Mississippi Gov. Vetoes Bill To Ensure Auto-Insurance Compliance

NU Online News Service, April 8, 2:53 p.m. EDT

Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour vetoed a bill that would have created a web-based system to ensure that motorists in the state have required auto insurance coverage.

In a letter to the state's House of Representatives, Barbour expresses concerns with how the state would pay for the system envisioned by HB 620.

"I think further analysis of how much the system will cost to establish and operate on a 24 hours a day/seven days a week basis and how much we expect to collect in penalties is warranted," Barbour writes.

He says the bill can be fixed by "clearly delineating the duties and responsibilities of the appropriate agencies…" and adds that he is "amenable to including this in the next special session."

Monique Kabitzke, state-relations director for the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI), says the association supported the bill and was surprised the governor vetoed it. She says the bill will probably come up again next year, and adds PCI liked the idea that the system to ensure coverage was web-based rather than data-based.