The Senate  passed legislation onThursday re-establishing the National Association ofRegistered Agents and Brokers (NARAB).

It was passed as part of S. 1926, the Homeowner Flood InsuranceAffordability Act of 2014 and National Association of RegisteredAgents and Brokers Reform Act of 2014. The bill now goes to theHouse.

See: Senate Votes to Delay Flood-Rate Hikes for 4 Years

Industry officials voiced strong support. Those commentingincluded the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers (CIAB), theIndependent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (IIABA)and  the American Association of Managing General Agents(AAMGA).

The overall bill passed the Senate, 67-32, but the real sign ofsupport was in a vote rejecting an amendment by Sen. Tom Coburn,R-Okla., that would allow states to opt-out, a provision thatconcerns industry officials. The vote rejecting that amendment was75-24.

At the same time, the overall bill faces significant oppositionin the House due to the flood-insurance provisions and it isunclear when and if the legislation will be enacted.

The White House also seeks some changes in the legislation, asnoted in a Statement of Administration Policy issued lateMonday.

The legislation is modeled after the National Association ofSecurities Dealers (NASD) and will be a completely voluntary,self-regulating organization.   

"The big concession we've made is on governance – that amajority of the governance has to come from state-insurancecommissioners," one lobbyist involved said.

In seeking support for his amendment, Coburn said, "An opt-outkeeping the 10th Amendment (state's rights) privileges of the stateis required to make sure that we do not go outside the bounds ofour legal obligations."

But Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., urged the Senate to reject theamendment. "We have worked so hard to get everybody on board," hesaid. "It does empower states. It does allow them to do what theyneed to do."

After the vote, Ken A. Crerar, CIAB president and CEO, said,This is a tremendous bipartisan victory; I don't know how we couldhave more successfully demonstrated the broad support for thisreform."

He said the overwhelming vote rejecting the Coburn amendment"makes a strong statement."

Crerar recognized that "there are remaining significant hurdlesin the flood legislation revolving around uncertainty of Houseaction."

But he said "this is a great day, and we're feeling stronglythat the decades of efforts on this issue are soon going to payoff."

Charles Symington, IIABA senior vice president for external andgovernment affairs, called it a "big win for independent insuranceagents."

He said the NARAB proposal has been a top priority of the IIABAfor a number of years, adding, "On behalf of the quarter of amillion professionals we represent across the country, we thank thebill sponsors and Senate leadership in both parties for theirefforts to make this happen." 

Bernd G. Heinze, AAMGA executive director, said the group "hasworked diligently with the NAIC, our industry colleagues, andencouraged members to mount a grass roots effort to provide theircongressmen and senators with personal examples that NARAB willprovide."

He said that modernization of the market place "has been afoundation of our efforts in the state, national and internationallevels.

"Our focus has been on implementing processes and advocatingregulatory and legislative efforts that will provide greateruniformity and efficiencies for agents, underwriters, programmanagers and brokers," Heinz said. "NARAB advances thoseprinciples, while maintaining important consumer protections andthe state-based regulatory system."

As to the Coburn amendment, he said the amendment "wouldfundamentally change the dynamics by diluting NARAB's integrity andintent. 

"Adding the opt-out provision proposed by Senator Coburn wouldonly have preserved an unacceptable status quo and make itimpossible to achieve true reciprocity and efficient compliancewith state licensing requirements. NARAB was drafted to create aone-stop licensing compliance mechanism for the thousands ofinsurance agents and brokers who operate on a multi-statebasis."