The Senate Corporations Committee unanimously advanced Senate File 52, a Department of Insurance cleanup measure that clarifies statutory terms and removes several outdated administrative requirements.

Deputy Commissioner Tana Howard told the committee the bill is a periodic "cleanup" that reorganizes definitions, removes the statutory requirement that insurers hold or return a hard physical certificate of authority, and requires insurers to provide current contact information to the Department of Insurance so the department can process complaints and examinations more efficiently.

"We currently have a definition of insurance transaction within the code," Howard said, explaining the bill clarifies whether the term refers to insurer-support organizations or generally to the business of insurance. The measure also replaces repeated statutory references to a hard physical "original" certificate of authority so state verification can occur online without forcing companies to mail paper certificates back to the department when licenses change.

The bill includes several other administrative updates: it changes a service-of-process requirement from registered mail to certified mail; it clarifies that short-term or temporary insurance arrangements need not meet the same 45-day cancellation notice standard that applies to longer-term policies; and it repeals an outdated disclosure requirement that had directed insurers to include a bold notice about wellness benefits on policy front pages. Howard said wellness benefits continue to be listed within policies; the separate bold disclosure requirement was passed before the Affordable Care Act and is no longer necessary.

Howard said the department has worked with industry on the bill and does not expect controversial impacts. She added that asking insurers to maintain accurate contact information will speed the department's ability to get claim file notes and otherwise resolve constituent complaints.

Senators asked practical questions about the changes: what insurers would use certified mail instead of registered mail for (Howard said the change removes an unnecessary insurance/insured-value component attached to the higher-security "registered" label), and whether the change simply formalizes existing department practice for contact information (Howard said that practice is common but the statutory gap causes delays when records are stale).

There was no public opposition during the hearing; Mary Ann Shaner of State Farm and Catherine Wilkinson of the American Property Casualty Insurers Association signaled support or neutrality for the bill during testimony. The committee recorded a roll-call vote: Senators Bonar, Dockstader, Landon, Steinmetz and Chairman Case all voted "Aye." Senator Bonar moved the bill out of committee.

Committee members said the bill is likely to be noncontroversial on the floor and represents housekeeping expected every few years to keep the insurance code up to date.