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Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to insurance
- Delivered to assembly
- Passed senateVote 61–0
- Ordered to third reading cal.1012
- Committee discharged and committed to rules
- Referred to insurance
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Relates to the valuation of life insurance policies and contracts
In Assembly Committee · Insurance · Sponsor Anthony Brindisi
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the insurance law, in relation to the valuation of life insurance policies and contracts
Purpose
The purpose of this bill is to amend § 4217 of the insurance law (the standard valuation law for life insurance) to require that any additional standards relating to this section proposed for imposition by the Department of Financial Services should be prescribed by regulation.
Summary of provisions
This bill amends *4217(a)(1), (e)(l), (e)(4)(C) and (f)(4) of the insurance law to refine the rules related to the submission of reserving reports that are required under current law from life company appointed actuaries. The amendments would: 1) permit the appointed actuary to aggregate life, annuity and health business for purposes of performing asset adequacy testing in support of an actuarial opinion on reserve adequacy; and 2) restrict the Superintendent from imposing any assumptions or other additional standards to be used by the appointed actuary in forming his actuarial opinion, beyond those prescribed by regulation.
Justification
Additional actuarial standards that go beyond the current law should only be imposed on life insurance companies via regulation, subject to proposal and comment, and not by arbitrary guidance. Such guidance is currently imposed on life companies annually by the Department of Financial Services without any requirement that it be published for feedback and comment before imposition. The requisite transparency established in this bill will result in any additional standards or assumptions developed by the Department being proposed for public comment and feedback, subject to the state administrative procedures act (SAPA), before implementation. This is especially important since subjective, overly-conservative reserving requirements, which can currently be imposed via fiat through mere guidance, can result in higher product pricing and less product availability for life insurance products sold in New York.
Despite their importance, life insurance products are not required as a matter of law or policy, as is the case with other types of insurance products such as automobile or homeowners insurance. People who purchase life insurance products are choosing to do so with discretionary income and competing priorities and are also often lacking a clear understanding of the importance of the financial protection the products provide. It is in the interest of this state to assist in the promotion of these products, at affordable prices, which provide its citizens with the tools to protect their own financial futures. In turn, the purchase of these products by the citizens of this state alleviates or reduces their need for public assistance in times of need, which decreases financial stress on the state.
Legislative history
New bill.
Effective date
Immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.