Florida Senate - 2020 CS for SB 1606
By the Committee on Banking and Insurance; and Senator Perry
597-03126-20 20201606c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to insurance; amending s. 316.646,
3 F.S.; requiring law enforcement officers, after a
4 certain timeframe and under certain circumstances, to
5 access information from the motor vehicle insurance
6 online verification system for certain purposes;
7 amending s. 320.02, F.S.; authorizing the use of the
8 online verification of insurance for motor vehicle
9 registration purposes; creating s. 324.252, F.S.;
10 requiring the Department of Highway Safety and Motor
11 Vehicles to establish an online verification system
12 for motor vehicle insurance; providing system
13 requirements; providing powers and duties of the
14 department; providing requirements for insurers and
15 law enforcement officers; providing immunity from
16 civil liability to insurers for certain good faith
17 efforts; providing applicability; defining the term
18 “commercial motor vehicle coverage”; authorizing the
19 department to adopt rules; creating s. 324.255, F.S.;
20 creating the Motor Vehicle Insurance Online
21 Verification Task Force within the department;
22 providing duties of the task force; specifying the
23 composition of the task force; providing meeting
24 requirements; requiring the department to provide
25 certain support to the task force; providing that task
26 force members shall serve without compensation and are
27 not entitled to certain reimbursement; providing the
28 date by which the task force must complete its work
29 and submit its final report to the department and the
30 Legislature; providing for expiration of the task
31 force; providing contingent effect; providing an
32 effective date.
33
34 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
35
36 Section 1. Present subsection (5) of section 316.646,
37 Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (6), and a new
38 subsection (5) is added to that section, to read:
39 316.646 Security required; proof of security and display
40 thereof.—
41 (5) Eighteen months after implementation of the motor
42 vehicle insurance online verification system established in s.
43 324.252, a law enforcement officer, during a traffic stop or
44 crash investigation, shall access information from the online
45 verification system to establish compliance with this chapter
46 and chapter 324.
47 Section 2. Paragraph (f) is added to subsection (5) of
48 section 320.02, Florida Statutes, to read:
49 320.02 Registration required; application for registration;
50 forms.—
51 (5)
52 (f) Upon implementation of the motor vehicle insurance
53 online verification system established in s. 324.252, the online
54 verification may be used in lieu of the verification procedures
55 in this subsection.
56 Section 3. Section 324.252, Florida Statutes, is created to
57 read:
58 324.252 Insurance online verification system.—The
59 department shall establish an online verification system for
60 motor vehicle insurance. The goal of the system is to identify
61 uninsured motorists and aid the department in the enforcement of
62 the financial responsibility law.
63 (1) The online verification system must:
64 (a) Be accessible through electronic means for use by any
65 government agency, including any court or law enforcement
66 agency, in carrying out its functions; by any private person or
67 entity acting on behalf of a federal, state, or local agency in
68 carrying out its functions; by any other entity authorized by
69 the department; and by any insurer authorized by the Office of
70 Insurance Regulation to provide motor vehicle insurance. The
71 department may also establish a web portal or other mechanism
72 that provides the general public with the ability to confirm
73 whether a particular motor vehicle is currently insured.
74 (b) In real time, send requests to insurers for
75 verification of evidence of insurance for motor vehicles
76 registered in this state, and receive confirmation in real time
77 from insurers via electronic means consistent with the
78 specifications and standards of the Insurance Industry Committee
79 on Motor Vehicle Administration (IICMVA), with enhancements,
80 additions, and modifications as required by the department.
81 However, the enhancements, additions, and modifications may not
82 conflict with, nullify, or add requirements that are materially
83 inconsistent with the specifications or standards of the IICMVA.
84 (c) Be operational by July 1, 2023. The Motor Vehicle
85 Insurance Online Verification Task Force established in s.
86 324.255 must conduct a pilot program for at least 9 months to
87 test the system before statewide use. The system may not be used
88 in any enforcement action until successful completion of the
89 pilot program.
90 (d) Be available 24 hours a day, except as provided in
91 paragraph (2)(a), to verify the insurance status of any vehicle
92 registered in this state through the insurer’s National
93 Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) company code or
94 Florida company code, in combination with other identifiers,
95 including vehicle identification number, car make, car model,
96 year, registered owner’s name, policy number, levels or types of
97 coverage, or other characteristics or markers as specified by
98 the Motor Vehicle Insurance Online Verification Task Force.
99 (e) Include appropriate safeguards and controls to prevent
100 misuse or unauthorized access.
101 (f) Include a disaster recovery plan to ensure service
102 continuity in the event of a disaster.
103 (g) Include information that enables the department to make
104 inquiries of evidence of insurance by using multiple data
105 elements for greater matching accuracy, specifically the
106 insurer’s NAIC company code, in combination with other
107 identifiers, such as vehicle identification number, policy
108 number, or other characteristics or markers as specified by the
109 Motor Vehicle Insurance Online Verification Task Force or the
110 department.
111 (h) Include a self-reporting mechanism for insurers with
112 fewer than 2,000 vehicles insured within this state or for
113 individual entities that are self-insured.
114 (2) The department has the following powers and duties:
115 (a) Upon an insurer’s advance notice to the department, the
116 department shall allow online services established by the
117 insurer to have reasonable downtime for system maintenance and
118 other work, as needed. An insurer is not subject to
119 administrative penalties or disciplinary actions when its online
120 services are not available under such circumstances or when an
121 outage is unplanned by the insurer and is reasonably outside its
122 control.
123 (b) Upon recommendation of the Motor Vehicle Insurance
124 Online Verification Task Force, the department may develop and
125 operate its own system or competitively procure a private vendor
126 that has personnel with extensive operational and management
127 experience in the development, deployment, and operation of
128 insurance online verification systems.
129 (c) The department and its private vendor, if any, shall
130 each maintain a contact person for the insurers during the
131 establishment, implementation, and operation of the system.
132 (d) The department may enter into agreements governing the
133 use of the system with any public or private entity accessing
134 the system to verify insurance coverage.
135 (e) The department shall maintain a historical record of
136 the system data for 6 months after the date of any verification
137 request and response.
138 (3) An insurance company authorized to issue insurance
139 policies for motor vehicles registered in this state:
140 (a) Shall comply with the verification requirements of
141 motor vehicle insurance for every motor vehicle insured by that
142 company in this state.
143 (b) Shall maintain policyholder records in order to confirm
144 insurance coverage for 3 years after the date of any
145 verification request and response.
146 (c) Shall cooperate with the department in establishing,
147 implementing, and maintaining the system.
148 (d) Is immune from civil liability for good faith efforts
149 to comply with this section. An online verification request or
150 response may not be used as the basis of a civil action against
151 an insurer.
152 (4) A law enforcement officer, during a traffic stop or
153 crash investigation, shall query information from the online
154 verification system to establish compliance with this chapter.
155 (5) This section does not apply to vehicles insured under
156 commercial motor vehicle coverage. As used in this subsection,
157 the term “commercial motor vehicle coverage” means any coverage
158 provided to an insured under a commercial coverage form and
159 rated from a commercial manual approved by the Office of
160 Insurance Regulation. However, insurers of such vehicles may
161 participate in the online verification system on a voluntary
162 basis.
163 (6) The department may adopt rules to administer this
164 section.
165 Section 4. Section 324.255, Florida Statutes, is created to
166 read:
167 324.255 Motor Vehicle Insurance Online Verification Task
168 Force.—There is created the Motor Vehicle Insurance Online
169 Verification Task Force within the department.
170 (1) The task force shall:
171 (a) Facilitate the implementation of the motor vehicle
172 insurance online verification system established in s. 324.252.
173 (b) Assist in the development of a detailed guide for
174 insurers by providing data fields and other information
175 necessary for compliance with the online verification system.
176 (c) Coordinate a pilot program and conduct the program for
177 at least 9 months to test the online verification system and
178 identify necessary changes to be implemented before statewide
179 use.
180 (d) Issue recommendations based on periodic reviews of the
181 online verification system.
182 (2) The task force shall consist of 10 voting members and 1
183 nonvoting member.
184 (a) By July 31 of the year this section becomes effective,
185 the 10 voting members shall be appointed in the following
186 manner:
187 1. Three representatives of the department, representing
188 the Florida Highway Patrol, the Division of Motorist Services,
189 and the Information Systems Administration, appointed by the
190 executive director of the department.
191 2. One representative of the Office of Insurance
192 Regulation, appointed by the Commissioner of Insurance
193 Regulation.
194 3. Three representatives of the motor vehicle insurance
195 industry, appointed by the Chief Financial Officer as follows:
196 a. One member must represent the motor vehicle insurer with
197 the largest national market share as of December 31 of the year
198 before the appointment.
199 b. One member must represent the motor vehicle insurer with
200 the largest Florida market share as of December 31 of the year
201 before the appointment.
202 c. One member must be selected from a list of
203 representatives recommended by the Insurance Industry Committee
204 on Motor Vehicle Administration.
205 4. One representative of the Department of Financial
206 Services, appointed by the Chief Financial Officer.
207 5. One representative of the Division of State Technology,
208 appointed by the Secretary of the Department of Management
209 Services.
210 6. One member who must be a member of local law
211 enforcement, appointed by the executive director of the
212 department.
213 (b) The executive director of the department, who shall be
214 a nonvoting member, shall serve as chair of the task force.
215 (3) By September 30 of the year this section becomes
216 effective, the task force shall meet to establish procedures for
217 the conduct of its business, and the voting members shall elect
218 a vice chair at that meeting. The task force shall meet at the
219 call of the chair, who shall prepare the agenda for each meeting
220 with the consent of the task force. A majority of the voting
221 members of the task force constitutes a quorum, and a quorum is
222 necessary for the purpose of voting on any action or
223 recommendation of the task force. All meetings shall be held in
224 Tallahassee.
225 (4) The department shall provide the task force members
226 with administrative and technical support. Task force members
227 shall serve without compensation and are not entitled to
228 reimbursement for per diem or travel expenses.
229 (5) By July 1 of the third year after this section becomes
230 effective, the task force shall complete its work and submit its
231 final report evaluating the online verification system’s
232 effectiveness and making recommendations for system enhancements
233 to the department, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker
234 of the House of Representatives. Upon submission of the report,
235 the task force shall expire.
236 Section 5. The amendments made by this act to ss. 316.646
237 and 320.02, Florida Statutes, and the creation of ss. 324.252
238 and 324.255, Florida Statutes, by this act shall take effect
239 upon a specific appropriation.
240 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.