SENATE LABOR AND COMMERCE COMMITTEE January 28, 1997 1:30 p.m. MEMBERS PRESENT Senator Loren Leman, Chairman Senator Jerry Mackie, Vice Chairman Senator Tim Kelly Senator Mike Miller Senator Lyman Hoffman MEMBERS ABSENT All members present COMMITTEE CALENDAR SENATE BILL NO. 14 "An Act relating to insurance covering an insured who is a victim of domestic violence and requiring certain disclosures by an insurer." MOVED SB 14 OUT OF COMMITTEE SENATE BILL NO. 41 "An Act relating to environmental audits and health and safety audits to determine compliance with certain laws, permits, and regulations." HELD UNTIL THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 1997 PREVIOUS SENATE COMMITTEE ACTION SB 41 - See Senate Labor & Commerce Committee minutes dated 1/23/97. SB 14 - No previous action to consider. WITNESS REGISTER Senator Dave Donley Alaska State Capitol Juneau, Alaska 99801-1182 POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of SB 14 ACTION NARRATIVE TAPE 97-2, SIDE A Number 001 SB 41 ENVIRONMENTAL & HEALTH/SAFETY AUDITS  CHAIRMAN LEMAN called the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee meeting to order at 1:30 p.m. and announced SB 41 would be held over until Thursday, January 30. SB 14 INS:DOMESTIC VIOL. VICTIMS & DISCLOSURES  CHAIRMAN LEMAN announced SB 14 to be up for consideration. SENATOR DAVE DONLEY, sponsor , informed the committee SB 14 is identical to legislation that passed the Senate last year and that eight other states have passed similar legislation. It prevents insurance companies from unfairly discriminating against victims of domestic violence by using the fact that a person was a victim of domestic violence as the sole criterion to determine whether an insurance policy is made available, cancelled, or gets a rate increase. While it might be appropriate for an insurance company to review the potential risks of a client, such as a pre-existing condition, the fact that a person was a domestic violence victim, and nothing more, should not be considered. SB 14 explicitly prohibits insurance companies from doing so. Number 59 SENATOR DONLEY explained the main question people have is whether the bill should include all lines of insurance or simply health and life insurance. He believes all lines of insurance should be included. Various womens' organizations have presented examples of discrimination in property lines in the "lower 48." He believes the fundamental question is whether it is ever justifiable, even in a property line of insurance, to discriminate against a person simply because one has been a victim of domestic violence. If a person has an injury as the result of a domestic violence occurence, and the person is denied health insurance at a later time because of the physical injury or ongoing condition, that decision is based on objective fact and is fair underwriting criterion. SB 14 would prohibit an insurance company from denying a person only because he/she was once victimized. That same concept should extend to property lines. In correspondence to the committee from Mr. George, Independent Insurance Agents, an example was given in which a house is jointly owned by a couple engaged in domestic violence disputes. One partner threatens to burn the house. Could the insurance company deny insurance coverage because such an act would be intentional? Senator Donley believed coverage could be denied because insurance companies are not required to cover intentional acts of the insured and that is a separate objective reason for denying the claim. Number 121 SENATOR LEMAN noted Senator Donley's clarification allays his concern about collecting for property damage caused by an estranged spouse. He does not believe SB 14 should apply to such situations. He planned to check with the Division of Legal Services to determine whether that issue needs to be further clarified in the bill. SENATOR DONLEY commented the word "only" on page 1, line 9, is a key element in the bill and clarified that insurance companies can deny coverage for other reasons. There being no further testimony on SB 14, SENATOR MACKIE moved SB 14 and its accompanying zero fiscal note out of committee with individual recommendations. There were no objections and it was so ordered. CHAIRMAN LEMAN thanked everyone for their participation and adjourned the meeting at 1:40 p.m.