NAIC CEO Welcomes you to Spring National Meeting
Welcome to Orlando and The Happiest Regulation on Earth!
With all the talk of the genius of Walt Disney and his inventions, determination and creative spirit, his connection to Kansas City is rarely mentioned. Yet it was there he began his career in Missouri at the Kansas City Film Ad Company. Located less than four miles from the NAIC's Central Office, he worked with noted animators and began his storied career.
The spirit of innovation didn't leave Kansas City when Disney did. The NAIC's offices there are now home to some of the most advanced thought-leaders in insuretech and regtech. And that's not by accident. Embedded in our strategic plan, State Ahead, we have given considerable time, energy and resources into building up our regulatory support functions to keep pace with developments in our sector. Just as Disney meticulously designed his parks to fire the imagination, we’re carefully designing the regulatory landscape of the future to inspire confidence in our state-based system.
When it came to his parks, one thing Disney was known for was the use of forced perspective and optical illusions – I know because I saw my daughter as she wondered at the mirage of Cinderella's castle on our first trip to the Magic Kingdom. I mention that because when it comes to regulation, we cannot rely on the illusion of credible regulatory processes and strong consumer protection, we must produce substance and generate results.
At the meeting here in Orlando, you’ll start to see the very substantive and tangible results of our own “imagineering” around the insurance regulatory landscape of the future. We’re executing on our State Ahead plan and we’re moving forward in addressing not just 2019 priorities, but generational priorities like healthcare, climate risk, and retirement.
I hope you all get a chance to see some of what Orlando has to offer, beyond NAIC meetings. Who knows, maybe a trip to Epcot or Sea World will inspire some of our important work, efforts that will improve our sector for generations to come. I think Disney would have been very proud of his Kansas City neighbor.
About the National Association of Insurance Commissioners
As part of our state-based system of insurance regulation in the United States, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) provides expertise, data, and analysis for insurance commissioners to effectively regulate the industry and protect consumers. The U.S. standard-setting organization is governed by the chief insurance regulators from the 50 states, the District of Columbia and five U.S. territories. Through the NAIC, state insurance regulators establish standards and best practices, conduct peer reviews, and coordinate regulatory oversight. NAIC staff supports these efforts and represents the collective views of state regulators domestically and internationally.