9:45 am - 11:00 am
The Lobbying Game: Insurers in the Political Arena
Moderator Robert Gettlin, Washington Editor, A.M. Best.



Insurers Need to Overcome Missteps for Successful Lobbying Insurers lobbying in Washington must overcome institutional obstacles and self-inflicted wounds to reach their legislative goals in Congress, industry representatives were told Tuesday at A.M. Best Co's 10th annual Insurance Information Services Conference.

"Never underestimate the power of congressional inertia," warned Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., in explaining the first barrier any lobbyist faces.

Pomeroy, who also is a former insurance commissioner in his home state, listed several examples of legislation that seemed to have unstoppable momentum but failed--in some cases to the relief of insurers. These included reform of the McCarran-Ferguson Act, the Clinton administration's first attempts at health care reform, and more recently, financial services reform, which now seems in jeopardy.

Pomeroy and other members of a panel on "The Lobbying Game" said insurers, especially in the property/casualty industry, have hurt their own cause with internal divisions that prevent them from coming to Congress with one voice. That, coupled with the highly technical nature of many insurance issues, makes it difficult for members of Congress to understand the industry's interests.

Peter Lefkin, senior vice president of government and industry affairs for Fireman's Fund Insurance Co., noted that insurers have no federal regulatory advocate to come alongside them in their congressional lobbying efforts--unlike the banking industry, which has agencies such as the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to speak for it.

"The OCC is up here lobbying with the banks and doing their job for them," Lefkin said.

Doyle Bartlett, chief of staff for Rep. Bill McCollum, R-Florida, said insurers can lay the groundwork for effective lobbying by making contact with their representatives at the grass-roots level and making in-person contacts with congressional staffers. He also urged insurers not to neglect lobbying of the administration as well as Congress.

The panelists agreed that many insurers and their trade groups mistakenly paid too much attention to Republicans when the GOP took control of Congress, in effect confusing partisan issues with the special interests of the industry.