Missouri Mutual Companies Meet with Congressman In Cameron
CAMERON, Mo.- (January 11, 2008) As the United States House prepared to go back in session, Missouri Sixth District Congressman Sam Graves (R-Tarkio), addressed farm mutual officers and managers during an afternoon reception at the home office of Cameron Insurance Companies. Ten farm mutual companies were represented, along with the regional property and casualty carrier.
With 2008 being an election year, Graves admitted the legislative sessions may not result in many actions. However, he did express his concern about the economy, his passion for tort reform, and the survival and future of the Farm Bill.
Questions from the audience addressed specific issues of concern to the insurance industry leaders: Small company tax, the McCarran-Ferguson Act, Optional Federal Charter, and health insurance affordability for small business.
Congressman Graves listened as constituents emphasized the importance of state regulation for the viability of smaller companies in the insurance industry. Repeal of the McCarran-Ferguson Act would be devastating to the mutual companies residing in his district, all of which had been in existence for over a century.
“We need to be able to share claims information and data with other companies,” stated Mike Godby, CIC. “This helps us stay competitive and protect the consumer when we take on a new risk or enter a new market.”
The Congressman has been outspoken on the importance of maintaining state regulation for education, and agreed that leaving regulation at the state level was in the best interest for the insurance industry.
“The federal government can’t do anything better (than a state),” he shared with some humor. “Except a few things…. Like run a Navy.”
Speaking on behalf of local and regional insurance companies, CIC President/CEO Darwin Copeman pointed out that Optional Federal Charter would not benefit all the industry.
Understanding that the pro-OFC coalition touts the simplification of filing procedures for large national companies, the legislation would be a dangerous step toward a federally regulated environment.
“The problem with ‘optional’,” Copeman emphasized to the legislator, “is that it can too easily turn to ‘mandated’.”
Understanding the different business environments for insurance companies across the nation was not a far stretch for the sixth-generation farmer. Just as the nation varies in agricultural environments from east to west and north to south, the comparison was made for Congressman Graves to understand the unique situations for small insurance companies from state to state.
Audience members brought light to issues that may not have already been on the Congressman’s agenda, but critical to his constituency. The investment income election for small property/casualty insurance companies is an important issue among farm mutuals. In his district, most of the 23 companies would benefit from indexing to account for inflationary changes since its enactment in 1986.
An audience member spoke up on behalf of small business and its need for affordable health insurance. Running a farm operation in addition to sitting on a farm mutual board of directors is a common factor throughout much of the state.
“We can’t afford to buy our employees health insurance,” he said. “We know we should, but it is just not affordable.”
Sitting on the House Small Business Committee, Congressman Graves has frequently heard the outcry of small business health insurance cost. He pointed to tort reform and an expanded Health Savings Account program as necessary steps toward the answer.
It is important that small business owners be able to take care of their employees with dignity, and for employees to have their health needs met.
The Sixth Missouri Congressional District is home to 23 farm mutual companies representing over 34,000 policyholders. These Missouri Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (MAMIC) members protect $3.5 billion in property and generate $19.9 million in annual revenue. Cameron Insurance Companies, a proud member of the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies and MAMIC, has been domiciled in Missouri since 1892. CIC employs approximately 150 state residents and generated over $72.5 million in revenue during 2007.