Appeal to the Commissioner; judicial review

Any action of the board of directors may be appealed to the Commissioner by any member insurer if such appeal is taken within 60 days of its receipt of notice of the action being appealed. Any final action or order of the Commissioner shall be subject to judicial review in a court 803 33-38-22 of competent jurisdiction in accordance with the laws of this state that may apply to the actions or orders of the Commissioner. History. — Code 1933, § 56-2209, enacted by Ga. L. 1981, p. 1336, § 1; Ga. L. 2012, p. 701, § 1/HB 786. 33-38-21. References to the association in advertisements for insurance. (a) No person, including a member insurer or agent or affiliate of a member insurer, shall make, publish, disseminate, circulate, or place before the public or cause directly or indirectly to be made, published, disseminated, circulated, or placed before the public, in any newspaper, magazine, or other publication; in the form of a notice, circular, pamphlet, letter, or poster; over any radio station or television station; or in any other way, any advertisement, announcement, or statement which uses the existence of the association for the purposes of sales, solicitation, or inducement to purchase any form of insurance or other coverage covered by this chapter. This Code section shall not apply to the association or any other entity which does not sell or solicit insurance or coverage provided by a health maintenance organization or a health care corporation. (b) Any person who violates subsection (a) of this Code section may, after notice and hearing and upon order of the Commissioner, be subject to one or more of the following: (1) A monetary penalty of not more than $1,000.00 for each act or violation, but not to exceed an aggregate penalty of $10,000.00; or (2) Suspension or revocation of his or her license or certificate of authority. History. — Code 1933, § 56-2216, enacted by Ga. L. 1981, p. 1336, § 1; Ga. L. 2012, p. 701, § 1/HB 786; Ga. L. 2020, p. 113, § 12/HB 1050. The 2020 amendment, effective July 1, 2020, in subsection (a), in the first sentence, substituted ‘‘a member insurer’’ for ‘‘an insurer’’ in two places and inserted ‘‘or other coverage’’, and added ‘‘or coverage provided by a health maintenance organization or a health care corporation’’ at the end of the last sentence. 33-38-22. Premium tax liability offsets; refunds offset against taxes. (a) A member insurer may offset against its premium tax liability to this state an assessment described in Code Section 33-38-15 to the extent of 20 percent of the amount of such assessment for each of the five calendar years following the year in which such assessment was paid. In the event a member insurer should cease doing business, all 804 33-38-22 uncredited assessments may be credited against its premium tax liability for the year it ceases doing business. (b) A member insurer that is exempt from taxes referenced in subsection (a) of this Code section may recoup its assessments by a surcharge on its premiums in a sum reasonably calculated to recoup the assessments over a reasonable period of time, as approved by the Commissioner. Amounts recouped shall not be considered premiums for any other purpose, including the computation of gross premium tax, the medical loss ratio, or agent commission. If a member insurer collects excess surcharges, the insurer shall remit the excess amount to the association, and the excess amount shall be applied to reduce future assessments in the appropriate account. (c) Any sums which are acquired by refund, pursuant to subsection (f ) of Code Section 33-38-15, from the association by member insurers and which have theretofore been offset against premium taxes as provided in subsection (a) of this Code section shall be paid by such member insurers to this state in such manner as the Commissioner may require. The association shall notify the Commissioner that such refunds have been made. History. — Code 1981, § 33-38-22, enacted by Ga. L. 1988, p. 1900, § 6; Ga. L. 1989, p. 14, § 33; Ga. L. 2012, p. 701, § 1/HB 786; Ga. L. 2020, p. 113, § 13/HB 1050. The 2020 amendment, effective July 1, 2020, added subsection (b), redesignated former subsection (b) as present subsection (c), and inserted ‘‘member’’ in the first sentence of subsection (c). 805 T.33, C.39 INSURANCE T.33, C.39 CHAPTER 39 COLLECTION, USE, AND DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION GATHERED BY INSURANCE INSTITUTIONS Sec. 33-39-1. 33-39-2. Purpose of chapter.