(a) The General Assembly finds that the proper and expeditious investigation and prosecution of fraudulent insurance acts are beneficial to the public interest. The General Assembly further finds that proper investigation of fraudulent insurance acts, followed by vigorous prosecution of insurance fraud, will bring about lower insurance rates for the citizens of this state.

(b) There is created a Special Insurance Fraud Fund for the purpose of funding the investigation and prosecution of insurance fraud.

(c)(1) The Commissioner shall prepare, on an annual basis, a separate budget request to the General Assembly which sets forth the anticipated cost and expense of funding the investigation and prosecution of insurance fraud in this state for the ensuing 12 months. Beginning with the year 1997, such budget request shall set forth the annual cost and expense of the investigation and prosecution of insurance fraud in Georgia for the preceding 12 months.

(2) There is imposed upon each foreign, alien, and domestic insurance company doing business in the state an annual assessment under a formula to be established by regulation promulgated by the Commissioner. The formula shall be calculated such that the total proceeds paid or collected from such assessments for any year shall not exceed the amounts appropriated by the General Assembly pursuant to paragraph (3) of this subsection, which appropriation shall be based upon the budget request setting forth the applicable annual cost and expense of the investigation and prosecution of insurance fraud in Georgia submitted by the Commissioner. Such assessments may be measured by kind of company, kind of insurance, income, volume of transactions, or such other factors as the Commissioner determines appropriate. Assessments shall be due and payable for each calendar quarter at the times specified in subsection (b) of Code Section 33-8-6. Any insurance company which fails to report and pay any installment of such assessment shall be subject to penalties and interest as provided by subsection (d) of Code Section 33-8-6. The Commissioner shall provide by regulation for such other terms and conditions for the payment or collection of such assessments as may be necessary to ensure the proper payment and collection thereof.

(3) The General Assembly may appropriate to the Insurance Department funds for the investigation of insurance fraud and for the funding of the prosecution of insurance fraud. The Commissioner is authorized to use such funds for investigation of insurance fraud and to reimburse prosecuting attorneys for some or all of the costs of retaining assistant prosecuting attorneys to prosecute insurance fraud cases. The Commissioner shall provide by regulation for such other terms and conditions for the use of the funds for the investigation, reimbursement, and prosecution contemplated by the terms of this paragraph.

(d) Insurers shall make personnel involved in investigating insurance fraud and any files relating to insurance fraud investigation available to the Commissioner, the Attorney General, local prosecuting officials, special prosecuting attorneys, or other law enforcement agencies as needed in order to further the investigation and prosecution of insurance fraud. Information supplied by an insurer and contained in such files shall upon receipt become part of the investigative file and subject to the provisions of Code Section 50-18-72. The insurer and its employees and agents shall be entitled to immunity as provided in Code Section 33-1-16.

(e) Any expenses incurred by insurers as a result of this Code section shall be defrayed by such insurers from their own funds and shall not be borne by the state or by the Special Insurance Fraud Fund.