NAIFA WA was represented well in Olympia on January 29th
when dozens of members met there to discuss our business with legislators. On
the same day, NAIFA WA was in Washington DC, on The Hill, doing the same
thing. Richard Miller of NAIFA Central
WA, Alex Collins of NAIFA Seattle/Eastside and Richard Ek of NAIFA Snohomish
County met with staff working for five legislators in “The Other Washington.”
We had spent the previous day in training with NAIFA leaders, lobbyists and
other experts.
We met with the Chief of Staff for Representative Jim
McDermott and legislative aides and directors for Representative Dave Reichert,
Representative Susan DelBene, Senator Patty Murray and Senator Maria Cantwell. In every meeting we found the staff willing to
listen to our message. Also, each office welcomes our contact with email
updates on issues important to our clients (their constituents) and our
industry. All indicated we were welcome to come back in April when NAIFA holds
the Congressional Conference on the 8th and 9th. NAIFA expects to have close to 1,000 members
for that event.
A few of the things we learned in the two days:
·
Senators and Congressmen have an average of 13
meetings a day which means it is not easy to “see” them. Thus we meet with
aides more often than not. Just the same, the elected officials rely heavily on
the information gathered by their staff
·
Ed Woods and his brother, Lawrence, met with
President Wilson in 1913 and convinced him to amend the income tax legislation
to give preferential tax treatment to the products we sell. We face the same
challenges this year – it requires all NAIFA members to be involved by
participating in the only political action committee that works for you every
day; IFAPAC
·
NAIFA CEO Susan Waters meets with HHS Secretary
Kathleen Sebelius and other top leaders to tell our story
·
In-person visits from constituents are 5 times
more effective than lobbyist’s visits
·
HB 2758 came about after a patient in his
doctor’s office was presented with paperwork to complete while he was undressed
(clothed in an examination gown). The patient lobbied his congressman who
authored what became known as the “Stark Naked Act of 1997.”
·
Advocates using Social Media can influence
legislation – 64% of legislators say they follow Facebook posts so follow your
legislator! 20-30 comments on a topic gets their attention. They also follow
Twitter
·
The first and second lines of a letter (or
email) are the most important. Establish your credentials and state your “ask.”
·
NAIFA’s goal for 2013 is to have 13,000
contributors which means we need to broaden our base in Washington to about 400
or double what we now have
·
In the words of Terry Headley, past President of
NAIFA, “We practice practical politics” which means we contribute to members of
both parties
None of you reading this are ignorant of the economic
problems facing our government. You are also aware that our industry (life
insurance, annuities, qualified plans, employee benefits) are seen by many in
Washington as a potential revenue source. If they can wipe away the preferential
tax treatments currently in place they believe a large percentage of the
current debt can be paid. It is frustrating that too many in Washington have no
idea how important our products and services are to their constituents/our
clients: Middle Americans.
What will YOU DO to join the other 197 IFAPAC participants
in NAIFA WA? Will you sign up today? Will you add $10/month to help insure that
your clients can continue to protect their families and businesses with life
insurance? Will you help in the fight to retain the tax incentives that your
clients enjoy when saving for retirement using life insurance, annuities and
IRAs? Will you do what you can to help maintain the favorable tax treatment
your clients have with their medical benefits?
We can’t say it enough – If Insurance Is Your Profession,
Politics Is Your Business.
Richard Ek
IFAPAC Chairman
Sincerely,
Never before has there been such a need for lawmakers (both federal and state) to hear from us about the invaluable services we provide to their constituents, our clients. This event is held for you to meet with them; the State Representatives and Senators in your district. January 29 is your opportunity to shake hands with these elected officials in their Olympia legislative offices and make sure they know you and learn how to call upon you when they are faced with important decisions about this great industry. 
