Today, the House Financial Services Committee passed H.R. 5143, U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer’s (MO-03) legislation which would increase transparency and strengthen Congress’s role in supervising foreign standards setting organizations.

“My colleagues and I have worked to develop a legislative framework that would allow a more formalized role for Congressional monitoring of agreements impacting U.S. policyholders and insurance markets,” Luetkemeyer said. “The bill would establish a series of reasonable requirements to be met before Treasury’s Federal Insurance Office, the Federal Reserve, or any other party to these international conversations could consent to the adoption of a final insurance standard. Yesterday’s markup and today’s vote demonstrate that concern over international insurance agreements is not a partisan issue; Members on both sides of the aisle see the need for more sunshine in this process. It’s imperative that the States, the Executive Branch and Congress work cooperatively to signal to the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), the Financial Stability Board and foreign governments, that we will only lend our name to standards and agreements that benefit U.S. consumers and allow us to maintain a robust insurance marketplace. H.R. 5143 helps to meet this objective.” 

The Transparent Insurance Standards Act would establish a framework before United States representatives to the IAIS are permitted to consent to the adoption of any international insurance standard. In addition, the legislation would require the Federal Reserve and the Department of Treasury to publish a proposed standard in the Federal Register and allow for public comment, and afford Congress with a 90 day window in which to block a standard or agreement.

H.R. 5143 passed by a bipartisan vote of 34-25.