Bill > SB1206

This bill makes several changes to insurance laws, including expanding the reasons a licensee's license can be made inactive to include dissolution, forfeiture, termination, cancellation, or surrender by the Secretary of State, and indefinitely extending a temporary increase in the amount insurers can invest in certain projects that are approved by the Insurance Commissioner and identified by the California Organized Investment Network (COIN), which encourages investments in underserved communities. It also clarifies that general provisions for licensing production agencies apply to all applicants and licensees unless otherwise specified, and it pauses the 12-month period for passing an exam if an applicant's background information is under review for a potential license suspension or revocation. The bill also extends eligibility for estate certificates of convenience to include the estates of deceased accident and health or sickness agents, allows the Department of Insurance to submit biannual information requests to district attorneys for workers' compensation fraud cases, sets a two-year term for non-insurer members of the assigned risk plan advisory committee, and requires officers of the State Compensation Insurance Fund to provide annual and quarterly investment reports to the Department of Insurance. Additionally, it changes the California Earthquake Authority's (CEA) process for selecting auditors to require the CEA to select and retain them, subject to the commissioner's approval, and makes CEA employees subject to incompatible activities provisions. For public insurance adjusters, the bill requires their email address to be included in contracts, shortens the timeframe for depositing claim settlement funds in escrow accounts during emergencies, and shortens the timeframe for remitting funds to insureds during emergencies. Finally, it makes technical changes related to the calculation of adjusted premiums and present values for life insurance policies.