First, Congress could authorize interstate insurance choice. One study from the Competitive Enterprise Institute (''The Case for Interstate Insurance Choice'' by Ned Andrews, OnPoint No. 131, March 13, 2008) proposes a Property and Casualty Insurance Choice Act. The bill would be explicitly modeled off of the Health Insurance Choice Act (H.R. 4460) already proposed in Congress and would allow property and casualty insurers to sell insurance across state lines under the laws of their home states. Insurance companies that chose to domicile in Illinois, Vermont, or other states with reasonably free market regulatory regimes would operate very much like companies under an OFC.
Second, the existing interstate life insurance compact offers a potential model for congressional authorization of a voluntary compact that would allow the sale of property and casualty insurance policies across state lines. Like the existing life compact, however, a property and casualty compact would likely have a difficult time attracting participation from the states with the most troubled markets. Other good options may exist and, if so, they deserve exploration. An optional federal charter - whatever its merits - should not be the only option on the table.