President's Message
Committees begin planning, start work on programs for the upcoming year

More than 100 NAPSLO committee members met in Dallas in mid-November to start work on plans for the upcoming year, and a great deal was accomplished. Committees are continually looking at ways to improve, update and expand services offered to members, and I believe members will see some important initiatives this year.

One of the biggest issues our industry faces each year is handling regulation and legislation, and we expect that to increase in the next few years as Congress is expected to consider several bills on federal regulation of insurance. 

Any bill on federal regulation could have a big impact on the surplus lines industry. It will be important for NAPSLO to make its views known. To assist the Legislative Committee to prepare for possible lobbying efforts on potential federal legislation, the Board approved a recommendation by the committee to set aside $100,000 for each of the next three years to fund potential legislative lobbying efforts.

One might wonder whether NAPSLO could have an impact on a large bill on the federal regulation of insurance, but our involvement might be a matter of just working to add or delete one or two significant lines in a bill. Adding or deleting a small portion of a bill could protect our industry and in that area NAPSLO could have an impact.

While we will be prepared to undertake lobbying efforts if needed, we are currently working with a number of other industry organizations on issues of common interest. By partnering with other groups we can make our views more broadly known within the industry and at the legislative level.

In the past few months since taking office, I’ve met with a number of industry leaders from AAMGA, IIABA, PIA and several stamping offices and discussed "partnering" in various areas such as Legislation/Regulation, Education and Technology.

NAPSLO shares a number of common interests with other industry groups and by partnering with them we can achieve common objectives.

While legislation may be at the forefront over the next few years, a number of other committees began working on projects of importance to our industry. 

NAPSLO marks its 30th annual convention in September in Orlando and I expect we will be paying tribute to our history, along with a number of excellent programs.

In addition, in this year of significant NAPSLO Anniversaries, we will offer the 15th E&S School and 10th Advanced School. Those two schools provide important educational opportunities to our members and will continue to do so in future years.

In addition to the traditional NAPSLO schools, last year we added a Negotiation Skills seminar, which the School Advisory Committee will repeat in April 7-8 in Newark, NJ. The committee will also look at additional topics for future seminars. We hope to hear more at the Board’s next meeting in February.

The Communications & Technology Committee suggested improvements to NAPSLO’s web site by offering web seminars and an improved member locator feature. It also plans to use advertising to push people to the web site. The committee will also sponsor a program on London Data Standards at the AAMGA’s Automation Conference in New Orleans in March. 

The Internship Committee is looking to expand the program beyond eight interns and will be sponsoring a breakfast presentation at the Mid-Year Educational Workshop for prospective Intern Hosts. 

Registration is well underway for the annual Mid-Year Educational Workshop in February in Scottsdale. More than 500 people are expected to attend. The Workshop, set for February 5-8, will take place at the Camelback Inn in Scottsdale.

A number of excellent programs are scheduled, with topics focusing on reducing Errors & Omissions claims and where to find and improve E&O coverage; a global review of the insurance industry; and a look at the impact of current economic conditions on the industry. 

If you plan to attend, I encourage you to register soon, as the Mid-Year always attracts a large attendance. I look forward to seeing you in Arizona!