State Supervision And Regulation
Primary responsibility for overseeing the insurance industry that has rested with individual states since 1945, after Congress passed the MCCARRAN-FERGUSON ACT (PUBLIC LAW 15). In addition to supervision and regulation, states receive taxes and fees paid by the industry that amount to several billion dollars a year. State insurance laws are administered by state insurance departments that are responsible for making certain that (1) rates are adequate, not unfairly discriminatory, and not unreasonably high, and (2) insurance companies in the state are financially sound and able to pay future claims. To this end, states set requirements for company reserves, require annual financial statements, and examine company books. Each state has an insurance commissioner or superintendent who is either elected or appointed by the governor, with responsibility for investigating company practices, approving rates and policy forms, and ordering liquidation of insolvent insurers. The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF INSURANCE COMMISSIONERS (NAIC) has drafted model legislation and worked for policy uniformity, but regulations vary widely from state to state.
Whether insurers should be regulated by the states or the federal government remains at issue, but so far insurers and the NAIC lobbying have been effective in resisting federal regulation. Nevertheless, the federal government has a profound effect on the insurance industry through its taxes and a variety of regulations.
Popular Insurance Terms
Arrangement of financial affairs such that a family member who is in a lower income tax bracket receives income that another family member would otherwise have received (thereby reducing ...
Value in life insurance policies that entitle the insured to these choices: to relinquish the policy for its CASH SURRENDER VALUE. (Note that in the beginning years the cash value may be ...
Factor considered in determining amount of life insurance to purchase in order that funds will be available to pay for a child's education expenses in the event of the premature death of ...
Contribution whose purpose is to increase funding of underfunded pension plans. It is part of the calculation that is made to arrive at the plan's minimum funding requirement. Usually a ...
Insurance company incorporated according to the laws of the state in which a risk is located and the policy issued. The insurance company is domiciled in that state. ...
Professional designation awarded by the American College. In addition to professional business experience in financial planning, recipients are required to pass national examinations in ...
Coverage that guarantees bond holders against default by a municipality. This form of financial guarantee was introduced in the early 1970s and became a runaway success. Municipalities ...
Same as term Associate in Risk Management: professional designation earned after the successful completion of three national examinations given by the insurance institute of America (IIA). ...
Type of mutual insurance company that requires a substantial initial premium payment. After the initial premium payment is made, future premium payments required will be paid from the ...
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