The National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA) is proposing that the Federal Insurance Office be repealed.
The association points out that the combination of Donald Trump as president and a Republican majority in both houses of Congress presents a unique opportunity to re-examine the regulatory framework.
As part of any regulatory reform package for the financial services industry, PIA urges policymakers to fully repeal the Federal Insurance Office, added to the U.S. Department of the Treasury as part of the economic reform measures put in place after the Great Recession.
Related: Trump, GOP could torpedo DOL rule, Dodd-Frank
|'Unnecessary bureaucracy'
"With Congress poised to significantly roll back key provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, we ask that they repeal the FIO," said Jon Gentile, PIA's vice president of government relations. "A June 2013 report issued by the Government Accountability Office found that the state-based system of insurance regulation helped to mitigate the negative effects of the financial crisis on our industry. This report highlights the unnecessary bureaucracy that the FIO represents. Our longstanding and robust state-based insurance regulatory regime does not require this level of federal oversight."
"If the goal is to eliminate unnecessary federal regulation, getting rid of the FIO makes good sense," Gentile said. "Doing so would reaffirm that regulation of insurance should continue to be the responsibility of the states. PIA will also remain vigilant in its efforts to ensure that no new paths to the federal regulation of insurance are created as part of any Dodd-Frank rollback."
|PIA will work with Trump and Congress
A traditional Republican agenda generally includes the goals of reducing regulations, cutting taxes and pursuing what are considered "business friendly" policies to promote economic growth.
With control of both houses of Congress and the White House, Republicans may be more likely to achieve many of these goals, and PIA says it looks forward to working with President-elect Trump and the 115th Congress on these initiatives.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader
Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Rosalie Donlon
Rosalie Donlon is the editor in chief of ALM's insurance and tax publications, including NU Property & Casualty magazine and NU PropertyCasualty360.com. You can contact her at [email protected].
