the Business, Labor and Economic Development [BLED] Interim Committee (of Utah Legislature); 4. - submit final recommended amendments to the BLED interim committee for consideration by the 1986 Legislature" (Laws of Utah, 1985, Ch. 242).

ADMINISTRATION The ICTF was composed of thirteen members appointed for the full eight-month term. The governor appointed twelve of the members including one member of the Senate and one of the House of Representatives. The insurance commissioner was an ex officio member. The governor was to appoint all replacements.

ORGANIZATIONAL HISTORY In 1985, the senate bill creating the ICTF (S.B. 232) charged the Office of Legislative Research and General Council to provide the necessary staff assistance for the task force, and authorized it to contract with qualified persons not employed with that office to that end. The task force created three subcommittees (Administration, Property and Casualty, and Life and Health) to review and make recommendations on issues of particular difficulty. As chair of the task force, Senate appointee, Fred W. Finlinson, appointed all subcommittee members (Laws of Utah, 1985. Ch. 242).

COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Senator Fred W. Finlinson, Chairman
Representative Ted D. Lewis, Vice-Chairman
Representative Kay Browning
Roger C. Day
Harold Yancey (succeeded Roger Day as Insurance Commissioner and ex officio member 8/17/85)
Arthur O. Dummer
David Engleberg
Lorin C. Miles
John F. Peircey
David Ross
Duane Slaugh
J. Leon Sorenson
Gordon Strachan
Clark Fetzer

COMPILED BY: Michael A. Church, , August 2003

SOURCES

Insurance Code Task Force. Minutes and administrative records, 1985-1986, Series 25138.

Legislature. Laws of Utah, Chapter 242, 1985, Insurance Law Recodification.

Legislature. Laws of Utah, Chapter 204, 1986, Insurance Recodification Amendments.

Page Last Updated July 2, 2003.