Advocacy in action blog

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors is pleased to present NAIFA’s Defender of Financial Freedom Award to Susan Neely, president and CEO of the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI).

NAIFA and the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) often work together to advocate for the industry, producers, and consumers in every part of the country. Their enduring cooperation and partnership take on great significance at the state level, where NAIFA is the only advocacy association of agents and advisors with a strong grassroots influence in all 50 state capitals.

NAIFA’s 10^th annual Congressional Conference was an overwhelming success, demonstrating that NAIFA is the One and Only when it comes to our unmatched advocacy influence. More than 500 insurance and financial advisors from all over the United States gathered in Washington, D.C., to receive policy briefings and grassroots advocacy instruction, hear words of encouragement from distinguished guests, and take NAIFA's advocacy message directly to their elected officials on Capitol Hill.

NAIFA and Women in Insurance & Financial Services (WIFS) have agreed to continue to work closely together and support their mutual goals in the areas of professional development; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and political advocacy. The two associations have signed an expanded partnership agreement. Under the agreement, NAIFA and WIFS share resources and NAIFA represents WIFS’s political advocacy interests.

The Partnership for America’s Health Care Future recently published results from a nationwide poll showing that the push for transforming the American health care system through a public option, Medicare-for-All or other government interventions in the market is losing traction with American voters.

NAIFA has partnered with the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) and other organizations to encourage states to adopt consumer-protection legislation or regulations based on a model created by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), which requires advisors to work in their client's best interests on annuity transactions. NAIFA also supports the Securities and Exchange Commission's Regulation Best Interest. 

Innovation in insurance producer licensing in the U.S. has accelerated in the last few decades, and the National Insurance Producer Registry (NIPR) has led the way.

Celebrating its 25th anniversary, today’s NIPR is a vital technology company grounded in teamwork, service and innovation—with unsurpassed expertise in the state-based system of insurance producer licensing.

It’s hard to imagine that insurance producer licensing was once accomplished with paper applications and a long process of research and validation. Multi-state producers had distinct application processes, timelines, and fees for each state in which they did business.

To improve this approach, NIPR was formed in 1996 as a unique public-private partnership between the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) and the insurance industry. NIPR was founded on the concept that insurance producers and compliance professionals should have access to a “one-stop-shop” for cost-effective, streamlined and uniform licensing across all states and jurisdictions.

Today, NIPR’s Producer Database (PDB) is the single source of comprehensive insurance producer data from all fifty states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands. In 2021, the insurance industry used NIPR to process more than 42 million credentialing transactions and move $1.1 billion in fees to state insurance departments.

NIPR’s business is led by a board of directors made up of state commissioners, insurance industry representatives, and NAIC executive leadership—an ideal mix of professionals for coordinated and effective solutions.

Karen Stakem Hornig, CEO of NIPR said, “Through the past 25 years, NIPR has adapted to meet evolving industry and producer needs, harnessed the power of emerging technology and responded purposefully to change. These efforts have allowed us to humanize our technological offerings, ultimately building trust and a collaborative culture, which has been key to our success.”

Producers can access their own license information, apply for and renew their licenses at NIPR.com and use NIPR’s free mobile app to help with the compliance process. Insurance agencies and carriers use NIPR to manage the licensing and appointment process. Growing from a concept to a high-functioning organization emphasizing teamwork, service, and innovation, NIPR has supported the industry in its efforts to become more and more efficient and effective.

NIPR’s 25th anniversary commemorative booklet, Celebrating Our Journey, is online.

About NIPR: NIPR is a not-for-profit technology company with the goal of streamlining the producer licensing process. Governed by a board of directors representing state insurance regulators and members of the insurance industry, NIPR is an affiliate of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). To learn more, visit NIPR.com.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ Executive Committee adopted an amendment to the NAIC Unfair Trade Practices Act that would liberalize the existing restrictions contained in the Model Act’s anti-rebating provisions.

The adopted language allows insurers or producers to "offer or give non-cash gifts, items, or services, including meals to or charitable donations on behalf of a customer, in connection with the marketing, sale, purchase, or retention of contracts of insurance." The revised language provides that offering or providing products or services that will help mitigate risk or loss will not be considered impermissible rebates.

NAIFA commented on the revisions to the UTPA in a letter sent in July to the NAIC’s Innovation and Technology (EX) Task Force.

NAIFA commended the NAIC for undertaking a review of the current UTPA provisions that deal with rebating, with an eye towards modernizing the model in recognition of technological and risk/loss mitigation advances that have occurred in recent years.

“Basically, recent technology advances generally referred to as ‘insuretech’ have resulted in the development of products that will aid in risk and loss mitigation,” said Gary Sanders, NAIFA’s Counsel and VP. “Things such as Fitbits and monitors that will tell you that your water heat is leaking, etc. can help reduce risks for consumers and losses for insurers.”

In general, NAIFA supports the approach taken in the draft as well as the scope of the proposed expansion of the types of practices, products and/or services that would not be considered an impermissible rebate.

The amendments also allow each state commissioner to impose a cap on the dollar amount of gift, meals and similar items that can be provided without running afoul of the anti-rebate laws.

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors’ New York chapter (NAIFA-New York) and the Life Insurance Council of New York, Inc. (LICONY) will collaborate in 2021 and beyond on issues that are important to agents and advisors, the industry, and the consumers they serve.  

NAIFA Assistant Vice President of Government Relations Judi Carsrud provided members of Women in Insurance and Financial Services (WIFS) in Central Pennsylvania a briefing on the SECURE Act and the Security and Exchange Commission’s Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) in a virtual meeting on Thursday.