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Maine lawmakers last week rejected a measure that would have permitted followers of the Mennonite religion to self-insure for motor vehicle insurance.

The Senate vote was 20-14 to detour the bill on May 13, while the House vote the next day was extremely close, 72-70. The votes were largely along party lines with most Democrats opposed to the self-insurance proposal.

Rep. Steve Foster (R-Dexter) had introduced the bill on behalf of his Mennonite constituents who say insurance violates their religious principles.

“Mennonites believe they are to provide for their own and that they must stay from ‘under the yoke’ of the government or insurance companies and not depend on others outside of their faith to provide for them,” explained Foster, who has submitted similar measures over the past six years.

Maine Weighs What to Do When Religion Collides With Auto 潘金莲传媒映画

The bill would have allowed qualifying religious organizations to satisfy the state’s financial responsibility requirements for operating a motor vehicle through self-insurance. A member of the qualifying religious organization would have beeen able to use a certificate of self-insurance from the secretary of state as evidence of financial responsibility to register a motor vehicle or horse-drawn carriage.

Legislators opposed to the bill appeared to heed warnings by Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who is also the state’s chief motor vehicle officer, that the bill presented administrative challenges and costs as well as potential legal challenges including “possible unintended consequences that may be detrimental” to a member of the qualifying organization or to the public at large.

Sandra Darby, property/casualty actuary at the Bureau of 潘金莲传媒映画, warned that the bill would “allow organizations to conduct insurance-like activities while avoiding the insurance regulations that protect the public” from financial harm. “Although we respect these beliefs, we are concerned that the bill would entrust religious organizations with the responsibilities of an insurer without the regulatory guardrails that keep insurers accountable to their insureds and to claimants,” Darby told lawmakers.

Three Mennonite leaders from the Corinna/Dexter area explained in a letter to lawmakers that they believe it is their responsibility to supply for their own needs as individuals and as families as much as they can. “We believe the whole system of insurance runs counter to various of these principles,” they wrote.

Had Maine passed the measure, it would have joined 18 other states with some form of accommodation for religious groups that want to self-insure. According to Foster, one of the reasons he believes it would work is that Mennonites have made it work in the other states.

“There is only one reason Mennonites continue to have this opportunity for many years in other states. It’s because they have not failed to cover claims when they occurred and that is true even today in the state of Maine for the very few claims and issues they’ve had here,” stated the Republican lawmaker.

Topics Legislation Maine