The not-for-profit Automotive Service Association (ASA) has renewed opposition to Congress over a series of six bills currently floating in the House of Representatives — all of which could reduce federal regulations and the authority of the Federal Insurance Office (FIO).
“We will need collision repairers to stand with us one more time this congressional session to protect a regulatory tool that is structured to help consumers and collision repairers,” Scott Benavidez, AAM, ASA Collision Operations Committee director, said. “Congress was clear in recent weeks that FIO did not need reform, yet we are faced with an additional attempt to dismantle this useful federal agency.”
One of the bills introduced had initially been seen in a previous session. HR 3861 was originally introduced by U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy (R-WI), with the intent of diluting the FIO’s capabilities, which were established by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Dodd-Frank took effect in 2010 when lawmakers sought to promote U.S. financial stability through improved accounting and transparency in the financial system following the great recession.
Opponents had supposed HR 3861 and bills like it were dead on arrival when the Dodd-Frank Act reform package was recently passed without any attempt to eliminate the FIO. The renewed effort has caused alarm among the ASA, who support Dodd-Frank and reject what they see as an attempt to curtail the FIO’s impact on federal insurance regulation.