SB 155: "Georgia Insurance Premium Reduction Act"; enact

Georgia law already bars auto insurers from setting rates based on race, creed, or ethnic extraction. This bill adds census tract, the neighborhood-level area used in census data, to that list, closing a way insurers could indirectly price by neighborhood demographics. The bill also adds new rules for all insurers in the state. Any insurer asking the Georgia Department of Insurance to raise premiums by more than 5 percent would have to post the request and a written justification on its own website, and submit detailed actuarial data backing the request. Increases above 10 percent would trigger a public hearing held by the Insurance Commissioner. The bill bans insurers from colluding on rates or settling lawsuits mainly to justify future premium increases, treating violations as unfair trade practices. It also creates a new state-run online database for consumers to compare insurance rates and requires that no policy be sold without the buyer being represented by an independent insurance broker.

• Adds census tract to the list of factors auto insurers may not use, even indirectly, when setting rates or rating plans.
• Requires insurers seeking premium increases above 5 percent to publicly disclose the request and a justification report on their websites.
• Requires insurers to submit detailed actuarial data to the Department of Insurance for any rate increase request above 5 percent.
• Requires the Insurance Commissioner to hold public hearings on any premium increase request above 10 percent.
• Bans insurers from colluding on premium rates or settling lawsuits mainly to manufacture losses that justify rate hikes, treating both as unfair trade practices.
• Creates a state-run online database for comparing insurance coverage and rates, and requires every policy sale to involve an independent insurance broker.

Auto and other insurers licensed to sell policies in Georgia, the Georgia Department of Insurance and Insurance Commissioner, independent insurance brokers, and Georgia consumers who buy insurance policies or want to compare rates and coverage options.

Georgians would gain new tools to see why their premiums are rising and to compare options across insurers through a new state database. Insurers would face added disclosure, hearing, and data requirements before raising rates significantly, and could face penalties for collusion or litigation tactics tied to premium increases.

• Section 1 gives the bill its short title, the 'Georgia Insurance Premium Reduction Act.'
• Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 33-9-4 to add census tract to the banned rating factors alongside race, creed, and ethnic extraction.
• Section 3 adds new O.C.G.A. § 33-24-59.34(a) requiring public website disclosure and a justification report for premium requests over 5 percent.
• Section 3(b) directs the Department of Insurance to build a state-run database letting consumers compare coverage and rates across insurance lines.
• Section 3(c) requires insurers seeking increases over 5 percent to submit detailed actuarial data supporting the request.
• Section 3(d) requires public hearings under O.C.G.A. § 33-2-17 for any premium increase request over 10 percent.
• Section 3(e) and (f) bar insurer collusion on rates and litigation settlements aimed at manufacturing losses, both treated as unfair trade practices under O.C.G.A. § 33-6-4.
• Section 3(g) requires that every insurance policy sold in Georgia involve representation by an independent insurance broker.

1. 2025-02-13Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2. 2025-02-12Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Derek Mallow (D, SD-002)Primary sponsor
• Ed Harbison (D, SD-015)
• Nikki Merritt (D, SD-009)
• Nabilah Islam Parkes (D, SD-007)
• David Lucas (D, SD-026)
• Freddie Sims (D, SD-012)

• insurance regulation
• auto insurance rates
• insurance premiums
• consumer protection
• insurance discrimination