PRINTER'S NO. 365
No. 350 Session of 2001
INTRODUCED BY MOWERY, KITCHEN AND HOLL, FEBRUARY 7, 2001
REFERRED TO BANKING AND INSURANCE, FEBRUARY 7, 2001
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of May 17, 1921 (P.L.789, No.285), entitled, as
2 amended, "An act relating to insurance; establishing an
3 insurance department; and amending, revising, and
4 consolidating the law relating to the licensing,
5 qualification, regulation, examination, suspension, and
6 dissolution of insurance companies, Lloyds associations,
7 reciprocal and inter-insurance exchanges, and certain
8 societies and orders, the examination and regulation of fire
9 insurance rating bureaus, and the licensing and regulation of
10 insurance agents and brokers; the service of legal process
11 upon foreign insurance companies, associations or exchanges;
12 providing penalties, and repealing existing laws," further
13 providing for public utilities not to be licensed.
14 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
15 hereby enacts as follows:
16 Section 1. Section 641 of the act of May 17, 1921 (P.L.789,
17 No.285), known as The Insurance Department Act of 1921, amended
18 June 25, 1997 (P.L.349, No.40), is amended to read:
19 Section 641. Public Utilities Not to be Licensed.--(a) As
20 used in this section:
21 (2) "Public utility" means a private employer subject to the
22 jurisdiction of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and
23 engaged in the business of rendering electric, gas, water and
1 steam heat services to the public in this Commonwealth:
2 Provided, however, That the term "public utility" shall not
3 include rural electrification cooperatives.
4 (8) "Public utility holding company" shall mean and include
5 the definition of such term as defined in Title 15, United
6 States Code, sections 79b (a) (7), including electric, gas,
7 water and steam heat services.
8 (b) (1) No public utility or any subsidiary or affiliate of
9 a public utility, or officer or employe thereof, may, directly
10 or indirectly, be licensed or admitted as an insurer or be
11 licensed to sell insurance in this State either as a broker or
12 as an agent. For the purposes of selling and soliciting
13 insurance, this paragraph shall not apply to an employe of an
14 electric generation supplier as defined in 66 Pa.C.S. § 2803
15 (relating to definitions).
16 (2) No employe of an electric generation supplier may:
17 (i) Engage in the sale or solicitation of insurance on the
18 premises of the public utility or its subsidiaries or
19 affiliates.
20 (ii) Engage in the sale or solicitation of insurance while
21 carrying out any duties as an employe of the public utility or
22 its subsidiaries or affiliates.
23 (iii) Utilize information controlled or in possession of a
24 public utility or its subsidiaries or affiliates to coerce,
25 influence or engage in the sale or solicitation of insurance.
26 (c) The Insurance Commissioner is authorized to promulgate
27 regulations in order to effectuate the purposes of this section,
28 which are to help maintain the separation between public
29 utilities and the insurance business and to minimize the
30 possibilities of unfair competitive practices by public
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1 utilities against insurance companies, agents and brokers.
2 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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