Jim Lombardo joins Big I NY

After more than 30 years in the insurance industry as a company person, agency principal, certified instructor and adjunct professor, Jim joins the team at Big I NY as AVP of Learning and Development. Jim’s two main focus areas will be building upon our existing strong education offerings and strengthening the search for new talent.  Helping agencies and carriers with all of their education and hiring needs is a perfect job description that fits Jim’s passion, energy and experience.

One of the areas where we can work together is with our “in house” programs. Big I NY brings classes to your location, presenting them at your office at a time that works for you.  Choose a topic to strengthen your team or offer to your agents.  We have had plenty of success already and will be glad to share references for you to speak with.  For more information contact Jim Lombardo at jlombardo@biginy.org.

Legislative Advocacy

Lawmakers will return to Albany in January 2020 to resume the second year of their two-year legislative session.  In the first session, which ended in June, Big I NY members rose to the challenge, sending emails and making over 400 phone calls to key lawmakers on a multitude of harmful bills.  Fortunately, our efforts paid off and we were able to block the passage of a number of these dangerous bills.  Beneficial legislation to protect homeowners from unscrupulous roofing contractors passed both the Senate and Assembly and was signed into law by the Governor.  Mark your calendars to attend Independent Agents Advocacy Day on March 3, 2020. 

NY First Governing Committee Activities

NY First is represented by a Governing Committee of company representatives and agent representatives to advance the business position of NY First members.  The Governing Committee met earlier this month to discuss ways to improve IIES (Insurance Information & Enforcement System) reporting compliance and demonstrate to the DFS that the industry is working together for a solution.  Ideas include forming an industry working group to develop an education campaign to improve IIES compliance, contemplate a potential legislative approach and compile data to determine common reasons for IIES delays/errors to educate agents, improve compliance and bolster industry position.   

The Governing Committee also discussed the NY Cybersecurity Regulation and Third Party Service Provider compliance.  Reminders will be going out from the DFS to file annual certificate of compliance by February 15, 2020.  Big I NY shared resources that have been developed to re-educate and respond to questions from licensees.   

Our Legal Challenge to the Best Interest Standard

Big I NY filed notice of our intent to appeal the Albany Supreme Court’s recent ruling upholding the amendment to Regulation 187, Suitability and Best Interests in Life Insurance and Annuity Transactions, arguing that the new standard improperly alters the agent/broker-customer relationship. 

Independent agents and brokers believe strongly in protecting the customers who put their trust in us. However, we remain concerned that the amended regulation will not meaningfully advance this goal. Instead, it will restrict open, honest discussions with clients and weaken the market for life insurance and annuities products, ultimately harming consumers. 

Our concerns about the impact of this regulation are already being borne out. Since the regulation went into effect on August 1st, multiple carriers with significant market share have announced the suspension of the sale of annuities and life insurance products in the state. We believe this concerning trend is likely to continue.

From the onset, we recognized that this legal challenge would likely be appealed to a higher court, regardless of the trial court’s decision. We remain confident in the merits of our claims, and resolute in our belief that this is a fight worth fighting.

Just a reminder that the Best Interest Rules for Annuities went into effect August 1 for annuities and will go into effect February 1, 2020 for life insurance transactions.  Big I NY has created tools to guide agents and brokers on compliance, available to NY First members on our website.   

REPORT: PROPERTY-CASUALTY INSURANCE INDUSTRY GIVES $40 BILLION BOOST TO NEW YORK STATE ECONOMY

(Syracuse, New York, Dec. 4, 2017) — The property-casualty (P&C) insurance industry contributes more than $40 billion to New York State’s economy, an industry group reported today. The report by New York First, Inc. also said the industry will support more than 152,000 jobs annually, produce more than $200 billion in output and pay more than $66 billion in wages and salaries over a five-year period.

“The property-casualty insurance industry underpins the New York State economy,” said New York First Co-Chair Richard MacDonald, CPCU, ARM, AIM. “This report shows just how important it is to the state’s job market, tax base, and financial security.” MacDonald is chair of the board of Big I New York, the state’s oldest insurance producer trade association. He is also vice-president and director of sales with Haylor, Freyer & Coon, Inc. in Syracuse, New York.

New York First Co-Chair Mark Berger added, “The property-casualty insurance industry provides high-paying jobs for thousands of New Yorkers. This report also shows that workers in New York’s P&C industry are vastly more productive than their peers in the rest of the country. It will remain a vital part of New York’s economy for years to come.” Berger is Northeast Region president for The Main Street America Group and NGM Insurance Co. in Syracuse.

Goss & Associates and The Goss Institute for Economic Research, based in Denver, prepared the report. Among its findings:

• Between 2016 and 2020, the P&C industry will produce $202.9 billion for the state economy. It will provide $66.3 billion in wages and salaries and $7.8 billion in self-employment income.

• Productivity growth in New York’s insurance sector has been 2.33 times that of the insurance industry countrywide.

• New York P&C firms supported wages per job of $85,270 in 2016, 44.7 percent above the state average. Between 2017 and 2020, the industry will support an average of 152,775 jobs per year.

• Every 1,000 New York P&C jobs support 1,550 non-P&C jobs in the state.

• Between 2006 and 2015, P&C companies’ purchases of New York municipal bonds reduced the bonds’ interest rates by 0.45 percent, saving state taxpayers $153.6 million annually, for a total savings of $1.5 billion. The P&C industry invests one-third of its fixed income investment portfolio in state and local municipal bonds.

• The industry produced $2.4 billion in state and local taxes in 2016. It will produce another $9.5 billion between 2017 and 2020. Each P&C industry job creates approximately $40,880 in state and local taxes annually.

The full report is available for download at https://www.biginy.org/Resources/Companies/SiteAssets/Pages/NYFirst/default/Econ%20Impact%20Study%20FINAL%20New%20York%202017%20V24.pdf.