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Recent Academy Activity, Jan. 6–10, 2014

Announcements

  • The Academy provided comments on a uniform definition of “qualified actuary” for life, health, and property/casualty appointed actuaries signing prescribed NAIC Statements of Actuarial Opinion, in a Jan. 6 letter to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (NAIC) Joint Qualified Actuary subgroup. The NAIC JQA subgroup invited comments on a uniform definition, and the Academy recommended a definition that achieves “one level of the uniformity desired” by reference to one credential: the MAAA.

Public Policy Activities

  • Senior Pension Fellow Don Fuerst sent a letter to members of the U.S. House of Representatives regarding their request to make Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) consistent with the pension funding rules in the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21).

News from the Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline

  • The ABCD adopted a revised version of its Rules of Procedure, which contain procedures ranging from the handling of requests for guidance, to the conduct of investigations and fact-finding hearings. An exposure was issued in May 2012 and received several comment letters, resulting in several changes. The revised rules became effective Jan. 1, 2014. See “Announcements” on the ABCD web site for more information.

Opportunities to Learn

  • Guest speakers from FEMA’s Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration will examine the current state of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) in the Jan. 16 edition of the Academy’s monthly “Academy Capitol Forum: Meet the Experts” webinar series. The webinar, “Eighteen Months After Biggert-Waters: Is the NFIP Staying Afloat?” will discuss how the NFIP’s financial stability was affected by Hurricane Katrina, Superstorm Sandy, as well as the implementation of the Biggert-Waters Act. It will also look at legislation that Congress is considering to further modify the program. Register online.
  • Save the date for next month’s “Academy Capitol Forum: Meet the Experts” webinar, which will address “Systemic Risk Monitoring at the OFR.” The webinar will take place Feb. 21 from noon to 1:00 p.m. ET. Also save the date for March’s Academy Capitol Forum webinar, “Actuary Serving Congress: A Conversation with GAO's Chief Actuary,” on March 20 from noon to 1:00 p.m. ET.

Academy in the News

  • The Academy’s letter to 69 members of the U.S. House of Representatives regarding their requested changes to GAAP was covered in Hispanic Business News, the BenefitsLink Retirement Plans Newsletter, and other media outlets.
  • The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation cited the Academy in a news release announcing that the agency is ending the twice-a-year requirement to calculate and pay premiums.
  • The Academy’s issue brief on measuring pension obligations was the subject of a story in a law firm’s newsletter.

Recently Released Publications

  • January 2014 HealthCheck: Read about technical comments the Rate Review Practice Note Work Group submitted to the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight on the Unified Rate Review Template; the Health Practice Council’s response to a proposed federal rule on benefit and payment parameters for 2015; and other health-related news.

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