President's Message
Washington legislation, association work continues

Over the past year or so one of the major issues for the NAPSLO Board of Directors has been working to get the Non-Admitted and Reinsurance Reform Act passed by the House and Senate in order to solve long standing problems facing the industry. 

Currently bills are before both the House and Senate and we are hopeful legislation will be enacted. In late April a number of members of NAPSLO'[s Board of Directors, Legislative Committee, and staff were in Washington, D.C. to push for adoption of the bills.

During the past few months some opposition has arisen to the bills, which came as a surprise. During the eight years I have been on the Board one of the major issues people continually ask is "what is NAPSLO doing about solving the tax and licensing issues involving multi-state surplus lines risks?"  

Over and over our members, and also others in the industry, have pushed the Association to find a solution to the problems with multi-state risks. Now, with a potential solution on the horizon, we have heard concerns expressed about the bills.

The NAPSLO Board and our legislative staff, who have followed the efforts, believe some of the opposition has arisen because of a misinterpretation of the bill. To help answer questions and concerns, NAPSLO recently published a paper (Why HR 1065) and  issued answers to frequently asked questions on the bill. 

The Legislative Update contains a condensed version of the "Frequently Asked Questions' and the complete version, along with the paper, can be found online in the Legislative/Regulatory section of NAPSLO's website. I hope you will take time to review the material.

If there is anything I am sure about our Association, it is that our Broker members want the multi-state issue resolved.  They want to pay surplus lines taxes to just one state. They also want only one state to regulate the transaction and not have to complete duplicate, triplicate, 10, 20 or 40 affidavits and make an equal number of tax filings.   

The multi-state tax issue has moved beyond just being a broker issue and is starting to become a Company member issue as more state Insurance Departments are asking carriers to reconcile their premiums with the brokers' filings.

Committee Volunteers
Later this summer NAPSLO will send out a formal notice asking people interested in serving on committees to notify the Association of their interest and what committees they would like to serve on.

Over the past year, one of the issues the Board of Directors discussed was ways to increase the number of new people on the various committees. This would provide broader participation and perspective to our committees. If you are interested in serving on a committee, please inform the NAPSLO office.

While we hope you will consider volunteering to work on a committee, there is a need for people to volunteer for not only NAPSLO work, but also with their local associations. All associations, need diverse representation and participation from an industry that is as disparate as ours in order to be sure that all viewpoints are addressed. 

Too often it is the same people that serve and they then become the ones who frame our discussions and play a big part in determining the direction of our business. If you want your voice to be heard and your opinion to count, then you must volunteer. It can be very rewarding to contribute, and it is a great opportunity to network with others.

Membership Dues
As a reminder, the NAPSLO Board approved a change regarding dues. This will take effect with the dues renewal notices that will be sent in late June for the fiscal year August 1, 2007 to July 31, 2008. The increase follows a review of a review of current income and expenses.

Annual Convention 
Registration for the 2007 NAPSLO Annual Convention in New Orleans will get underway in early June. The meeting is set for October 3-6 at the New Orleans Marriott and Sheraton New Orleans.

We have a number of programs scheduled, including a special panel discussion on Thursday with top company and broker representatives; a presentation by political consultants James Carville and Mary Matalin that will preview the 2008 presidential election, and a special volunteer outing with Habitat for Humanity. 

We expect another large attendance in New Orleans so we encourage  you to send in your registration materials early. 

Let Me Hear From You
NAPSLO is an association whose purpose is to serve the needs of our members.  I want to make sure we are doing that, so I would like to hear what you have to say – both the good and the bad.  You can e-mail me at wnewton@lemacassociates.com or give me a call.