Senate Bill No. 750
(By Senator Oliverio)
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[Introduced February 18, 2008; referred to the Committee on
Banking and Insurance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §33-12-5, §33-12-8, §33-12-14 and
§33-12-17 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and
to amend and reenact §33-12B-5 and §33-12B-9 of said code, all
relating to requiring a waiting period after a third failure
on the licensing examination; allowing for continuing
education credit for active annual membership in professional
organizations or associations; requiring nonresidents who move
to West Virginia to complete prelicensing education and
examination when their prior state does not grant waivers to
individuals who formerly were licensed in West Virginia;
establishing penalties for failure to pay annual continuation
fees; requiring a waiting period after a third failure on
adjuster's license examination; and permitting nonresident
adjusters to not maintain an office in this state.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §33-12-5, §33-12-8, §33-12-14 and §33-12-17 of the Code
of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and
that §33-12B-5 and §33-12B-9 of said code be amended and reenacted,
all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 12. INSURANCE PRODUCERS AND SOLICITORS.
§33-12-5. Application of examination.
(a) A resident individual applying for an insurance producer
license shall pass a written examination unless exempt pursuant to
section fourteen of this article. The examination shall test the
knowledge of the individual concerning the lines of authority for
which application is made, the duties and responsibilities of an
insurance producer and the insurance laws and regulations of this
state. Examinations required by this section may be developed and
conducted under rules and regulations prescribed by the Insurance
Commissioner.
(b) The Insurance Commissioner may make arrangements,
including contracting with an outside testing service, for
administering examinations and collecting the nonrefundable fee set
forth in subdivision (8), subsection (a), section six of this
article.
(c) Each individual applying for an examination shall remit a
nonrefundable fee as prescribed by the Insurance Commissioner as
set forth in subdivision (8), subsection (a), section six of this
article.
(d) An individual who fails to appear for the examination as
scheduled or fails to pass the examination, shall reapply for an
examination and remit all required fees and forms before being
rescheduled for another examination.
(e) An individual who fails to pass examination is limited to
seven additional attempts to pass the examination:
Provided, That
after every third unsuccessful attempt to pass the examination, an
individual is required to wait four weeks before he or she may take
the examination again.
§33-12-8. Continuing education required.
The purpose of this provision is to provide continuing
education under guidelines set up under the Insurance
Commissioner's office, with the guidelines to be set up under the
Board of Insurance Agent Education.
(a) This section applies to individual insurance producers
licensed to engage in the sale of the following types of insurance:
(1)
Life. -- Life insurance coverage on human lives, including
benefits of endowment and annuities, and may include benefits in
the event of death or dismemberment by accident and benefits for
disability income;
(2)
Accident and health or sickness. -- Insurance coverage for
sickness, bodily injury or accidental death and may include
benefits for disability income;
(3)
Property. -- Property insurance coverage for the direct or consequential loss or damage to property of every kind;
(4)
Casualty. -- Insurance coverage against legal liability,
including that for death, injury or disability or damage to real or
personal property;
(5)
Variable life and variable annuity products. -- Insurance
coverage provided under variable life insurance contracts and
variable annuities;
(6)
Personal lines. -- Property and casualty insurance
coverage sold to individuals and families for primarily
noncommercial purposes; and
(7) Any other line of insurance permitted under state laws or
regulations.
(b) This section does not apply to:
(1) Individual insurance producers holding limited line credit
insurance licenses for any kind or kinds of insurance offered in
connection with loans or other credit transactions or insurance for
which an examination is not required by the commissioner, nor does
it apply to any limited or restricted license as the commissioner
may exempt; and
(2) Individual insurance producers selling credit life or
credit accident and health insurance.
(c) (1) The board of insurance agent education as established
by section seven of this article shall develop a program of
continuing insurance education and submit the proposal for the approval of the commissioner on or before the thirty-first day of
December of each year. No program may be approved by the
commissioner that includes a requirement that any individual
insurance producer complete more than twenty-four hours of
continuing insurance education biennially. No program may be
approved by the commissioner that includes a requirement that any
of the following individual insurance producers complete more than
six hours of continuing insurance education biennially:
(A) Individual insurance producers who sell only preneed
burial insurance contracts; and
(B) Individual insurance producers who engage solely in
telemarketing insurance products by a scripted presentation which
scripted presentation has been filed with and approved by the
commissioner.
(C) The biennium mandatory continuing insurance education
provisions of this section become effective on the reporting period
beginning the first day of July, two thousand six.
(2) The commissioner and the board, under standards
established by the board, may approve any course or program of
instruction developed or sponsored by an authorized insurer,
accredited college or university, agents' association, insurance
trade association or independent program of instruction that
presents the criteria and the number of hours that the board and
commissioner determine appropriate for the purpose of this section.
(d) Individual insurance producers licensed to sell insurance
and who are not otherwise exempt shall satisfactorily complete the
courses or programs of instructions the commissioner may prescribe.
(e) Every individual insurance producer subject to the
continuing education requirements shall furnish, at intervals and
on forms as may be prescribed by the commissioner, written
certification listing the courses, programs or seminars of
instruction successfully completed by the person. The
certification shall be executed by, or on behalf of, the
organization sponsoring the courses, programs or seminars of
instruction.
Subject to approval by the commissioner, the active
annual membership of the individual insurance producer in local,
regional, state or national professional insurance organizations or
associations may be approved for up to two annual hours of
instruction. These hours shall be credited upon timely filing with
the commissioner or his or her designee appropriate written
evidence acceptable to the commissioner of the active membership in
the organization or association.
(f) Any individual insurance producer failing to meet the
requirements mandated in this section and who has not been granted
an extension of time, with respect to the requirements, or who has
submitted to the commissioner a false or fraudulent certificate of
compliance shall have his or her license automatically suspended
and no further license may be issued to the person for any kind or kinds of insurance until the person demonstrates to the
satisfaction of the commissioner that he or she has complied with
all of the requirements mandated by this section and all other
applicable laws or rules.
(g) The commissioner shall notify the individual insurance
producer of his or her suspension pursuant to subsection (f) of
this section by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the
last address on file with the commissioner pursuant to subsection
(e), section nine of this article. Any individual insurance
producer who has had a suspension order entered against him or her
pursuant to this section may, within thirty calendar days of
receipt of the order, file with the commissioner a request for a
hearing for reconsideration of the matter.
(h) Any individual insurance producer who does not
satisfactorily demonstrate compliance with this section and all
other laws applicable thereto as of the last day of the biennium
following his or her suspension shall have his or her license
automatically canceled and is subject to the education and
examination requirements of section five of this article.
(i) The commissioner is authorized to hire personnel and make
reasonable expenditures considered necessary for purposes of
establishing and maintaining a system of continuing education for
insurers. The commissioner shall charge a fee of twenty-five
dollars to continuing education providers for each continuing education course submitted for approval which shall be used to
maintain the continuing education system. The commissioner may, at
his or her discretion, designate an outside administrator to
provide all of or part of the administrative duties of the
continuing education system subject to direction and approval by
the commissioner. The fees charged by the outside administrator
shall be paid by the continuing education providers. In addition
to fees charged by the outside administrator, the outside
administrator shall collect and remit to the commissioner the
twenty-five dollar course submission fee.
§33-12-14. Exemption from examination.
(a) An individual who applies for an insurance producer
license in this state who was previously licensed for the same
lines of authority in another state may not be required to complete
any prelicensing education or examination. This exemption is only
available if the individual is currently licensed in that state or
if the application is received within ninety days of the
cancellation of the applicant's previous license and if the prior
state issues a certification that, at the time of cancellation, the
applicant was in good standing in that state or the state's
producer database records, maintained by the national association
of insurance commissioners, its affiliates or subsidiaries,
indicate that the producer is or was licensed in good standing for
the line of authority requested.
(b) An individual licensed as an insurance producer in another
state who moves to this state shall make application within ninety
days of establishing legal residence to become a resident licensee
pursuant to section five of this article. No prelicensing
education or examination
shall be is required of that individual to
obtain any line of authority previously held in the prior state
except where the insurance commissioner determines otherwise by
regulation if his or her prior state will grant similar waivers to
West Virginia licensed insurance producers. For nonresidents from
states which will not reciprocate on waivers for West Virginia
licensed insurance producers, the nonresident licensed in the prior
state for less than one year shall complete prelicensing education
and pass the appropriate examination required by this article.
Nonresidents licensed in the nonwaiver prior state for one or more
years shall pass the West Virginia licensure examination, but may
apply for a waiver of prelicensing education.
§33-12-17. Expiration of license; renewal.
(a) The commissioner may, in his or her discretion, fix the
dates of expiration of respective licenses for individual insurance
producers and solicitors in any manner as is considered by him or
her to be advisable for an efficient distribution of the work load
of his or her office. If the expiration date so fixed would upon
first occurrence shorten the period for which license fee has
theretofore been paid, no refund of unearned fee shall be made; and if the expiration date so fixed would upon first occurrence
lengthen the period for which license fee had theretofore been
paid, the commissioner shall charge no additional fee for the
lengthened period. If another date is not so fixed by the
commissioner, each license shall, unless continued as herein above
provided, expire at midnight on the thirty-first day of May next
following the date of issuance. The commissioner shall renew
annually on the date as provided
for in this section the license of
the licensee who qualifies and makes application therefor, and has
paid the fees set forth in section thirteen, article three of this
chapter; and section ten of this article.
Failure to pay the fees
set forth in section thirteen, article three of this chapter; and
section ten of this article, on or before the date required by the
commissioner shall result in the following actions: If more than
thirty days have elapsed since the due date, payment shall be
double the annual continuation fee. If more than sixty days have
elapsed since the due date, payment shall be triple the annual
continuation fee. If more than ninety days have elapsed since the
due date, the agent's license may be summarily suspended with all
appointing companies being notified. Reinstatement of the license
shall require payment in an amount triple the annual continuation
fee. If more than ninety days have elapsed since the date of the
suspension, the commissioner may automatically cancel or revoke the
license without further hearing or notice.
(b) All producer licenses of insurance agencies shall expire
at midnight on the thirtieth day of June following the date of
issuance. The commissioner shall renew annually the license of all
licensees who qualify and make application therefor and have paid
the fees set forth in section ten of this article.
ARTICLE 12B. ADJUSTERS.
§33-12B-5. Qualifications for adjuster's license; examinations;
exemptions.
(a) For the protection of the people of West Virginia, the
commissioner shall not issue, renew or permit to exist any
adjuster's license, except to an individual who:
(1) Is eighteen years of age or more.
(2) Is a resident of West Virginia, except for nonresident
adjusters as provided in section nine of this article.
(3) Satisfies the commissioner that he or she is trustworthy
and competent.
(b) For purposes of subdivision (3) of subsection (a) herein,
the commissioner may, at his or her
discretion, test the competency
of an applicant for a license under this section by examination.
If such an examination is required by the commissioner, each
examinee shall pay a twenty-five dollar examination fee for each
examination to the commissioner which fees shall be used for the
purposes set forth in section thirteen, article three of this
chapter. The commissioner may, at his or her discretion, designate an independent testing service to prepare and administer such
examination subject to direction and approval by the commissioner,
and examination fees charged by such service shall be paid by the
applicant.
(c) (1) Any applicant who is engaged in the practice of
professional insurance adjusting prior to the first day of July,
one thousand nine hundred eighty-nine, shall be is exempt from the
examination requirement of subsection (b) of this section.
(2) The commissioner may require a waiting period of four
weeks before reexamination of an applicant who thrice failed to
pass previous similar examinations. This waiting period applies
after every third unsuccessful attempt.
(d) The requirements of this section shall not apply to
licenses issued to emergency adjusters as defined in section
eleven-a of this article.
§33-12B-9. Licensing of nonresident adjusters.
An individual otherwise complying with the provisions of this
chapter, who is a resident of another state and who is a licensed
adjuster of such that state, may be licensed as a nonresident
adjuster in this state, if the state of resident of such the
nonresident has established, by law or regulation, like
requirements for the licensing of a resident of this state as a
nonresident adjuster. A licensed, nonresident adjuster is not
required to maintain an office in this state.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require waiting periods
after three failures on examinations for adjuster and insurance
producer licenses; allowing for continuing education credit for
active annual membership in professional organizations or
associations; requiring nonresidents licensed in another state who
move to West Virginia to complete prelicensing education and pass
the appropriate examination when their prior state will not grant
waivers to individual licensed in West Virginia who move to that
state; establishing penalties for failure to pay annual
continuation fees; and permitting nonresident adjusters to not
maintain offices in this state.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.