Governor vetoes insurance bill

A bill that would allow insurers to use credit scores to set insurance rates has been blocked after democratic legislators argued against it

by Sol Dolor

Alaska Governor Bill Walker vetoed two Senate Bills on Friday, one of which allowed for determining insurance rates based on credit scores.

In the governor’s veto letter, he said that Alaskans, above all low-income citizens, stand to lose if Senate Bill 127 is allowed to take effect.

“Because the bill relies on notoriously unreliable credit score ratings and would adversely affect consumers, especially low-income consumers, it should not become law,” Walker wrote, according to News-Miner.

The governor said that credit report errors are common and possibly hard to correct.

“Missing or incorrect information in a credit report can negatively impact consumers' insurance scores, regardless of a person's driving record, the condition of their home, or whether they pay their bills on time,” he wrote.

Though people can apply for exceptions, the protection is limited, invasive and uncertain, he said.

“The burden falls on the consumer to provide, at the insurer's sole discretion, detailed and personal information about divorce, serious illness or injury,” the governor wrote.

Opposed by the minority Democrats, the bill was not widely publicised as it went through the legislature.

Rep. Adam Wool, D-Fairbanks, said in a statement that changing someone’s insurance fees on the “irrelevant factor” of credit scores without their consent “does not make sense.”

“Your credit history doesn’t affect whether or not you’re a safe driver or responsible homeowner. I’m pleased Governor Walker vetoed this harmful piece of legislation,” he said.

Senate Bill 125, the other bill vetoed by Walker, provided for non-voting legislators to be added to the board of directors of the Alaska Gasline Development Corp.

“Despite the lack of a vote, the legislators would still be influencing the decisions made by the board and be privy to confidential information held by the corporation, while also having the legislative power to change the corporation's statutes and determine its funding,” Walker wrote in his veto letter.

The governor questioned whether it is legal for legislators to hold other offices. The majority Republicans argued that the appointment of non-voting legislators to the firm’s board creates transparency and accountability.
 

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