Can the Mississippi Insurance Commissioner require auto insurers to send driver coverage data daily, and can a state agency share that data with a third-party vendor?
Plain-English summary
Mississippi runs a Motor Vehicle Insurance Verification System (MVIVS), a state-run database that lets law enforcement and the courts check whether a particular vehicle has the legally required liability insurance. The system is set up by the Public Safety Verification and Enforcement Act, §§ 63-16-1 et seq. The Department of Public Safety (DPS) operates it, with cooperation from the Department of Insurance and the Department of Revenue.
Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney asked the AG two operational questions:
- Can the Insurance Commissioner require insurers to send a "data dump" of motor vehicle liability policies on a yearly, monthly, or weekly basis?
No. The Insurance Commissioner has the legal authority to cooperate in the MVIVS system but does not have authority to require insurers to provide policy data. That authority sits with DPS. Both § 63-16-3(3)(f) and § 63-16-7(2)(d) cap the data-pull frequency at "not more often than every thirty (30) days." So even DPS cannot demand more than monthly data from insurers. Weekly is not allowed.
- Can a state agency release MVIVS information to a third-party vendor?
Yes, but only if DPS authorizes the release under its rules. Section 63-16-3(3)(c) lists who can access MVIVS without a fee: department personnel, courts, law enforcement, "and other entities authorized by the department under the provisions of Section 63-16-7." DPS is the gatekeeper. A third-party vendor could be authorized, but it requires DPS rulemaking and an authorization act, not just an Insurance Commissioner decision.
The opinion is a clean read of the statute that puts most of the operational authority in DPS's hands, with the Insurance Commissioner cooperating but not directing. That allocation matters because DPS's authority is constrained by the 30-day cap, so neither agency can insist on more frequent data flows from insurers.
What this means for you
If you administer auto insurance compliance for an insurance carrier in Mississippi
You are required to provide motor vehicle policy data through the MVIVS system, but the maximum frequency is monthly. If a state official (whether from DOI or DPS) asks for weekly or daily data feeds, you can decline. Provide the data at the cadence DPS rules require, in the IICMVA Insurance Data Transfer Guide format you are statutorily entitled to use.
If you are at the Mississippi Department of Insurance
Your role in MVIVS is cooperative, not directive. Section 63-16-3(1) sets up DPS as the lead agency, with you and DOR cooperating. If you have policy concerns about insurance verification (gaps, fraud, accuracy), the lever to pull is DPS's rulemaking, not your own data-collection authority. The 30-day cap is statutory and would require a legislative amendment to change.
If you are at the Mississippi Department of Public Safety
You administer MVIVS and make the rules, but the 30-day cap on data collection from insurers is a hard ceiling. If you want to authorize third-party vendors to receive MVIVS data, your rulemaking process is the path. Build the rules to address: who can be authorized, what data they can receive, what they can use it for, audit and enforcement, data security obligations, and revocation procedures.
If you are a third-party vendor pitching MVIVS-based services to a Mississippi municipality
The threshold legal question is: does DPS authorize you to receive MVIVS data? If DPS has not authorized your access, the data cannot flow to you, regardless of what a municipality wants to contract for. Get the DPS authorization first; your sales pitch is meaningless until then.
If you are a Mississippi driver
The MVIVS system means your insurance status is in a state-run database that law enforcement can check during traffic stops or accident investigations. Make sure your insurance company has accurate data, including your VIN, plate number, and policy effective dates, so the database reflects current coverage.
Common questions
Q: Why is DPS in charge instead of the Insurance Department?
A: The Public Safety Verification and Enforcement Act puts the verification system under DPS because the system is primarily about law enforcement use (verifying compliance during traffic stops). The Insurance Department's expertise is in regulating insurers, not in running a real-time verification database for police.
Q: Why is the data limit 30 days?
A: The legislature set the limit to balance two things: timely verification (so the database reflects recent policy changes) and insurer burden (so insurers do not have to push data continuously). 30 days is the legislative compromise.
Q: Could DPS contract directly with insurers for more frequent data?
A: Not under the current statute. The 30-day cap is in both § 63-16-3(3)(f) and § 63-16-7(2)(d). Both apply. DPS would need a legislative amendment to require more frequent data.
Q: What is the "Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration Insurance Data Transfer Guide"?
A: That is an industry-standard format for moving insurance data between insurers and state agencies. The Mississippi statute explicitly says insurers cannot be required to use a different format than the IICMVA guide. This is a vendor-protection provision: insurers do not have to build state-specific data feeds.
Q: If a third-party vendor can be authorized by DPS, what does that authorization look like?
A: The opinion says it has to be "in accordance with [DPS's] rules as set forth in Sections 63-16-3 and 63-16-7." So DPS adopts rules creating an authorization framework, then issues authorizations under those rules. Without rules in place, ad hoc authorizations would lack a procedural foundation.
Q: What can a third-party vendor do with MVIVS data once authorized?
A: That depends on the authorization. Permissible uses, retention periods, and data security obligations would be defined in the DPS rules and the specific authorization. The opinion does not address the substance of permissible uses; that would be a regulatory question for DPS.
Background and statutory framework
The Public Safety Verification and Enforcement Act, §§ 63-16-1 et seq., creates the framework. The agency allocation, § 63-16-3(1):
[DPS], in cooperation with the Commissioner of Insurance and the Department of Revenue, shall establish [MVIVS], a database for verifying a motor vehicle's compliance with Mississippi's mandatory insurance laws.
The data frequency cap, § 63-16-3(3)(f):
Not more often than every thirty (30) days, receive insurance information from insurers under specifications and standards set forth in paragraph (a) of this subsection or other data file formats as approved by the department to identify motor vehicle insurance policy information; however, no insurer shall be required to provide information in a format other than those set forth by the Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration "Insurance Data Transfer Guide," as amended.
DPS rulemaking authority, § 63-16-7:
(1) The Department of Public Safety . . . shall administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter, as applicable, and shall make rules necessary for the administration of the motor vehicle insurance verification system created under Section 63-16-3.
DPS rule requirements, § 63-16-7(2)(d), repeating the 30-day cap:
Provide for insurance information from insurers, not more often than every thirty (30) days, to identify motor vehicle insurance policy information; however, no insurer shall be required to provide such information in a format other than those set forth by the Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration "Insurance Data Transfer Guide," as amended.
Authorized users of MVIVS, § 63-16-3(3)(c):
[B]e accessible, without fee, to authorized personnel of the department, the courts, law enforcement personnel, and other entities authorized by the department under the provisions of Section 63-16-7.
So DPS has the authorization gate for "other entities," which is the path for third-party vendors.
Citations
- Miss. Code Ann. §§ 63-16-1 et seq.
- Miss. Code Ann. § 63-16-3(1)
- Miss. Code Ann. § 63-16-3(3)(c), (f)
- Miss. Code Ann. § 63-16-7
- Miss. Code Ann. § 63-16-7(2)(d)
Source
- Landing page: https://attorneygenerallynnfitch.com/divisions/opinions-and-policy/recent-opinions/
- Original PDF: https://attorneygenerallynnfitch.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/M.Chaney-May-21-2024-Data-Transfer-for-the-Motor-Vehicle-Information-Verification-System.pdf
Original opinion text
May 21, 2024
The Honorable Mike J. Chaney
Commissioner of Insurance
State of Mississippi
501 North West Street, Suite 1001
Jackson, Mississippi 39201
Re: Data Transfer for the Motor Vehicle Information Verification System
Dear Commissioner Chaney:
The Office of the Attorney General has received your request for an official opinion.
Questions Presented
1. Does the Commissioner of Insurance have the legal authority to require insurers to provide motor vehicle liability policy status information, referred to in your request as a "data dump", on a yearly, monthly, or weekly basis?
2. May a state agency release motor vehicle liability policy status information provided by insurers to a third-party vendor, and if so, under what circumstances?
Brief Response
1. Statutorily, the Commissioner of Insurance has the legal authority to cooperate in the establishment of the Motor Vehicle Insurance Verification System ("MVIVS") but not to require insurers to provide motor vehicle liability policy status information. Rather, pursuant to Mississippi Code Annotated Sections 63-16-3(3)(f) and 63-16-7(2)(d), the Department of Public Safety ("DPS") has the authority to direct the MVIVS program and promulgate its rules, which includes mandating the receipt of insurance information "not more often than every thirty (30) days."
2. Information recovered from MVIVS may be released to private entities if and when such action is authorized by DPS in accordance with its rules as set forth in Sections 63-16-3 and 63-16-7.
Applicable Law and Discussion
The Public Safety Verification and Enforcement Act is set forth in Sections 63-16-1, et seq. Pursuant to Section 63-16-3 therein, DPS, in cooperation with the Commissioner of Insurance and the Department of Revenue, shall establish MVIVS, a database for verifying a motor vehicle's compliance with Mississippi's mandatory insurance laws. Section 63-16-3(3) sets forth various statutory requirements for MVIVS. Among these, Section 63-16-3(3)(f) provides that MVIVS must:
Not more often than every thirty (30) days, receive insurance information from insurers under specifications and standards set forth in paragraph (a) of this subsection or other data file formats as approved by the department to identify motor vehicle insurance policy information; however, no insurer shall be required to provide information in a format other than those set forth by the Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration "Insurance Data Transfer Guide," as amended.
Further, Section 63-16-7 states that DPS "shall administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter, as applicable, and shall make rules necessary for the administration of the motor vehicle insurance verification system created under Section 63-16-3." Section 63-16-7(2) lists the requirements for said rules, including a requirement that the rules:
(d) Provide for insurance information from insurers, not more often than every thirty (30) days, to identify motor vehicle insurance policy information; however, no insurer shall be required to provide such information in a format other than those set forth by the Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration "Insurance Data Transfer Guide," as amended.
You ask if the Commissioner of Insurance has the legal authority to require insurers to provide motor vehicle liability policy status information on a yearly, monthly, or weekly basis. Statutorily, the Commissioner of Insurance has the legal authority to cooperate in the establishment of the MVIVS system but not to require insurers to provide motor vehicle liability policy status information. Miss. Code Ann. § 63-16-3(1). Instead, DPS has the authority to direct the MVIVS program and promulgate its rules, which includes mandating the receipt of insurance information "not more often than every thirty (30) days." Miss. Code Ann. §§ 63-16-3(3)(f) and 63-16-7(2)(d).
Next, you ask if a state agency may release motor vehicle liability policy status information provided by insurers to a third-party vendor, and if so, under what circumstances. Section 63-16-3(3)(c) provides that MVIVS must "[b]e accessible, without fee, to authorized personnel of the department, the courts, law enforcement personnel, and other entities authorized by the department under the provisions of Section 63-16-7." Moreover, Section 63-16-7 gives DPS broad authority over the administration and enforcement of MVIVS and grants DPS the power to enact rules for the same:
(1) The Department of Public Safety . . . shall administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter, as applicable, and shall make rules necessary for the administration of the motor vehicle insurance verification system created under Section 63-16-3.
...
(3) The department may adopt additional rules to:
(a) Assist authorized users in interpreting responses received from the motor vehicle insurance verification system and determining the appropriate action to be taken as a result of a response; and
(b) Otherwise clarify system operations and business rules.
Given these provisions, information recovered from MVIVS may be released to private entities if and when such action is authorized by DPS in accordance with its rules as set forth in Sections 63-16-3 and 63-16-7.
If this office may be of any further assistance to you, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
LYNN FITCH, ATTORNEY GENERAL
By: /s/ Maggie Kate Bobo
Maggie Kate Bobo
Special Assistant Attorney General