National Conference Of Insurance

NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF INSURANCE GUARANTY FUNDS (NCIGF) ASSISTS PROPERTY AND CASUALTY GUARANTY FUNDS

NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF INSURANCE GUARANTY FUNDS (NCIGF) IS A BUSINESS ASSOCIATION AS DEFINED WITHIN INTERNAL REVENUE CODE SECTION 501(C)(6) WHICH ADVANCES THE COLLECTIVE MISSIONS OF ITS MEMBERS AND PROVIDES NATIONAL ASSISTANCE IN VARIOUS AREAS FOR PROPERTY AND CASUALTY GUARANTY FUNDS. NCIGF ASSISTS IN THE COORDINATION BETWEEN THE LIQUIDATORS AND PROPERTY AND CASUALTY GUARANTY FUNDS IN MULTI-STATE INSOLVENCIES, MONITORS LITIGATION AND LEGISLATION AFFECTING GUARANTY FUNDS, CONDUCTS VARIOUS EDUCATIONAL AND TRAINING PROGRAMS, PROVIDES INFORMATION CONCERNING THE PROPERTY AND CASUALTY GUARANTY FUND SYSTEM; AND PROVIDES A FORUM FOR DISCUSSION OF GUARANTY FUND RELATED ISSUES.

NCIGF PROVIDES OPERATIONAL SUPPORT, COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC POLICY DEVELOPMENT TO ITS MEMBERS, THE STATE PROPERTY AND CASUALTY INSURANCE GUARANTY FUNDS. THE NCIGF ALSO ASSISTS PROPERTY AND CASUALTY INSURANCE GUARANTY FUNDS BY PROVIDING THEM WITH CURRENT LEGISLATIVE INFORMATION AND EDUCATIONAL TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES.SEE SCHEDULE O FOR 2021 SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS HIGHLIGHTS.HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR 2021 ACCOMPLISHMENTS INCLUDE:1) NCIGF PUBLIC POLICY EFFORTS: IN 2021, NCIGF EFFORTS TO PROMOTE AN ACCEPTABLE APPROACH ON LARGE DEDUCTIBLE PROGRAMS FINALLY CAME TO FRUITION. NCIGF COLLABORATED WITH THE NAIC LARGE DEDUCTIBLE WORKING GROUP AND RECEIVERSHIP AND INSOLVENCY TASK FORCE TO DEVELOP A GUIDELINE THAT SAYS THE LARGE DEDUCTIBLE ASSET WILL INURE 100 PERCENT TO THE STATE GUARANTY FUND TO THE EXTENT OF THEIR CLAIMS PAYMENTS. AT ITS SPRING 2021 NATIONAL MEETING, THE NAIC AGREED TO THE NCIGF PROPOSAL.RESTRUCTURED BUSINESS STATUTES THAT WOULD AUTHORIZE INSURANCE COMPANY DIVISIONS OR INSURANCE BUSINESS TRANSFERS (IBTS) CONTINUE TO BE ADOPTED IN VARIOUS STATES, GENERATING CONCERNS ABOUT THE STATUS OF GUARANTY FUND COVERAGE. THE MATTER IS PARTICULARLY URGENT IN THAT BOTH DIVISION STATUTES AND IBTS MAKE IT CLEAR THAT THERE IS NO REMAINING LIABILITY ON THE PART OF THE TRANSFERRING ENTITY FOR THE CLAIMS TRANSFERRED UNDER THESE STATUTES. THE NCIGF BOARD OF DIRECTORS ADOPTED A POSITION ON THIS MATTER STATING THAT IF COVERAGE EXISTED ON A CLAIM BEFORE THE RESTRUCTURING TRANSACTION IT SHOULD REMAIN IN PLACE AFTER THE TRANSACTION. CONVERSELY, IF COVERAGE WAS NOT AVAILABLE BEFORE THE TRANSACTION IT SHOULD NOT BE CREATED BY THE TRANSACTION. AS MANY CURRENT GUARANTY FUND LAWS MAY NOT RESOLVE THESE CLAIMS IN THIS WAY, NCIGF DEVELOPED A STATUTORY REMEDY. THIS REMEDY HAS BEEN ADOPTED IN THREE STATES AND EFFORTS CONTINUE TO PROMOTE THE AMENDMENT IN ADDITIONAL JURISDICTIONS. CYBER SECURITY INSURANCE COVERAGE IN INSOLVENCY IS AN EVOLVING ISSUE. SHOULD AN ENTITY THAT COVERS THESE RISKS BECOME INSOLVENT AND BE ORDERED INTO LIQUIDATION THE GUARANTY FUNDS WOULD BE CALLED UPON TO ACT. THE NCIGF HAS DEVELOPED STATUTORY LANGUAGE IN THIS REGARD AND WILL BE IMPLEMENTING EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS FOR OUR OWN MEMBER COMMUNITY, INDUSTRY GROUPS AND ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS THE NAIC. 2) RELATIONSHIPS WITH NAIC AND REGULATORS: THROUGHOUT 2021 NCIGF CONTINUED TO EDUCATE REGULATORS ON THE NEED FOR PRE-LIQUIDATION PLANNING AND OFFERED SPECIFIC PROPOSALS IN THIS REGARD. NCIGF IS CONTINUING ITS EFFORTS AT THE NAIC AND AS OPPORTUNITIES ARISE IN VARIOUS STATES. NCIGF DATA SECURITY: DATA SECURITY WILL ALWAYS BE A TOP PRIORITY FOR NCIGF BECAUSE OF THE INTERCONNECTEDNESS OF THE ENTIRE SYSTEM. IN NOVEMBER OF 2021, NCIGF PRODUCED ANOTHER DATA SECURITY SURVEY TO HELP INDIVIDUAL FUNDS UNDERSTAND THEIR CYBER SECURITY POSTURE AND IDENTIFY AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT. ALL RESULTS WERE CONFIDENTIAL AND A PLAN AS WELL AS A HUB ON THE NCIGF MEMBER SITE WAS CREATED TO HELP BOLSTER THOSE WHO NEEDED ADDITIONAL SUPPORT. THE FOLLOW UP AND ADDITIONAL EFFORTS TO ADVISE AND ASSIST FUNDS WILL REMAIN A TOP PRIORITY THROUGHOUT 2022 AND BEYOND. NCIGF ALSO PRODUCED A MONTHLY DATA SECURITY LEGAL UPDATE FOCUSING ON LEGAL AND TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENTS AND STATE LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS RELATING TO DATA SECURITY AND PRIVACY. THIS REPORT WAS PRESENTED TO NCIGF MEMBERS TO FURTHER RAISE THE LEVEL OF AWARENESS CONCERNING REGULATORY COMPLIANCE ISSUES THAT MAY IMPACT STATE GUARANTY FUNDS AND THE ENTIRE GUARANTY FUND SYSTEM. COMMITTEE STRUCTURE: AFTER 18 MONTHS OF DISCUSSION AND FEEDBACK FROM NCIGF MEMBERSHIP, A NEW COMMITTEE STRUCTURE WAS APPROVED IN LATE 2020, AND IMPLEMENTED IN 2021. THE NEW STRUCTURE IS INTENDED TO ACHIEVE A MORE TRANSPARENT AND ACCESSIBLE NCIGF AND TO RESOLVE MOST ISSUES AT THE COMMITTEE LEVEL WITH SUBSTANTIAL MEMBER PARTICIPATION. AS 2022 DAWNED, ADDITIONAL STEPS WERE BEING INTRODUCED TO HELP FULLY REALIZE THE POTENTIAL OF THE COMMITTEES. 3) UPDATING THE MEMBER SITE FOR OPTIMAL ENGAGEMENT: IN 2021 THE NCIGF BOARD APPROVED THE NECESSARY BUDGET TO BEGIN AN OVERHAUL OF THE CURRENT MEMBER SITE AS WELL AS THE SUDS SYSTEM. THE BULK OF THE WORK TO IMPROVE THESE SYSTEMS WILL BE DONE IN 2022 AND 2023. 4) NEW DIRECTIONS/NEW IDEAS: IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE 2021 FALL WORKSHOP, NCIGF HOSTED A SEPARATE MEMBER-OUTREACH ROUNDTABLE SESSION ENTITLED NEW DIRECTIONS/NEW IDEAS. MANAGERS WERE INVITED TO BRAINSTORM THE FUTURE OF THE GUARANTY ASSOCIATION COMMUNITY. TOPICS RANGED FROM RECEIVER RELATIONS, COORDINATING COMMITTEES, GOVERNANCE OF STATE BOARDS, RUNNING A MODERN SMALL BUSINESS, AND THE POTENTIAL OF NCIGF IN THE COMING YEARS. NCIGF WILL IMPLEMENT SOME OF THE IDEAS DISCUSSED IN UPCOMING INITIATIVES AND EDUCATIONAL PROJECTS IN 2022. 5) GOVERNANCE REVIEW AND MEMBER PARTICIPATION PROJECT: THE GOVERNANCE REVIEW AND MEMBER PARTICIPATION PROJECT ANALYZED ALL NCIGF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE PROCESSES, MEMBER OUTREACH AND PARTICIPATION AVENUES. THE GROUP, COMPRISED OF GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE MEMBERS AS WELL AS AN AD HOC TEAM OF MEMBERS, REVIEWED, STRENUOUSLY EVALUATED, AND SUGGESTED IMPROVEMENTS TO THE PROCESSES AND PROTOCOLS OF ALL MAIN GOVERNANCE FUNCTIONS. MORE REPORTING AND FURTHER IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT'S RECOMMENDATIONS WILL TAKE PLACE IN 2022.6) RESPONSE TO COVID-19: IN RESPONSE TO COVID-19, NCIGF CONTINUED TO LEVERAGE ITS ONLINE VIDEO PLATFORM TO MAXIMIZE ENGAGEMENT AND CONNECTION AMONG MEMBERS, OFFERING 13 EDUCATIONAL PRESENTATIONS SPANNING VARIOUS GUARANTY FUND RELATED TOPICS WITH AN AVERAGE ATTENDANCE OF 60+ AT EACH SESSION. THESE SESSIONS WILL CONTINUE IN TANDEM WITH IN-PERSON MEETINGS TO ALLOW FOR THE PARTICIPATION OF SUPPORT STAFF MEMBERS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY WHO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO PARTICIPATE AND CONNECT AT A HIGHER LEVEL WITH THE VIRTUAL OPTION (SPECIFICALLY CLAIMS, IT AND HR PERSONNEL). 7) 2021 HYBRID FALL WORKSHOP: DECEMBER OF 2021 MARKED THE FIRST TIME NCIGF WAS ABLE TO HOST AN IN-PERSON EVENT SINCE THE START OF THE GLOBAL PANDEMIC. FOR THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF ALL INVOLVED, THE DECISION WAS MADE MULTIPLE TIMES TO TRANSITION MEETINGS TO THE VIRTUAL PLATFORM THROUGHOUT 2020 AND INTO 2021. HOWEVER, THE FALL WORKSHOP FINALLY PROVIDED THE OPPORTUNITY TO RESUME HOSTING AN IN-PERSON EDUCATIONAL SESSION FOR MEMBERS. THIS EVENT WAS A SUCCESS AND NCIGF ROSE TO THE OCCASION OF CREATING A HYBRID MEETING ENVIRONMENT TO SERVE THOSE STILL COMPROMISED OR WITH TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS IN PLACE BY THEIR ORGANIZATIONS. EDUCATIONAL SPEAKERS AND PANELS WERE LIVE STREAMED AND PARTICIPANTS COULD INTERACT VIRTUALLY.