HBA-DMD H.B. 768 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 768
By: Averitt
Insurance
3/22/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Current Texas law limits the amount of group life insurance coverage that
may be provided to children or spouses of Texas employees under a group
life insurance policy from exceeding one-half of the amount of insurance on
the life of the employee.  

H.B. 768 authorizes the amount of group life insurance on the life of the
spouse or a child to be limited to a percentage of the amount of insurance
for which the employee or member is insured. This bill also authorizes any
group insurance policy, with certain exceptions, to be extended to cover
the spouse, the children under 21 years of age, natural or adopted, and the
children over 21 years of age, natural or adopted, who are enrolled as
full-time students at an educational institution or are physically or
mentally disabled and who are under the supervision of the parents. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Article 3.51-4A, Insurance Code, as follows:

New Title:  Art. 3.51-4A.  EXTENSION OF GROUP LIFE INSURANCE 
TO SPOUSES AND CHILDREN.

Sec. 1. Deletes the word "term" from group term life insurance policy.
Authorizes any group life insurance policy, except a policy issued and
delivered to a creditor pursuant to Section 1(4) of Article 3.50 of the
Texas Insurance Code or pursuant to any other law of the State of Texas
providing for credit life insurance, to be extended to cover the spouse,
the children under 21 years of age, natural or adopted, and the children
over 21 years of age, natural or adopted, who are enrolled as full-time
students at an educational institution or are physically or mentally
disabled and who are under the supervision of the parents, of each person
eligible to be insured thereunder, rather than each insured person.
Authorizes the amount of group life insurance on the life of the spouse or
a child to be limited to a percentage of the amount of insurance for which
the employee or member is insured, rather than requiring that the amount
not exceed half of the amount of insurance on the life of the member or
employee insured under this policy.  Deletes "term" from the existing
title. 

Sec. 2. Makes a conforming change.

Sec. 3. Makes conforming changes.

Sec. 4. Makes no change.

SECTION 2.Makes application of this Act prospective.

SECTION 3.Emergency clause.   
  Effective date:  90 days after adjournment.