Commissioner of Insurance of North Carolina
Seal of the North Carolina Department of Insurance
Incumbent
Mike Causey
since January 1, 2017 (2017-01-01)
Member ofCouncil of State
SeatRaleigh, North Carolina
Term lengthFour years
Inaugural holderJames R. Young
Formation1899
Websitewww.ncdoi.gov

The commissioner of insurance is a statewide elected office in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The commissioner is a constitutional officer who leads the state's Department of Insurance. The commissioner also oversees the Office of the State Fire Marshal and sits on the North Carolina Council of State. The current commissioner is Mike Causey, who has held that office since January 1, 2017.

History of the office

Oversight of insurance in North Carolina was originally entrusted to the North Carolina Secretary of State.[1] On March 6, 1899 the North Carolina General Assembly created the Department of Insurance. The first commissioner of insurance was to be appointed to two-year terms, though the legislature selected the first commissioner; the day the insurance department was created, the legislature elected James R. Young to the commissionership.[2] That year a law was passed making the insurance commissioner ex officio the State Fire Marshal.[3] In 1907 the legislature scheduled a referendum to amend the state constitution to provide for the popular election of the commissioner to four-year terms beginning in 1908, which was successful. Young, who had been continuously reappointed to the office, was elected to a full term.[2] The commissionership was made a constitutional office in 1944.[4] A 1968 constitutional study commission recommended making the governor responsible for the selection of the commissioner to reduce voters' burden by shortening the ballot, but this proposal was disregarded by the General Assembly when it revised the state constitution in 1971.[5] Commissioner James E. Long created a full-fledged Office of the State Fire Marshal within the Department of Insurance on April 1, 1998.[6] In November 2023, a bill was signed into law which split off the fire marshal's office into a separate agency, effective January 1, 2024.[7] The incumbent commissioner, Mike Causey, was sworn in on January 1, 2017.[8]

Powers, duties, and structure

The Albemarle Building houses the North Carolina Department of Insurance

Article III, Section 7, of the Constitution of North Carolina stipulates the popular election of the commissioner of insurance every four years. The office holder is not subject to term limits.[9] North Carolina is one of the few states to have an elected insurance commissioner.[10] In the event of a vacancy in the office, the Governor of North Carolina has the authority to appoint a successor until a candidate is elected at the next general election for members of the General Assembly. Per Article III, Section 8 of the constitution, the commissioner sits on the Council of State.[9] They are tenth in line of succession to the governor.[11][12]

The commissioner of insurance leads the North Carolina Department of Insurance. The department regulates the sale of insurance in the state and licenses motor clubs premium financing firms, bail bondsmen, and collection agencies.[13] The department has three groups: Public Services, which answers consumer queries and investigates insurance fraud; Company Services, which evaluates the financial condition of insurance companies and conducts actuarial studies; and Technical Services, which monitors rates and industry practices.[14] As of December 2022, the department has 539 employees retained under the terms of the State Human Resources Act.[15] The commissioner is ex officio State Fire Marshal of North Carolina, and the insurance department also houses the Office of the State Fire Marshal, which enforces the state fire code, manages the self-insurance fund for state-owned property, and provides training and support to fire and rescue squads.[16] In practice, regular administrative activities of the office are managed by a chief state fire marshal.[17] As with all Council of State officers, the commissioner's salary is fixed by the General Assembly and cannot be reduced during their term of office.[18] In 2022, the commissioner's annual salary was $146,421.[19] The Department of Insurance is housed in the Albemarle Building in downtown Raleigh.[20][21]

List of commissioners of insurance

Commissioners of insurance
No. Commissioner Term in office Party Source
1 James R. Young 1899 – 1921 Democratic [22]
2 Stacey W. Wade 1921 – 1927 Democratic [22]
3 Daniel C. Boney 1927 – 1942 Democratic [22]
4 William P. Hodges 1942 – 1949 Democratic [22]
5 Waldo C. Cheek 1949 – 1953 Democratic [22]
6 Charles F. Gold 1953 – 1962 Democratic [22]
7 Edwin S. Lanier 1962 – 1973 Democratic [22]
8 John R. Ingram 1973 – 1985 Democratic [22]
9 James E. Long 1985 – 2009 Democratic [22]
10 Wayne Goodwin 2009 – 2017 Democratic [23]
11 Mike Causey 2017 – present Republican [8]

References

  1. ↑ Diem, Gordon Neal (2006). "Insurance". NCPedia. North Carolina Government & Heritage Library. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
  2. 1 2 North Carolina Manual 2011, pp. 208, 211.
  3. ↑ Young, J. R. (July 28, 1905). "Fire Marshall Law A Benefit". The Wilmington Messenger. p. 3.
  4. ↑ Orth & Newby 2013, p. 123.
  5. ↑ Guillory 1988, p. 41.
  6. ↑ "About OSFM". North Carolina Office of the State Fire Marshal. North Carolina Department of Insurance. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  7. ↑ Fain, Travis (November 14, 2023). "Chief NC fire marshal, 2 others reinstated after being fired in power struggle". WRAL-TV. Capitol Broadcasting Company. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  8. 1 2 O'Connor, Amy (January 9, 2017). "Southeast Regulation Report Card: North Carolina Flunks; Florida, South Carolina Dispute Grades". Insurance Journal. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  9. 1 2 North Carolina Manual 2011, p. 138.
  10. ↑ Wagner, Michelle (February 20, 2019). "Sounding an Alarm on Homeowner's Insurance". Island Free Press. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  11. ↑ "States' Lines of Succession of Gubernatorial Powers" (PDF). National Emergency Management Association. May 2011. Retrieved August 5, 2022.
  12. ↑ Orth & Newby 2013, p. 115.
  13. ↑ North Carolina Manual 2011, p. 208.
  14. ↑ North Carolina Manual 2011, pp. 208–209.
  15. ↑ "Current State Employee Statistics". North Carolina Office of State Human Resources. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  16. ↑ North Carolina Manual 2011, p. 210.
  17. ↑ Fain, Travis (October 31, 2023). "NC Insurance commissioners fires three in power struggle over fire marshal's office". WRAL-TV. Capitol Broadcast Company. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
  18. ↑ Orth & Newby 2013, p. 125.
  19. ↑ "What raises are NC teachers, state employees getting in 2022". The News & Observer. July 20, 2022. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  20. ↑ "Budget: Study moving UNC System Office to downtown Raleigh". The News & Observer. June 22, 2021. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  21. ↑ Browder, Cullen (June 19, 2023). "Protecting your tax dollars: WRAL Investigates empty state-owned office space". WRAL-TV. Capitol Broadcasting Company. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  22. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 North Carolina Manual 2011, p. 211.
  23. ↑ "Ex-Insurance Commissioner Goodwin Is NC's Next DMV Chief". U.S. News World & Report. Associated PRess. January 14, 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2022.

Works cited

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