CHAPTER 32. ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS AND DUTIES
INSURANCE CODE
TITLE 2. TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE
SUBTITLE A. ADMINISTRATION OF THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE
CHAPTER 32. ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS AND DUTIES
SUBCHAPTER A. RECORDS
Sec. 32.001. GIVING CERTIFIED COPIES AND CERTIFICATES. (a) On
request and on payment of the required fee, the department shall:
(1) certify a copy of a paper or a record in a department office
and give the certified copy to any person when the commissioner
determines that providing the copy is not prejudicial to the
public interest; and
(2) give a certificate as provided by other law.
(b) A fee collected by the department under this section shall
be deposited in the general revenue fund to the credit of the
Texas Department of Insurance operating account.
Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 101, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1999.
Sec. 32.0015. FILING ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION AND OTHER PAPERS;
CERTIFIED COPIES. (a) The department shall file and maintain in
a department office:
(1) all insurance companies' acts or articles of incorporation;
and
(2) any other paper required by law to be filed with the
department.
(b) The department shall provide a certified copy of a document
described by Subsection (a)(1) or (2) to a party interested in
the document who:
(1) submits an application; and
(2) pays the fee prescribed by law.
Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch.
730, Sec. 1A.002, eff. April 1, 2009.
Sec. 32.002. RECORD OF DEPARTMENT PROCEEDINGS. The department
shall maintain a complete record of the department's proceedings.
Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 101, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1999.
Sec. 32.003. STATEMENTS REGARDING CONDITION OF EXAMINED
COMPANIES. The department shall maintain a concise statement of
the condition of each company or agency visited or examined.
Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 101, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1999.
Sec. 32.004. PUBLICATION OF RESULTS OF EXAMINATION. The
department shall publish the results of an examination of a
company's affairs if the commissioner determines that publication
is in the public interest.
Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch.
730, Sec. 1A.002, eff. April 1, 2009.
SUBCHAPTER B. REPORTS
Sec. 32.021. ANNUAL REPORTS. (a) The department shall file
annually with the governor and the presiding officer of each
house of the legislature a complete and detailed written report
that includes:
(1) an accounting of all funds received and disbursed by the
department during the preceding fiscal year;
(2) a description of the commissioner's official acts;
(3) a description of the condition of companies doing business
in this state; and
(4) other information that exhibits the affairs of the
department.
(b) The annual report required by Subsection (a) must be in the
form and reported in the time provided by the General
Appropriations Act.
(c) The department shall:
(1) send a copy of the annual report required by Subsection (a)
to the insurance commissioner or other similar officer of every
state; and
(2) on request, send a copy to any company doing business in
this state.
(d) The department shall print a separate premium and loss
report that contains and arranges in tabular form the premium and
loss information contained in the annual statements for companies
doing business in this state.
(e) The department shall file the report required by Subsection
(d) with the Legislative Reference Library and the Texas State
Library with the annual report required by Subsection (a).
(f) The department shall notify the legislature of the
availability of the reports required by this section.
Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 101, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1999.
Sec. 32.022. BIENNIAL REPORT TO LEGISLATURE. (a) On or before
December 31 of each even-numbered year, the department shall
submit to the appropriate committees of each house of the
legislature a written report that indicates any needed changes in
the laws relating to regulation of the insurance industry or any
other industry or occupation under the jurisdiction of the
department and that states the reasons for the needed changes.
(b) If the commissioner determines that any capital or surplus
requirements established by this code for any insurance companies
are inadequate, the department shall:
(1) include in the biennial report specific recommendations
relating to the amounts at which the capital or surplus
requirements should be set and the findings and evidence on which
those recommendations are based; and
(2) submit the biennial report to the governor.
Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 101, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1999.
Sec. 32.0221. TEXAS HEALTH BENEFITS STUDY. (a) The department
shall study the disparity in patient copayments between orally
and intravenously administered chemotherapies, the reasons for
the disparity, and the patient benefits in establishing copayment
parity between oral and infused chemotherapy agents.
(b) Not later than August 1, 2010, the department shall submit
to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the
house of representatives, and the appropriate standing committees
of the legislature a report regarding the results of the study
conducted under Subsection (a), together with any recommendation
for legislation.
Added by Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch.
1217, Sec. 3, eff. September 1, 2009.
Sec. 32.023. REPORTS TO OTHER STATES. On request, the
department shall provide to the insurance commissioner or other
similar officer of another state information relating to a
company of this state that does business in the other state if:
(1) the other state has enacted the substantial provisions of
the insurance laws of this state; and
(2) the commissioner or other similar officer has a legal duty
to obtain the information.
Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 101, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1999.
SUBCHAPTER C. FORMS
Sec. 32.041. FORMS. The department shall furnish to the
companies required to report to the department the necessary
forms for the required statements.
Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 101, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1999.
SUBCHAPTER D. INTERNET ACCESS TO CERTAIN INFORMATION
Sec. 32.101. APPLICABILITY OF SUBCHAPTER. This subchapter
applies to insurers who comprise the top 25 insurance groups in
the national market and who issue residential property insurance
or personal automobile insurance policies in this state,
including a Lloyd's plan, a reciprocal or interinsurance
exchange, a county mutual insurance company, a farm mutual
insurance company, the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, the
FAIR Plan Association, and the Texas Automobile Insurance Plan
Association.
Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch.
151, Sec. 1, eff. May 21, 2007.
Sec. 32.102. INTERNET WEBSITE. (a) The department, in
conjunction with the office of public insurance counsel, shall
establish and maintain a single Internet website that provides
information to enable consumers to make informed decisions
relating to the purchase of residential property insurance and
personal automobile insurance. The website must include:
(1) a description of each type of residential property insurance
policy and personal automobile insurance policy issued in this
state, including a comparison of the coverage, exclusions, and
restrictions of each policy that allows a side-by-side comparison
of the features of the policy forms;
(2) a listing of each insurer writing residential property
insurance or personal automobile insurance in this state, indexed
by each county or zip code in which the insurer is actively
writing that insurance, and a profile of the insurer that
includes:
(A) contact information for the insurer, including the insurer's
full name, address, and telephone number and the insurer's fax
number and e-mail address, if available;
(B) information on rates charged by the insurer, including:
(i) sample rates for different policyholder profiles in each
county or zip code; and
(ii) the percentage by which the sample rate has fallen or risen
due to filings in the previous 12, 24, and 36 months;
(C) a list of policy forms, exclusions, endorsements, and
discounts offered by the insurer;
(D) an indication of whether the insurer uses credit scoring in
underwriting, rating, or tiering, and a link to the insurer's
credit model or a link explaining how to request the insurer's
credit model;
(E) the insurer's financial rating determined by A. M. Best or
similar rating organization and an explanation of the meaning and
importance of the rating;
(F) a complaint ratio or similar complaint rating system for the
insurer for each of the previous three years and an explanation
of the meaning of the rating system; and
(G) information, other than information made confidential by
law, on the insurer's regulatory and administrative experience
with the department, the office of public insurance counsel, and
insurance regulatory authorities in other states; and
(3) if feasible, as determined by the commissioner and the
public insurance counsel:
(A) a side-by-side comparison of credit scoring models,
including factors, key variables, and weights, of residential
property insurers in this state; and
(B) a side-by-side comparison of credit scoring models,
including factors, key variables, and weights, of private
passenger automobile insurers in this state.
(b) The Internet website required by this section may link to
and be linked from the department's and the office of public
insurance counsel's main websites, but must have its own Internet
address distinct from the address of those main sites.
(c) The department and the office of public insurance counsel
may include on the Internet website or by link to another site
any other information the department and the office of public
insurance counsel determine is helpful to consumers of
residential property insurance or personal automobile insurance
or that the department or the office of public insurance counsel
is authorized or required to publish under this code that relates
to residential property insurance or personal automobile
insurance.
Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch.
151, Sec. 1, eff. May 21, 2007.
Sec. 32.103. PUBLIC INFORMATION CONCERNING INTERNET WEBSITE.
The department shall publicize the existence of the Internet
website required by this subchapter.
Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch.
151, Sec. 1, eff. May 21, 2007.
Sec. 32.104. DUTIES OF INSURER. (a) On the request of the
department, an insurer shall provide to the department any
information the department and the office of public insurance
counsel determine is reasonable or necessary to fulfill the
department's and the office of the public insurance counsel's
duties under this subchapter.
(b) An insurer shall provide in a conspicuous manner with each
residential property insurance or personal automobile insurance
policy issued in this state notice of the Internet website
required by this subchapter. The commissioner shall determine
the form and content of the notice.
Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch.
151, Sec. 1, eff. May 21, 2007.