A Wyoming legislative panel rejected a measure that would have doubled the minimum amount of liability insurance coverage that drivers are required to carry in the state.

The House Transportation, Highways and Military Affairs Committee voted 8-1 Jan. 13 against the bill.

Wyoming drivers are required to carry minimum liability coverage of $25,000 per person and $50,000 per incident for causing injury or death of another person. The minimum coverage for property damage is $20,000.

The bill – HB8 – would have required drivers to expand that coverage to $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for injury or death, as well as $25,000 for property damage.

Dave Uechner, an attorney and lobbyist for the American Insurance Association, said liability limits are not the key to maintaining safety on the state’s roads – it depends on solving the problem of uninsured drivers.

“If there was a way to cure the problem of uninsured drivers, I would encourage you to pass it,” Uechner told lawmakers.

If the bill passed, he said, it would likely keep some people from obtaining the insurance.

Committee Chairman Rep. Dave Edwards, R-Douglas, said another bill – HB169 – would address changes to the law that governs uninsured drivers.