* Warning: This is an unofficial, introductory copy of the bill.
The official copy considered by the City Council is the first reader copy.
Introductory*
City of Baltimore
Council Bill R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: Councilmember Henry
A Resolution Entitled
A Council Resolution concerning
title
A Request for State Legislation - Auto Insurance Rates - Fair Rate Calculation
For the purpose of requesting the Honorable Chair and Members of the Baltimore City Senate and House Delegations to the 2019 Session of the Maryland General Assembly to introduce legislation to eliminate disparities in the amount charged for car insurance by removing location as a consideration in calculating the amount charged for auto insurance coverage.
body
Recitals
Residents of Baltimore City are well aware that historically the expense of owning a vehicle in the City far exceeds that of owning a vehicle in the surrounding counties, because rates for auto insurance coverage are 2 to 4 times higher than in the outlying areas. This is one of the reported factors, in addition to a high crime rate and a troubled school system, that contributes to urban flight.
While in Maryland efforts to pass State legislation that would equalize the auto insurance rates statewide have failed, legislatures in other states have addressed the problem with varying degrees of success. In 1988, California voters passed Proposition 103 that, in part, banned premiums based on zip codes, but in 2003 millions of residents of Oakland and San Francisco were still paying higher insurance premiums based simply on the neighborhoods where they lived. It was not until 2006 that California’...
Click here for full text