LANSING —Today, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan filed a lawsuit against the state’s insurance commissioner, requesting a federal judge declare Michigan’s no-fault auto insurance law unconstitutional and demand action from the Michigan Legislature. In response, state Rep. Sherry Gay-Dagnogo (D-Detroit), chairwoman of the Detroit Caucus, issued the following statement:
“Transportation, or lack thereof, is a civil rights issue. On that, the Mayor and I agree. However, instead of politicizing the issue and trying the circumvent the legislative process, it is time to focus on solutions that address the underlying cause of high auto insurance rates in a community which is 80 percent African American by addressing red-lining and the use of non-driving factors, which help to perpetuate the cycle of poverty.
“For the last 10 months, a bipartisan plan that would lower auto insurance rates without gutting coverage has sat untouched by House Republican leadership. We can, and we must, deal with auto insurance rates now. If the Mayor is serious about the need for action, he will join me and members of the Detroit Caucus in calling on his Republican allies to hold a hearing on the Fair and Affordable No-Fault Reform package.”
The Fair and Affordable No-Fault Reform plan takes on the high cost of auto insurance by directly addressing the causes of increased costs for Michigan drivers: unprosecuted fraud, high medical reimbursements, system inefficiencies, high litigation rates, and a lack of consumer protection. Additional information on the fifteen bill package can be found here.