Å˽ðÁ«´«Ã½Ó³» commissioners from nine states are looking to the new Department of Government Efficiency to do away with the Federal Å˽ðÁ«´«Ã½Ó³» Office.
The letter, addressed to DOGE heads Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, said the FIO’s mission of monitoring the insurance industry is “already effectively fulfilled by state regulators.”
“Since its inception, FIO has fluctuated between ineffectiveness and outright dishonesty in it dealings with the states,” continued the letter from insurance commissioners David J. Bettencourt of New Hampshire, Glen Mulready of Oklahoma, Carter Lawrence of Tennessee, Mark Fowler of Alabama, Tim Temple of Louisiana, Vicki Schmidt of Kansas, Alan McClain of Arkansas, Mike Causey of North Carolina, and Allan McVey of West Virginia.
The commissioners said “any functions [FIO] purports to serve could easily be absorbed by other federal offices or reverted to the states.” The co-leaders uses FIO’s latest “misguided effort” to collect data from insurers in collaboration with the NAIC as an example of its alleged ineffectiveness, and questions FIO’s motivation for the data call. The commissioners said it remains unclear whether the Treasury Department’s FIO wanted the data for the purposes of “consumer protection or to pressure the insurance industry into adopting ESG (environmental social and governance) policies.”
More than two years ago, FIO proposed to have property/casualty insurers submit zip-code-level data, but the effort was criticized by industry trades who said the request was too onerous, overly broad, and unnecessary. FIO dropped the plan and then said it would collaborate with NAIC. But rather than working to ensure the accuracy of the data, the letter to DOGE from the commissioners said FIO chose to go forward with “flawed information.”
The elimination of FIO is not a new idea. In 2023, GOP members of the House of Representatives introduced a bill , created in 2010 as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.
Earlier this month, a coalition of consumer, environmental, and fair housing groups called upon FIO to release the homeowners insurance data.
NAIC has yet to respond to a request for comment.
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