In the Spring of 2017, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan signed into law an Act that established the Maryland Task Force on Long Term Care (LTC) Education and Planning. The Task Force, consisting of representatives from state agencies, consumer organizations, and industry trade associations, developed for the Governor a list of policy recommendations intended to increase the public’s knowledge of LTC, promote the need for LTC planning, and educate consumers on the options for LTC coverage – both private and public plans – and the benefits and limitations of those options. The Task Force delivered its recommendations to the Governor in December 2017. NAIFA-Maryland was among the Task Force members and had a significant influence in producing the Task Force recommendations.
Among the recommendations to state regulators, the Task Force suggests that states produce and execute a survey to measure the level of knowledge state residents have on LTC, target specific groups to receive financial planning education, ensure that Maryland businesses receive the Task Force’s “Plan NOW Starter Kit” (which includes information on how to successfully plan for LTC along with contact information for private and public options), revamp and streamline LTC information on state agency websites, and include various organizations to assist in the outreach effort such as senior and consumer associations and industry trade groups.
The NAIFA Government Relations Committee strongly supports the Maryland LTC Task Force Policy recommendations and urges NAIFA state chapters to consider asking their respective state regulators and legislators to adopt the Task Force’s LTC proposals.
Read NAIFA’s Summary of the Task Force recommendations and the official Task Force report. If you have any questions on this matter, contact Steve Kline at skline@naifa.org.
NAIFA-Maryland Testifies Before Maryland Legislature NAIFA-Maryland President Brian Jolles testified on March 13 at a legislative hearing in Annapolis urging the Maryland legislature to reject and remove provisions in the Financial Consumer Protection Act of 2019 (Senate Bill 786 and House Bill 1127) that would impose a fiduciary duty on all financial professionals in the state. Jolles’ testimony echoed NAIFA’s position that financial advisors act in their clients’ best interests, but is concerned that the Maryland fiduciary proposal would make it very difficult for advisors to serve middle-and lower-income Marylanders and would prevent some of these individuals and families from obtaining needed financial guidance and products.
NAIFA Submits Written Statement at House Committee on Financial Services Reg. BI Hearing On March 14, the House Committee on Financial Services Subcommittee on Investor Protection, Entrepreneurship, and Capital Markets held a hearing entitled, “Putting Investors First? Examining the SEC’s Best Interest Rule.” NAIFA submitted a written statement supporting the SEC’s general approach, and believes Reg. BI significantly strengthens the standard of conduct for financial services professionals while preserving choice and access to advice and investment products for consumers at all income levels and account sizes. However, NAIFA has encouraged the SEC to revise its proposed titling restrictions (i.e., restricting the use of the words “advisor/adviser” for BDs and RRs) as that section of the proposal will create more, not less, consumer confusion.
Cap50 Update After roughly one year of development, in early 2017 NAIFA’s Capital 50 Fund Program was ready to go “live” and accept grant applications from NAIFA state chapters. The “Cap 50” program set up a way for NAIFA’s industry colleagues to work cooperatively with NAIFA to enable our state associations that already have an ongoing, effective state advocacy program to improve their advocacy infrastructure and “up their game” with respect to state-level legislative and regulatory advocacy. Grants from the Cap 50 fund are intended to be used to assist our state associations in improving their overall advocacy capabilities, rather than to tackle any specific legislative or regulatory issue. Many state chapters have responded enthusiastically to the availability of grants under the program. To date, Cap 50 Fund grants totaling over $60,000 have been awarded to 15 NAIFA state chapters. A significant amount of Cap 50 funds are still available for grant awards, and state chapters are encouraged to apply for grants under the program. For more information or to apply for Cap50 funds for your state, contact Gary Sanders at gsanders@naifa.org.
Congressional Appointment Organizers Needed!! As the Congressional Conference draws closer, NAIFA is reaching out to each state to determine the one individual who will be primarily responsible for organizing all of their US House and Senate appointments for the May 15 Day on Capitol Hill. This person, known as the Congressional Appointments Organizer or CAO, does not necessarily need to be the person who actually makes the congressional appointments; however, each state’s CAO must coordinate the appointment scheduling to ensure that:
- Only one appointment is made per congressional office;
- All the appointments that need to be made with the state’s representatives and senators are actually made and time overlapping is kept to a minimum;
- The appointment times, locations and the names of the attendees are reported to NAIFA.
Individual attendees should NOT make their own appointments. If you know of a NAIFA member who has already made an appointment, please ensure that appointment is reported to your state’s CAO or to mbuneo@naifa.org.
NAIFA will be holding a webinar specifically for Congressional Appointments Organizers to provide more clarity about the role of the CAO and the appointment making process. The webinar will be on April 4 @ 3 p.m. EDT, and a separate invitation will be sent to CAOs once they have been reported. We ask that all CAOs attend.
If you wish to report a CAO, or have any questions, please contact Maggie Buneo at mbuneo@naifa.org.
IFAPAC Silent Auction Items Needed During this year’s Congressional Conference, IFAPAC will once again host a silent auction! To have a successful silent auction, we need a variety of items, experiences and events available for our diverse membership to bid on. Items we are looking for include:
- Tickets to sporting events or concerts
- Time share or vacation home opportunities
- Celebrity clients/friends
- Golf course/country club membership
- Professional development
- Memorabilia
- IFAPAC Administrative Fund Contribution
Learn more on how to donate an item to the IFAPAC Silent Auction.
IFAPAC Turn Key Solicitations On February 14, IFAPAC sent the first round of renewal notices for IFAPAC contributions. Now it is your turn. There are two downloadable IFAPAC solicitations you can edit and prepare for use in your chapter. It is recommended that you work with your chapter field staff to help disseminate the message. View a PDF version of the customizable IFAPAC solicitations.
Remember an email alone will not get the job done, so make a plan to follow up with your targets within a few weeks and use some of the IFAPAC resources to help educate are members on why it is so important that NAIFA has a strong and powerful PAC.
View the 2019 IFAPAC Conference Call Schedule
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