Research

Administrative History

The Governor's Advisory Commission on Liability Insurance was established by Governor Mario Cuomo on January 13, 1986 in response to widespread concern over the high cost and sometimes limited availability of liability insurance.

Governor Cuomo specifically charged the Commission to: determine the nature and scope of the problem and its impact on those seeking insurance; identify the forces behind the availability and cost of liability insurance; and develop legislative, regulatory, or policy responses to the problem.

The Commission met and held public hearings in Albany, Rochester, and New York City early in 1986. In the first volume of its report, Insuring Our Future, published in April 1986, the Commission focused on the plight of public corporations seeking liability insurance. The second volume of the report, published in July, addressed broader issues concerning reform of insurance regulation, practice, and tort law affecting claims against insurers. Some of the Commission's recommendations were passed by the Legislature and signed into law during the Commission's lifetime.