NU Online News Service, Oct. 11, 12:25 p.m. EDT

Sanford “Sandy” Elsass was elected chairman of the National Risk Retention Association (NRRA) at its annual conference last week, the association says.

Elsass, president and chief executive officer of Uni-Ter Underwriting Management Corp., succeeds Brian Braley, vice president-legislative affairs of the Housing Authority Risk Retention Group.

In accepting the position, Elsass commends Braley and the NRRA Board for leadership over the past year in successfully defending risk retention groups (RRGs) against the efforts of some states to restrict the legal operation of RRGs under federal law.

He notes that a high priority over the next year will be to build support for the Risk Retention Modernization Act (HR 2126) now before Congress. The Act would create a mechanism to resolve disputes with states and relieve the industry of the costly, lengthy process of going to the federal courts to enforce the law.

NRRA represents the Risk Retention and Purchasing Group sectors of the insurance industry. It was formed in 1987 and is the only trade association dedicated to the successful development, education, and promotion of alternatives to traditional insurance in the United States.

Risk retention groups are authorized by the Liability Risk Retention Act of 1986 to write liability insurance nationally when licensed in a single state. They have grown into a major sector of the insurance industry with more than 250 companies writing $2.5 billion premium.