Authorized by Title V of the Dodd-Frank Act, the Federal Insurance Office (FIO) was created to provide a federal center of expertise for domestic and international insurance matters.

The FIO is not a regulator. The Office is an advisor, coordinator and information repository for the federal government on insurance issues. Still, the FIO has the potential to fundamentally change the way insurance is regulated. As Director Michael McRaith explained during the first public conference on the FIO, the question is "not whether, but how" it will improve and modernize insurance regulation.

The Office is tasked with collecting information on the insurance industry and providing advice to Congress, the Treasury, Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) and the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR).

A single voice and point of contact for the U.S. on international insurance regulatory matters, the FIO is a full voting member of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS). The FIO also will assist the USTR and the Treasury Secretary in negotiating "covered agreements" involving international regulatory issues. It has the power to preempt state insurance laws that are inconsistent with "covered agreements."

The FIO will provide reports to Congress on the insurance and reinsurance industries, as well as how to improve and modernize U.S. insurance regulation. Its reports will shape the narrative in the coming years regarding the role of the federal government in the insurance industry.

Nelson Levine provides regular updates about the FIO through our periodic newsletter, FIO Focus.

FIO Focus

• FIO Focus, Issue No. 13 - April 30, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 12 - April 2, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 11 - March 23, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 10 - March 13, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 9 - March 9, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 8 - February 28, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 7 - February 16, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 6 - February 10, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 5 - February 2, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 4 - January 19, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 3 - January 12, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 2 - January 10, 2012
• FIO Focus, Issue No. 1 - December 20, 2011 

Resources

Recent Comments by Michael T. McRaith

Comments by Michael T. McRaith, Director, Federal Insurance Office
Property/Casualty Insurance Joint Industry Forum
January 10, 2012

Testimony by Michael T. McRaith, Director, Federal Insurance Office
Insurance Oversight: Policy Implications for U.S. Consumers, Businesses and Jobs Hearing, Part 2
Before the Subcommittee on Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity, Committee on Financial Services, U.S. House of Representatives
October 25, 2011

Testimony by The Honorable Michael T. McRaith, Illinois Insurance Commissioner, On behalf of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners
Use of Credit Information Beyond Lending: Issues and Reform Proposals Hearing
Before the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit of the House, Committee on Financial Services, U.S. House of Representatives
May 12, 2010

Testimony by The Honorable Michael T. McRaith, Illinois Insurance Commissioner, On behalf of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners
Systemic Risk and Insurance Hearing
Before the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises, Committee on Financial Services, U.S. House of Representatives
June 16, 2009

Testimony by The Honorable Michael T. McRaith, Illinois Insurance Commissioner, On behalf of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners
Perspectives on Modernizing Insurance Regulation Hearing
Before the Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, U.S. Senate
March 17, 2009

Testimony by The Honorable Michael T. McRaith, Illinois Insurance Commissioner, On behalf of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners
Extension of a Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Hearing
Before the Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, U.S. Senate
February 28, 2007

The Dodd-Frank Act

Complete Text of the Dodd-Frank Act

Treasury's Federal Insurance Office Conference

Treasury Department's Webcast
December 9, 2011

Congressional Hearings on Insurance (not including hearings on the NFIP)

Insurance Oversight and Legislative Proposals Hearing
Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity Subcommittee, Financial Services Committee, U.S. House of Representatives
November 16, 2011

Insurance Oversight: Policy Implications for U.S. Consumers, Businesses and Jobs Hearing, Part 2
Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity Subcommittee, Financial Services Committee, U.S. House of Representatives
October 25, 2011

Emerging Issues in Insurance Regulation Hearing
Securities, Insurance, and Investment Subcommittee, Financial Services Committee, U.S. House of Representatives
September 14, 2011

Insurance Oversight: Policy Implications for U.S. Consumers, Businesses and Jobs Hearing
Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity Committee, U.S. Senate
July 28, 2011

Views from the States

"Insurance Industry Key to Growth"
An Op-Ed by Terry E. Branstad (R), Governor of Iowa and Dannel P. Malloy (D), Governor of Connecticut
January 31, 2012

Nelson Levine Resources

• Best's Review: Ready for Takeoff, May 7, 2012
• The Federal Government's Role in Insurance Regulation, March 2, 2012
• Upcoming Federal Insurance Office Report Could Reshape Insurance Regulation in the United States, January 23, 2012

Press

• Attorney Suggests Royce Wants FIO to Supplant NAIC, Insurance & Technology - March 2, 2012
• Highly Anticipated FIO Report on U.S. Insurance Industry Delayed, InsuranceNewsNet.com - February 2, 2012
• Federal Insurance Office Says Overdue Regulation Report Still Weeks Away, Insurance Journal - February 2, 2012
• FIO's report on insurance regulation could have many tentacles, Insurance & Financial Advisor - January 24, 2012