American Life Assurance Corporation (Ala.)
Hearing Set for Receiver's Petition to Close
On November 6, 2003, the receiver for American Life Assurance Corporation (ALAC) filed a petition for approval of final settlement of claims and to close the ALAC estate. Hearing on the matter has been scheduled for January 22, 2004, with earlier deadlines for witness identification, exhibits, and motions, if any. Based on currently available information, the task force expects the guaranty associations to receive a final distribution of approximately $745,512, which, after adjustments for post-liquidation TPA activity and assumption corrections, reflects a recovery of 100 percent of the guaranty associations' expense claims and about 10.34 percent of their total policyholder-level claims. A copy of the court's scheduling order will be posted to the NOLHGA IRC. You may also contact Aimee Frye at [email protected] or 703.787.4115 to request a copy.
Task Force Chair - Mike Marchman; Staff Contact - Joni Forsythe Executive Life Insurance Company (Calif.)Requests for Defeasance Computation Due by Year-End
As in prior years, any participating guaranty associations contemplating the possibility of defeasance in 2004 must make a request for a defeasance computation in writing to Aurora before year-end 2003. According to the Enhancement Agreement, Aurora then has 60 days after year-end to calculate the participating guaranty association's defeasance amount, and the association has until the 150th day after the preceding December 31 (i.e., May 29, 2004) to decide whether or not to defease. NOLHGA distributed a notice with additional information on this subject to the participating guaranty associations this week.
Task Force Chair - Art Dummer; Staff Contact - Guarantee Security Life Insurance Company (Fla.)Distribution Expected in Next Few Weeks
During the past year, the GRC Liquidating Trust has succeeded in disposing of the remaining litigation issues and escrow accounts that carried over when GRC was closed. The GSLIC receivership still has more than $13 million, which must be classified and released so that final distributions can be made to participating guaranty associations. The trust is able at this time to distribute $5 million to the participating guaranty associations, and checks should be received in the next few weeks. The trust is working closely with the Florida Department to wind-up this estate and hopes to reach the final distribution phase during the first half of 2004.
Task Force Chair - Frank Gartland; Staff Contact - Bill O'SullivanInsolvency Cost Information Report Now Available on NOLHGA Web Site
NOLHGA has issued this year's Insolvency Cost Information Report, which assists member companies in establishing accruals for life, annuity, and health guaranty association assessments pursuant to Statement of Statutory Accounting Principle No. 35 - Accounting for Guaranty Fund and Other Assessments (finalized March 2000 by the NAIC) and SOP 97-3 - Accounting by Insurance and Other Enterprises for Guaranty Fund and Certain Other Insurance-Related Assessments (released December 1997 by the AICPA). The report contains information regarding the cost of insolvencies, assessable premium by state, and summaries of each state's general assessment and premium tax offset provisions.
The 2003 Insolvency Cost Information Report can be accessed here. Please note that the report will not be issued in hard-copy format. Instead, it is available for download from NOLHGA's Web site at the link above. It can also be accessed through the NOLHGA Web site home page by using the link in the "Insolvency Corner" section. Users do not have to log in to access the report.
The report contains the following data files:
Costs: An Excel workbook containing individual insolvency cost information along with various summary schedules and by-state assessable premium information.
Report: A PDF file that combines the above file with commentary on cases and with general state provisions regarding assessment and premium tax offsets.
Download: A WinZip file containing both files.
In addition, copies of SSAP No. 35 and SOP 97-3 are also available. Finally, NOLHGA has notified approximately 700 insurance companies via e-mail that the Insolvency Cost Information Report has been posted on the site.
If you have any questions about the report, please contact Paul Peterson at [email protected] or 703.787.4119.
Staff Contact - Paul PetersonInsolvency Financial Reports Posted Online
The 2003 edition of the two-volume Insolvency Financial Reports, which were mailed in hard-copy format to guaranty associations in past years, has been posted on NOLHGA's Web site. The reports are located in the "Publications--Special Reports" section of the password-protected extranet, and only guaranty association administrators can access them. The reports are available in PDF files, and users will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view them. A free copy of Acrobat Reader can be downloaded here.
The Insolvency Financial Reports, which cover all the insolvencies NOLHGA has been involved with, contain general background information, guaranty association obligations, expenses, and other financial information. The reports list this information by both state and individual insolvency. Beginning with the 2001 edition, the reports were issued only as PDF files on the NOLHGA Web site.
Should you have any problems accessing the files, please contact Paul Peterson at [email protected] or 703.787.4119.
Staff Contact - Paul PetersonFebruary 2004 MPC Meeting Web Page Online
The Web page for the upcoming MPC meeting, which will be held February 16-18, 2004, in Naples, Fla., can be accessed here. The meeting page includes online registration as well as hotel information, links for travel, and other meeting details.
The cut-off date for both hotel reservations and meeting registration is January 9, 2004. Please be sure to make your reservations and register for the meeting before this date.
A preliminary meeting schedule will be posted on the Web page in early January. Tentatively, the Accounting Issues Committee meeting will be held the afternoon of the 16th, with task force and committee meetings on the 17th and the general session on the morning of the 18th. Status reports and other meeting materials should be available in late January, and registered attendees will be notified when new information is posted.
If you have any trouble accessing the MPC meeting Web page, please contact Dan Hicks at [email protected] or 703.787.4112. If you have any questions about the meeting, contact Karen Early at [email protected] or 703.787.4101.
Staff Contact -Counsel for Virginia GA Honored
Allen C. Goolsby III of Hunton & Williams, who serves as outside legal counsel to the Virginia Life, Accident & Sickness Insurance Guaranty Association, was recently named one of the top 12 attorneys in Virginia based on a poll of over 5,500 attorneys in the Commonwealth. Virginia Business published the results of the poll (conducted by Virginia Business with the assistance of the Virginia Bar Association) in the December 2003 issue. The cover story, "The 2003 Legal Elite," includes a profile of Goolsby as the top vote-getter in the area of business law.
Staff Contact -Hicks Joins NOLHGA Staff, McKenna Receives Promotion
Dan Hicks has joined the NOLHGA staff as manager of information systems. Hicks, who replaces Bryan Owen, previously worked as a financial analyst for the Public Health Institute in California and was also a Web developer with ionami design and InterWeavers Design. Please join us in welcoming him to NOLHGA.
In other staff news, Sean McKenna has been promoted to director of communications in recognition of the valuable contributions he has made to improve the quality and content of NOLHGA's communications efforts. McKenna joined NOLHGA in August 2001.
Staff Contact - Sean McKennaGA Contact Info
Christopher Chandler, a NOLHGA Board member and a member of the boards of the Arizona, Colorado, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Wyoming guaranty associations, has moved. His new address is:
4643 South Ulster Street, Suite 930
Denver, CO 80237
His phone number remains the same (303.861.8788), but his fax number is now 720.529.2414.
Staff Contact -