When Lawrence “Mac” Wesson Jr., 2005-2006 president of the National Association of Professional Surplus Lines Offices, welcomed members to the organization's annual convention, held in September in San Francisco, he outlined several challenges NAPSLO faced this year. The least troubling one, apparently, was where to hold such meetings in the future. As participation steadily increases, he said, it becomes more and more difficult to find venues large enough to accommodate all the people and the programs offered. “When I joined the board, our attendance was around 2,000,” said Wesson. “This year we broke 3,100, which is amazing in any market condition.” Attendees filled all four official convention hotels and spilled over into several others. Wesson stated, somewhat unconvincingly, that he hopes not to face the same “problem” in Chicago in 2006.

Of greater concern, according to NAPLSO immediate past president Richard L. Polizzi, ASLI, are such issues as education, communication, growth and stability, and insurance-related legislation. Polizzi noted that more than 1,000 people have completed the educational program established by NAPSLO 15 years ago and known as E&S School, and many have gone on to graduate from the 10-year-old Advanced School. “This year we enlarged the school's capacity, and we still have waiting lists. The Advanced School set for November in Dallas is already sold out.”

Polizzi also reported that the association had expanded and upgraded its E-News electronic mailing to members and redesigned its newsletter and Web site (www.napslo.org) to make them more current and user-friendly. “We added a weblog, or “blog,” to the Web site to enable us to quickly post information for members to access,” he said.
Polizzi went on to assure members that the association is on “a financially sound path” as membership continues to increase. “Last year the number of main offices topped 800 for the first time, and we added several new firms this year,” he said. “Overall, NAPSLO now has more than 1,500 main- and branch-office members.”