Senate Bill 277
Rate regulation for health insurance. (FE)
Stopped in committee
It never got a , so it never came up for a vote. To try again, a lawmaker would have to start a new bill.
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Introduced, passed
Sep 30, 2015
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Committee, stopped here
Stopped here. No public hearing was held.
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Senate vote, not reached
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Assembly vote, not reached
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Governor, not reached
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Law, not reached
Latest entry in the official record, Apr 13, 2016: “Failed to pass pursuant to ”
It never got a hearing in the Senate Committee on Insurance, Housing, and Trade. See every bill that never got a hearing this session.
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Terms on this page
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1. More in the glossary
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis. More in the glossary
Author
A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Official term: Author, coauthor. More in the glossary
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor. More in the glossary
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate. More in the glossary
What it would have done
Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.
This bill changes the filing requirements for health insurance premium rates and adds some publication and notice requirements related to increases in those rates.
Under current law, insurers must file with the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance (OCI) premium rates, and changes to premium rates, for all types of insurance within 30 days after the rates or rate changes become effective. Current law prohibits premium rates from being excessive, inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory and provides guidelines for determining whether rates comply with those standards. The commissioner of insurance may order that a rate be discontinued for any policy issued or renewed after a date specified in the order if, after a hearing, the commissioner determines that the rate does not comply with those standards.
Read the full summary Show less
Under the bill, an insurer that writes health insurance must file with OCI premium rates, and changes to premium rates, for health insurance before those rates or changes to rates become effective and may not use a new or changed rate for health insurance without approval of the rate by the commissioner. Unless the commissioner holds a hearing on a rate or change to a rate, the rate or changed rate is approved if the commissioner does not disapprove the rate or changed rate within 30 days after it was filed with OCI. The bill specifically authorizes the commissioner to disapprove any proposed rate or rate change that is not justified based on underlying medical costs.
The bill requires the commissioner to publish on OCI's Internet site all health insurance rate increases that the commissioner approves and requires an insurer of a health benefit plan for which a rate increase has been approved to provide at least 60 days' notice of the rate increase to each insured under the health benefit plan.
Under the bill, the commissioner must hold a public hearing before approving or disapproving any health insurance rate change that increases an existing rate by more than 10 percent. In addition, if the commissioner approves a health insurance rate increase of more than 10 percent after holding a hearing and the insurer justified the rate increase based on increased medical costs, the commissioner must publish on OCI's Internet site the discounted payment rates negotiated by the insurer with the insurer's provider networks.
Who's behind it
8 senators are its . All 8 are Democrats.
12 more lawmakers .
See all 20 names Hide the names
Authors (8)
- Chris Larson · Democrat, Senate
- Tim Carpenter · Democrat, Senate
- Jon Erpenbach · Democrat, Senate
- Dave Hansen · Democrat, Senate
- Nikiya Harris Dodd · Democrat, Senate
- Lena Taylor · Democrat, Senate
- Janis Ringhand · Democrat, Senate
- Kathleen Vinehout · Democrat, Senate
Signed on in support (12)
- Terese Berceau · Democrat, Assembly
- Jonathan Brostoff · Democrat, Assembly
- Eric Genrich · Democrat, Assembly
- Evan Goyke · Democrat, Assembly
- Andy Jorgensen · Democrat, Assembly
- Frederick Kessler · Democrat, Assembly
- Debra Kolste · Democrat, Assembly
- Tod Ohnstad · Democrat, Assembly
- Sondy Pope · Democrat, Assembly
- Christine Sinicki · Democrat, Assembly
- Mark Spreitzer · Democrat, Senate
- Lisa Subeck · Democrat, Assembly
What it would cost
State agencies filed a . Each opens as a PDF from the Legislature.
What happened
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Apr 13, 2016
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Jan 28, 2016
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Sep 30, 2015
Sent to the Senate Committee on Insurance, Housing, and Trade.
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Sep 30, 2015
Introduced in the Senate.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Sep 30, 2015 · Senate
Introduced by Senators C. Larson, Carpenter, Hansen, L. Taylor, Vinehout, Harris Dodd, Erpenbach and Ringhand; cosponsored by Representatives Kolste, Jorgensen, Sinicki, Brostoff, Kessler, Goyke, Genrich, Pope, Spreitzer, Ohnstad, Subeck and Berceau
- Sep 30, 2015 · Senate
Read first time and referred to Committee on Insurance, Housing, and Trade
- Jan 28, 2016 · Senate
Fiscal estimate received
- Apr 13, 2016 · Senate
Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1
Terms on this page
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1. More in the glossary
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis. More in the glossary
Author
A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Official term: Author, coauthor. More in the glossary
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor. More in the glossary
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate. More in the glossary
From the Wisconsin Legislature's official record, checked Sep 15, 2026. See the source
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate