Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Diane Koken has halted her department’s participation in the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ Digital Fingerprint Central Repository pilot project. Koken disclosed the action on Friday February 17 in a letter to PIA’s affiliate, the Insurance Agents and Brokers of Pennsylvania (IAB). She cited the “national and local debate surrounding the efficacy of this process.” Koken’s action follows heavy opposition from insurance agents.

A bill backed by IAB introduced by State Rep. Nicholas Miccozie, chairman of the Pennsylvania House Insurance Committee, would prohibit the department from transmitting producer fingerprint records to the NAIC pilot fingerprint repository. The bill also prohibits the department from keeping fingerprint records in any other state or national database. The proposed legislation has 32 co-sponsors, 15 of whom are members of the House Insurance Committee.

February 22, 2006