Phase Two of Campaign to Oppose Illegal and Discriminatory Legislation is in Full Gear
In addition to fund-raising, NRRA continues its friend-raising: via a proactive effort to develop educational processes and alliances that will help support its efforts to find a legally fair and objective solution to the cause of this year’s earlier legislative crisis, as well as a favorable solution there for all RRGs in the state.
On this front, NRRA continues to be joined by Paul Handerhan, President of the Federal Association for Insurance Reform (FAIR), which supported NRRA’s opposition to the earlier bills (H57/SB516).
Moreover, we are pleased to announce that we have also now been actively joined in our campaign with communications support from the well-known and respected Florida Transportation Builders’ Association (FTBA), and its president, Ananth Prasad, the state contractors group insured by some RRGs most adversely affected by the FOIR Pop-up.
These collaborative efforts have given birth to NRRA’s suggested amendment to the FOIR’s heretofore negative description of RRGs in its website Pop-up that will be fair, even-handed and non-combative. These efforts have also instigated some communications with the Department of Transportation (FDOT) which had been previously reacting unfavorably to RRG-insured entities in reliance upon that existing Pop-up.
H57/SB516’s flawed efforts earlier this year to change Florida's Financial Responsibility Law (§324.021[8]) did not just threaten to endanger a majority of the risk retention group products in Florida. NRRA’s campaign emphasized that it (the Bill) also sought to correct a problem which factually and legally did not exist! This was because H57/SB516’s sponsors were completely unaware of the fact that the commercial auto liability coverage of risk retention groups has, for well over a decade, satisfied the financial responsibility requirements of the state.
This year NRRA now has developed the time and a plan to help educate legislators, regulators and other public entity decision makers as to the fact that risk retention groups are clearly authorized by federal law to sell their insurance in all states where they are registered, including Florida.
In addition, efforts will also include education, information and presentations that will allow all leaders to understand and appreciate what we refer to as the “purpose-driven risk retention group,” i.e., one that is formed the right way, for the right reasons, and why and how these RRG types continue to out-perform other types of liability insurance strategies. What more people need to know is that these ingenious insurance company structures, designed by the U.S. Congress forty-two (42) years ago, were created to address the crippling problem of unavailability and unaffordability of liability insurance for many businesses – a problem which still exists nationwide to this day, and particularly in Florida, one of the most expensive states within which to procure liability insurance.
Part of NRRA’s campaign is also designed to correct certain nomenclature problems which have been plaguing the industry for years. As Paul Handerhan from FAIR points out, “I really like the fact that NRRA is exercising its leadership role by taking the high road approach in proposing its multi-faceted initiative, and by so reaching out to the political leadership.”
NRRA Chairman, Tim Sullivan, agrees. “With its historical experience and vast expertise over the last thirty-six (36) years as the VOICE of the RRG and RPG industry, NRRA continues to rise to challenge states’ rule-making initiatives that contravene the LRRA, as just one of its benefits to our members and the industry. It has engendered in our leaders the ability to turn foes into friends; convert misconceptions into working opportunities; and to educate, lead and have the stamina to finish the job, no matter when or where it takes us.”
Please continue or commence your support of this campaign, by remembering that, it is not a question of whether certain risk retention groups will be victimized by these kinds of legislation, but rather when and where that will happen, whether that be in Florida or the other states that attempt to copycat these kinds of activities. NRRA’s expertise and experience in these issues is legion.
For further information as to how you can participate and, most importantly continue to support NRRA’s ongoing campaign to combat negative legislation, please direct your responses to info@riskretention.org or click here for a one-on-one meeting with Joe Deems, NRRA's Executive Director.
Register for the NRRA National Conference
Set to take place November 13th -15, 2023 again at the beautiful Sofitel Magnificent Mile hotel in Chicago, where NRRA has conducted its conference for the last 10 years, NRRA’s leaders, sponsors, and Campaign supporters will continue to address these and other important topics and useful educational information. The NRRA conference is always one of the industry’s best venues for networking within the captive insurance industry and should definitely be on your list of things to do this fall.