NAIFA supports a bill in Maryland that would eliminate a pre-licensing education requirement for people applying to take the state's insurance license exams. The mandated courses are unnecessary and burdensome and they do a disservice to those pursuing an insurance career in Maryland as well as consumers. 

Assuring high standards for knowledge and professionalism among insurance professionals is imperative to providing consumer protections and promoting public trust. States require insurance license applicants to pass licensing exams. Additional pre-licensing educational hurdles go too far. They create "an unnecessary barrier for new producers entering the industry and potentially have a disproportionate impact on minority candidates with no discernable benefit," NAIFA-Maryland wrote in a letter to the state's Senate Finance Committee.

Laws and regulations in 26 states have removed pre-licensing educational barriers from the licensing process and none has reported significant changes in exam scores. 

"All applicants, especially those who might also be caregivers, considering insurance as a second career, or who come from non-traditional educational backgrounds, should be free to study in a way that best fits their schedule, budget, and study habits," NAIFA-Maryland's letter says. "This approach is widely accepted in the financial services industry and is in line with similar financial services licensing exams administered by FINRA."

NAIFA Policy Director Roger Moore testified in favor of the bill during a Maryland Senate Finance Committee hearing.