Agents Storm the Hill

More than 1,000 agents and brokers got to hear a first-hand account of U.S. budget negotiations from someone who was there—Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio).


Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) addresses agents.

Boehner was the keynote speaker at the 2011 Big “I” Legislative Conference & Convention in Washington, D.C., in April, where agents from across the country gathered to network, learn and lobby their legislators.

Conference attendees also heard from numerous other members of Congress and industry leaders, including Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), Rep. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.), Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-Texas) and a panel of CEOs from the Insurance Information Institute, W.R. Berkley Corporation, Selective and Westfield Insurance.

Boehner, Landrieu Address Economy, Health Care
Before heading to Capitol Hill to meet with legislators, agents listened to Boehner and Landrieu address the budget, deficit and health care reform over breakfast.


Agents meet with their legislators on Capitol Hill.

Boehner told attendees that he and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told President Barack Obama earlier that week that taxes were not going to be a part of the budget conversation. What they did talk about, he said, was the need to grapple with entitlement programs for those 54 and younger. Doing nothing will mean the fiscal recklessness will continue, he noted. But Boehner was disappointed with what he heard in the president’s speech later that day.

“It’s 18 months from the election and the president is giving a campaign speech as opposed to saying something serious about how we deal with the debt limit and the fiscal crisis we face,” Boehner said. “I can’t tell you how disappointed I was in what the president had to say. The only real concrete thing he offered was raising taxes. Well, Washington doesn’t have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem, and Washington’s spending problem is hurting job creation in America.”

Boehner noted that he was happy to speak to a group of small business owners who were instrumental in job creation. “Here in Washington there are a lot of people who think they know something about creating jobs but they have never actually done it,” Boehner said. “I’m humbled to say that I have met payroll and I have created jobs. I stumbled into public service for one reason: because I saw firsthand how the government was continuing to kill the goose that laid the golden egg.”

Boehner said that the health care law is an example of legislation that is not only negatively affecting the deficit, but also hurting small business owners. He noted that the country can’t afford it, “and the sooner we repeal the president’s health care bill, the better off our country will be. While I hope [people] will join us in rejecting and repealing the health care bill, we’re going to do everything we can to dismantle the program piece by piece. We already passed repeal of the 1099 provision.”

Landrieu said that the health care bill was not perfect, but it was an effort to not only expand coverage but address the debt and deficit issue. Landrieu said she wanted to work on fixing specific provisions of the bill that are harmful to independent agents, including the MLR.


Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) addresses agents.

“We know that some insurance companies decided to include the commissions of the agents in the MLR, and that was not our intention,” Landrieu said. “I would like to work to fix that rather than repealing it. I fought to keep the insurance industry as part of this mix but we want the insurance industry to be responsible and accountable, and we certainly want the agents to be respected and valued.”

On regulation of insurance, Landrieu reinforced the position of agents that regulation should be kept at the state level. “I really hope that we can continue to regulate insurance at the state level with appropriate reforms,” Landrieu said. “The federal government is struggling to do the regulations that we have to do on other things, let alone trying to regulate the insurance industry at the federal level.”

Both Boehner and Landrieu agreed that small businesses, including independent agents and brokers, are going to be the catalyst for recovery from the recession. “Economic growth and development is not just going to come from the big international industrial manufacturing companies; it’s going to come from small businesses, and you’re it,” Landrieu said.

Boehner noted that helping small businesses deal with the bureaucracy in Washington was a step in the right direction for economic improvement. “The most serious thing that we’re dealing with is the regulatory juggernaut here in Washington,” he said. “From the EPA to the new consumer protection finance bureau, it’s one agency after another and it’s a full assault on the private sector. We’re going to look for every penny we can find in this budget because downsizing the government is one of our prescriptions for leading to a healthier economy.”

Shuler Keynotes InsurPac Lunch
Rep. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.), who at one point earned an insurance license, addressed the annual Young Agents & InsurPac State Chairpersons Legislative Luncheon, stressing that he understands the plight of small businesses. Shuler is a rising star in the Democratic Party, and his father-in-law and brother-in-law own and operate an independent insurance agency in North Carolina.

Shuler serves on the House Budget Committee and is an active member and leader of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of congressional Democrats who advocate for fiscal responsibility and government accountability. “I don’t wear my member of Congress pin a whole lot, but I wear my Blue Dog [pin] and it’s a constant reminder that we have to bring this country back to center,” he said.


Charles Symington, Big “I” senior VP of government affairs, shakes hands with Rep. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.).

Shuler was a successful entrepreneur and small business owner before running for Congress. He is also known for his success on the football field as a student-athlete at the University of Tennessee and in the NFL.

“At the end of the day, we’re not Democrats, we’re not Republicans—we’re Americans,” he said, on the need to reach across party lines to find common ground. Shuler is known for his bipartisanship and working with Republicans on fiscal issues.

Students Win Big with YAC Gives Back Fundraiser
The national Young Agents Committee hosted a casino-themed evening fundraiser, YAC Gives Back: A Benefit for InVEST Scholarships. The money raised from the event will go toward scholarships for InVEST graduates who would like to continue their education in insurance or financial services, with a goal of working in the insurance industry. This year, InVEST received scholarship essays from more than 100 college-bound hopefuls.

Not only was YAC Gives Back home to the InVEST silent auction, it was also an action-packed networking opportunity for convention attendees. Big “I” young agents and association leaders played casino games, bid on auction items and caught up with colleagues.

“It’s awesome being involved with an event that helps so many students join the ranks of the insurance industry,” said Young Agents Chairman Andy Beauchamp. This year the event earned more than $35,000 for student scholarships. Combined with direct donations, InVEST has more than $48,000 in scholarship money to give away in 2011.

“The event was wildly successful and we are thrilled the young agents can make a difference,” said Beauchamp.

The State of the Association
Big “I” Chairman Mike Miley updated conference attendees on all of the association’s accomplishments so far this year. He noted upfront that it has been a difficult year for the economy at large, small businesses and the independent agency system.


Big “I” Chairman Mike Miley reports on the annual state of the association.

“We have many challenges confronting our distribution system: the longest soft market in modern history; the second deepest recession in modern history; health insurance commission cuts as a result of the new health care law; continuing market access issues in many areas of the country and more,” Miley said.

Despite the difficult environment, Miley said he believes great things are on the horizon for independent agencies. He touted the influence of Trusted Choice®, a brand that can provide the tools for independent agents to compete with captive agents and direct writers.

Miley said that independent agents have seen their personal lines market share erode, but that the Big “I” is working to reverse that trend with an ambitious initiative known as CAP: the Consumer Agent Portal.

“To briefly summarize the strategy, the CAP project will build a national consumer–to-agent portal to represent the 22,000 Big ‘I’ member agencies,” Miley said. CAP, independent agency carriers and local agencies will then drive prospects to the portal. The portal will provide these consumer leads to member agencies, and the project will also help members optimize their online presence.

“This is one of most significant endeavors that IIABA has ever undertaken, and I am indebted to the volunteers and staff that are working on this project,” he said.


The Big “I” government affairs team leads a Q&A with attendees.

Miley also noted all of the strides the association has made in the areas of health care, financial services regulatory reform, tax reform and crop insurance. With dedicated Capitol Hill staff working to further independent agents’ efforts in these areas every day, “the future is what we make it,” Miley said. “Your association has never been more important to you than right now—and that importance will grow.”

Industry CEOs Assess Economy
At the annual CEO panel, industry leaders said agents should not expect a dramatic economic turnaround, but a double dip probably isn’t on the horizon.

“The economy faces quite a few challenges, but even early last year I think I was one of the few people out there who said we were not going to end up in a second recession,” said Bob Hartwig, CPCU, president of the Insurance Information Institute. “At the same time, [I said] growth was going to be unsatisfyingly sluggish and employment prospects would only improve, and that continues to be the case today.”

While panelists generally agreed that the recent natural disasters in Japan wouldn’t necessarily have a direct effect on the economy and insurance market, they did reinforce the inter-connectedness of the world economies.


Sue Noda, executive director of IIAB of Japan and Asia Division of IIABA, accepts a donation from the Trusted Choice® Disaster Relief Fund.

“One of the things that we learned in the 2008 recession was that all the world has a much greater [connection] than we thought,” said Bill Berkley, chairman of the board and CEO, W.R. Berkley Corporation. “What happens in China, what happens in the U.S., what happens in Europe, is all interrelated. We didn’t have inflation [in the U.S.] because of the benefits we got from low-cost production in Asia. We’re about to be stuck with inflation that’s going to come from those same places.”

The panelists discussed the potential impact of inflation on the economy in general and the insurance market in particular. Greg Murphy, chairman, president & CEO of Selective, said that people who predicted high inflation two years ago and adjusted their balance sheets accordingly got hurt badly because it never materialized. But inflation is coming—and it will have two big impacts on the insurance industry.

“One, [inflation] has an immediate impact on our vested assets in terms of their values, although it does follow us in terms of higher interest rates down the road,” said Murphy. “[Two], on the liability side, we’re already seeing inflation. Medical inflation has been high. When you’re in an environment where it’s difficult to raise rates, inflation can be devastating to insurance companies because it affects your pricing immediately and it also affects your cost.”


Bob Hartwig, Jim Clay, Bill Berkley and Greg Murphy (l-r) discuss industry issues with Bob Rusbuldt.

Clearly the economic environment will have both short and long-term implications. “There’s no question that in the long-term—Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security—those have to be fixed,” said Jim Clay, group leader and chief executive officer, Westfield Insurance. “In the short-term…we’re dealing with a recession that is stubborn, we’re trying to overcome unemployment [and] the housing industry is not fixed yet. There’s no question that it impacts businesses.”

Join Us Next Year
Mark your calendar now: Agents will once again have the opportunity to lobby important issues on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., at the 2012 Big “I” Legislative Conference & Convention, April 25–27 at the Grand Hyatt in Washington.

Diane Rusignola (diane.rusignola@iiaba.net) is IA managing editor. Photos by Marty LaVor.


And the Award Goes to…

Woodworth Memorial Award

The association’s highest honor, the Woodworth Award, went to Bill Hofmann (above). This prestigious award recognizes the meritorious and outstanding contributions of an independent agent or broker to the national association, to his or her Big “I” colleagues and to the insurance industry. For more than three decades, Hofmann always carved out time for service to independent agents and the insurance industry. His committee work with the Big “I” has been extensive, and his work as chairman of the InsurPac board laid the groundwork for IIABA’s million-dollar-a-year PAC.

Legislator of the Year
Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-Texas) was named the Gerald Solomon-IIABA Legislator of the Year for 2010. The award is bestowed annually by the Big “I” upon a member of Congress who has provided outstanding leadership on insurance issues. Neugebauer serves on the House Committees on Agriculture, Financial Services and Science and Technology. Neugebauer told the independent agents in the room who traveled on their own dime for the Big “I” annual pilgrimage to Capitol Hill, “I am humbled that you would give me this award. It’s not cheap to come out here, but it’s important to come out here.”

Sidney O. Smith Award
Fletcher Willey of North Carolina is the 2010 recipient of the Sidney O. Smith Award. This award is bestowed annually by the Big “I” and the Independent Insurance Agents of Georgia upon an individual agent or broker for outstanding service to his or her peers and the national association in the field of government affairs. Willey served as a member of the Big “I” Flood Task force for nine years (five years as the chairman) and was also the Big “I” representative for the Flood Insurance Producers National Committee. In those two roles, he led the Flood Task Force during periods of massive changes to the NFIP program, including the 2004 Flood Insurance Reform bill and the extremely volatile post-Katrina period.

Barney Burns Award
Larry Brustad of Minnesota is the recipient of the 2010 Barney Burns Award, which is named after former Big “I” President Barney Burns, who founded InsurPac in 1975. “Larry Brustad has been a tireless peer-to-peer fundraiser, working to engage all kinds of agents from state leadership to young agents,” said Spencer Houldin, Big “I” government affairs committee chairman, in presenting the award.

Maurice Herndon Award
The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of Idaho, Inc., is the recipient of the 2010 Herndon Award, bestowed upon the state association whose legislative achievements the previous year on behalf of IIABA and its members have been deemed to be most outstanding. “The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of Idaho were actively engaged in numerous political issues that not only impact Idaho, but agents across the country,” said Bob Rusbuldt, Big “I” president & CEO. “Idaho was active in opposing the optional federal charter (OFC) and exceeded their InsurPac goals.”

InsurPac Awards
The 2010 InsurPac National Championship Award went to Texas, whose agents contributed the most money for InsurPac in a calendar year: $68,645. The Young Agent National Championship Award, which honors the state whose young agents donate the most money to InsurPac, went to North Carolina, whose young agents contributed $12,836. The 2010 co-winners of the InsurPac Young Agent Award are Douglas Fairbanks and Holly Rossell of Michigan. The InsurPac Eagle Awards are given annually to states that surpass a fundraising average of $100 per member agency. The 2010 recipients are Louisiana, North Dakota and South Carolina.

Dan Fulwider Award
Trusted Choice® has awarded the annual Dan Fulwider Award for Community Involvement to Kenny and Denise Abrams of the Abrams Insurance Agency in Baltimore. The Abrams will receive a $2,500 contribution for the charity of their choice: Sandtown Habitat for Humanity in Baltimore. The Abrams are active in numerous causes, particularly in the Sandtown neighborhood of Baltimore, and were instrumental in saving the Village Learning Center, a public library near their office, from closing. They volunteer countless hours to Habitat for Humanity efforts, mentor and tutor local children at the center, provide financial planning and insurance seminars for seniors and raise money for the local Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

—D.R.