NAIFA’s February GovPod Delivers a “State of the States” on Regulatory Reform

More than 50 jurisdictions, encompassing the states, territories and District of Columbia, regulate the U.S. insurance industry. Historically, each jurisdiction has enforced its own agent licensing standards and used its own system for approving new products. For producers operating in multiple states, this mishmash of rules has increased costs and added difficulty to effectively serve clients.

NAIFA’s February GovPod, “The State of the States,” is the second in a series of podcasts on insurance regulatory reform. The January GovPod tackled federal reforms, outlining the pros and cons of a proposed optional federal charter. This month, NAIFA’s Senior Vice President of Law and Government Relations Bill Anderson and General Counsel Michael Gerber discuss some of the problems caused by inconsistent state regulations as well as reforms aimed at making it easier and less costly for agents to do business under the state system.

In recent years, state regulators working together under the aegis of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) have begun to streamline the agent licensing process and improve speed-to-market conditions for insurance products. NAIFA is working with the NAIC to implement these reforms and is fully committed to helping states improve their regulatory systems and protecting the interests of NAIFA members. Specific initiatives include:

• The Producer Licensing Model Act (PLMA), which establishes a consistent framework for agent licensing, making it easier for agents to meet licensing requirements in multiple states
• The National Insurance Producer Registry (NIPR), which allows agents to apply for multiple state licenses online using a single form
• The Interstate Compact, an agreement adopted by 30 states under which approved life insurance, annuity, disability income and long term care insurance products can be sold in any of the member states, thereby eliminating the need for the products to gain state-by-state approval

Anderson and Gerber describe these reforms and how they affect the business practices and bottom lines of NAIFA members. They also explain what NAIFA is doing to improve the regulatory landscape and how members can help.

Listen to this and other NAIFA GovPods or download them to your hard drive or portable media player (such as an iPod) at www.naifa.org/advocacy/podcasts.cfm

NAIFA Staff Contact: For additional information on this issue, please contact Bill Anderson at wanderson@naifa.org or 703-770-8193 or Michael Gerber at mgerber@naifa.org or 703-770-8190.