Advocacy in action blog

The U.S. Senate has passed the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act that would increase the program’s loan period for borrowers seeking forgiveness from eight weeks to six months. The legislation would also expand the ability of small businesses to use PPP funds to pay rent, mortgages, utilities, and other essential business costs. The bill keeps the obligations requiring recipients seeking loan forgiveness to avoid layoffs and provide worker protections. The House of Representatives had previously passed the bill, and the president is expected to sign it into law.

Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) had some interesting things to say on the Politico "Morning Money" program about the economic recovery and the potential for future COVID-19 legislation. As a former financial professional and NAIFA member in the days before he entered politics, Scott shows a strong understanding of the issues important to agents and advisors and their Main Street clients.

Susan Neely, president and CEO of the American Council of Life Insurers, provided an inspiring and laudatory message to attendees of NAIFA’s Advocacy in Action Day. She spoke of how the life insurance and financial services industry and agents and advisors are “meeting the moment” during the COVID-19 crisis.

Reps. Tom Reed (R – NY) and Tom Souzzi (D – NY) share a strong appreciation for the insurance and financial services industry and the importance of the products and services that agents and advisors provide. The y spoke about their work and the Problem Solvers Caucus during NAIFA’s Advocacy in Action Day.

Moderator: Diane Boyle

Tracy Jones – Moderator

On May 15, the SBA released a standardized PPP loan forgiveness application with instructions.  The SBA still intends to publish additional rules and guidance on the program’s forgiveness provisions, but highlights from the release – and answers to a few outstanding questions – include:

NAIFA’s Online CEO Panel
Tuesday, May 12 at 1 PM EDT
Free to all financial professionals

NAIFA is bringing together CEOs from the insurance and financial services industry’s top associations to discuss our collaborative efforts during the COVlD-19 crisis to address financial security on Main Street USA. NAIFA CEO Kevin Mayeux will moderate a panel consisting of:

All eyes were on the Washington, D.C., Council on Tuesday morning. Included in its “Coronavirus Omnibus Emergency Amendment Act of 2020” was a proposal to essentially rewrite business income insurance policies and require the industry to pay for losses that were not covered. The Council ultimately agreed to withdraw the language before passing the omnibus bill. The business interruption insurance measure could have threatened the financial solvency of the District's insurance industry, so having it removed was a major win for insurers.

NAIFA along with five other organizations has sent a letter to Congress asking legislators to support the Insured Retirement Institute’s (IRI) five-point plan to help retirement savers recover from losses caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. NAIFA has worked with IRI to promote the plan and garner support in Congress.