Committee advances bill to bar use of credit scores in insurance pricing after questioning

Minority Leader Kurt presented SB1435 to the committee as the outcome of interim studies on rising property and casualty insurance rates. Kurt said the bill would "disallow the use of credit scores in our...premium rating," arguing credit scores can cause widely divergent premiums for neighbors with similar risk profiles.

Kurt said three states had banned the practice and that, in Oklahoma, someone "in the 600s is paying 104% more for their insurance rates than someone with a similar risk pattern but a higher credit score." Committee members asked follow‑up questions seeking the identities of the three states and empirical results from those states; Kurt named Maryland and Massachusetts but said he did not have the complete list or outcome data at hand.

A short exchange followed in which some members asked whether removing credit scores would simply redistribute costs; Kurt rejected that contention as an insurance‑industry framing and said the bill addresses individual risk assessment practices.

The committee recorded 5 ayes and 3 nays and the chair declared the bill passed. The hearing record does not include detailed empirical evidence or the specific statutory amendments’ text; supporters framed the bill as a consumer protection measure and opponents raised questions about rate redistribution.