Insurance commissioner
An insurance commissioner is a public official in the executive branch of a state or territory in the United States who, along with his or her office, regulate the insurance industry. The powers granted to the office of an insurance commissioner differ in each state. The office of an insurance commissioner is established either by the state constitution or by statute. While most insurance commissioners are appointed, in some jurisdictions they are elected. The office of the insurance commissioner may be part of a larger regulatory agency, or an autonomous department.
Insurance law and regulation is established individually by each state. In order to better coordinate insurance regulation among the states and territories, insurance commissioners are members of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
Duties and powers of insurance commissioners
The purpose of insurance commissioners is to maintain fair pricing for insurance products, protecting the solvency of insurance companies, preventing unfair practices by insurance companies, and ensuring availability of insurance coverage. In order to accomplish these goals, each state grants several powers to insurance commissioners and their offices, including:- Approval of insurance rates
- Periodical financial examinations of insurers
- Licensing of companies, agencies, agents, and brokers
- Monitoring and regulating claims handling
List of current insurance commissioners
State/territory | Name | Title | Name of Office | Elected/Appointed |
Alabama | Jim L. Ridling | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Alaska | Lori K. Wing-Heier | Director | Appointed | |
American Samoa | Peter Fuimaono | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Arizona | Keith Schraad | Interim Director | Appointed | |
Arkansas | Allen W. Kerr | Commissioner | Appointed | |
California | Ricardo Lara | Commissioner | Elected | |
Colorado | Michael Conway | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Connecticut | Andrew N. Mais | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Delaware | Trinidad Navarro | Commissioner | Elected | |
District of Columbia | Stephen C. Taylor | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Florida | David Altmaier | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Georgia | John F. King | Commissioner | Elected | |
Guam | Dafne Mansapit-Shimizu | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Hawaii | Colin M. Hayashida | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Idaho | Dean Cameron | Director | Appointed | |
Illinois | Jennifer Hammer | Director | Appointed | |
Indiana | Stephen W. Robertson | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Iowa | Doug Ommen | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Kansas | Vicki Schmidt | Commissioner | Elected | |
Kentucky | Nancy G. Atkins | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Louisiana | Jim Donelon | Commissioner | Elected | |
Maine | Eric A. Cioppa | Superintendent | Appointed | |
Maryland | Alfred Redmer Jr. | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Massachusetts | Gary D. Anderson | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Michigan | Anita G. Fox | Director | Appointed | |
Minnesota | Steve Kelley | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Mississippi | Mike Chaney | Commissioner | Elected | |
Missouri | Chlora Lindley-Myers | Director | Appointed | |
Montana | Matthew Rosendale | Commissioner | Elected | |
Nebraska | Bruce R. Ramge | Director | Appointed | |
Nevada | Barbara D. Richardson | Commissioner | Appointed | |
New Hampshire | John Elias | Commissioner | Appointed | |
New Jersey | Marlene Caride | Commissioner | Appointed | |
New Mexico | John G. Franchini | Superintendent | Appointed | |
New York | Linda A. Lacewell | Acting Superintendent | Appointed | |
North Carolina | Mike Causey | Commissioner | Elected | |
North Dakota | Jon Godfread | Commissioner | Elected | |
Northern Mariana Islands | Mark O. Rabauliman | Commissioner | Office of the Insurance Commissioner | Appointed |
Ohio | Jillian Froment | Director | Appointed | |
Oklahoma | Glen Mulready | Commissioner | Elected | |
Oregon | Andrew Stolfi | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Pennsylvania | Jessica Altman | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Puerto Rico | Javier Rivera Rios | Commissioner | Office of the Commissioner of Insurance | Appointed |
Rhode Island | Elizabeth Kelleher Dwyer | Superintendent | Appointed | |
South Carolina | Raymond G. Farmer | Director | Appointed | |
South Dakota | Larry Deiter | Director | Appointed | |
Tennessee | Julie Mix McPeak | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Texas | Kent Sullivan | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Utah | Todd E. Kiser | Commissioner | Appointed | |
U.S. Virgin Islands | Osbert Potter | Lt. Governor/ Commissioner | Division of Banking and Insurance | Elected |
Vermont | Michael Pieciak | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Virginia | Scott A. White | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Washington | Mike Kreidler | Commissioner | Elected | |
West Virginia | James A. Dodrill | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Wisconsin | Mark Afable | Commissioner | Appointed | |
Wyoming | Tom Glause | Commissioner | Appointed |