Industry Groups Line Up Behind Oxley Idea

By Steven Brostoff, Washington Editor

NU Online News Service, April 1, 3:23 p.m. EST

Representatives from both company and agent organizations told a House Financial Services Subcommittee hearing last week that state insurance regulation needs to be streamlined and made more market-oriented.

Albert R. Counselman, president of Riggs, Counselman, Michaels and Downes, a Baltimore-based agency, said that despite recent accomplishments on producer licensing, the system is still cumbersome.

He noted that the National Association of Insurance Commissioners has certified that a majority of states have reciprocal licensing. Progress, he said, has undeniably been made since the federal Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act spurred state action on agent licensing. Nonetheless, he said, his agency still must hold 458 licenses from more than 50 jurisdictions, so while progress has been made, the numbers vividly demonstrate the job is not yet finished.

Mr. Counselman, who testified on behalf of the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers, said the roadmap outlined by Rep. Oxley at a recent NAIC meeting "is an excellent vehicle to force the states to make the reforms necessary to address the glaring deficiencies of the state system."

Thomas B. Ahart, president of Phillipsburg, N.J.-based Ahart, Frinzi & Smith Insurance Agency, agreed, adding that while most states have enacted licensing reform statutes, various burdens and difficulties remain. In particular, he said, some of the larger states still have not enacted reciprocity and many states that did pass reform deviated from the NAIC's model law.

"The resulting lack of uniformity and consistency among the states makes compliance a challenge, and states still differ dramatically in the manner in which they handle nonresident licensing and renewals," he said. Mr. Ahart, who testified on behalf of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America, said IIABA strongly supports the conceptual approach for reform outlined by Reps. Oxley and Baker.

On the company side, Roger M. Singer, senior vice president with OneBeacon Insurance Group in Boston, said the current system is inefficient and harmful to consumers, For example, he noted that last year his company had to make 454 product filings in its eight core states. Ntional and regional insurers, he said, often make thousands of filings.

"Add up the months and even years that it takes to review a company rate or form filing and one does not have to be an actuary to calculate the cumulative inefficiency the state regulatory process imposes on the marketplace," Mr. Singer said.

Mr. Singer, who testified on behalf of the American Insurance Association, said AIA supports an optional federal charter, but is pragmatic about the pace of reform in the short term. If done correctly, he said, the targeted approach outlined by Reps. Oxley and Baker, with reliance on market forces, will lead to uniformity, less red tape and enhanced consumer protection.

Anthony Dickson, president of rthe New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Company in Trenton, N.J. said the best chance to achieve reform, both politically and functionally, is a narrow targeted package designed to address the core problem of the current system--the antiquated price controls that impose barriers to market-based pricing.

Mr. Dickson, who spoke on behalf of the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, said that while other areas of reform are important, the committee should place the highest priority on competitive market reforms and focus its legislative effort in that direction.

The Oxley-Baker proposal was blasted by J. Robert Hunter, director of insurance for the Washington-based Consumer Federation of America. He called on Reps. Oxley and Baker to withdraw their roadmap, which, he said, leaves many small businessowners and personal lines consumers vulnerable to predatory pricing, price gouging, and even redlining, while tying the hands of states that want to eliminate these abuses.

But Janet Ochenkowski, vice president of external affairs for the Risk and Insurance Management Society, said that while RIMS still believes optional federal chartering would streamline insurance purchasing, the Oxley-Baker proposal is reasonable and attainable.

Emphasizing that in addition to Fortune 500 companies, RIMS represents some 950 small businesses--those with less than 500 employees--she called for a free, open and competitive market to allow buyers to negotiate the best rates, terms and conditions for coverage.

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Industry Groups Line Up Behind Oxley Idea

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