| 1 | The Commerce Council recommends the following: |
| 2 |
|
| 3 | Council/Committee Substitute |
| 4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 5 | A bill to be entitled |
| 6 | An act relating to information specified insurers must |
| 7 | file; amending s. 626.9913, F.S., relating to viatical |
| 8 | settlement providers; specifying a beginning date for |
| 9 | submission of a required annual statement; specifying |
| 10 | required information; specifying the period of application |
| 11 | of an unaudited financial statement; specifying |
| 12 | administrative action for failing to timely file an |
| 13 | audited financial statement; authorizing the Financial |
| 14 | Services Commission to require by rule that certain |
| 15 | statements or filings be submitted by electronic means in |
| 16 | a certain format; amending ss. 626.99175, 627.836, |
| 17 | 651.026, and 651.0261, F.S., relating to life expectancy |
| 18 | providers, premium finance companies, and continuing care |
| 19 | providers; authorizing the Financial Services Commission |
| 20 | to require by rule that certain statements or filings be |
| 21 | submitted by electronic means in a certain format; |
| 22 | amending s. 628.281, F.S.; authorizing the Office of |
| 23 | Insurance Regulation to require that certain records or |
| 24 | copies be submitted by remote electronic access; providing |
| 25 | an effective date. |
| 26 |
|
| 27 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 28 |
|
| 29 | Section 1. Subsection (2) of section 626.9913, Florida |
| 30 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 31 | 626.9913 Viatical settlement provider license continuance; |
| 32 | annual report; fees; deposit.-- |
| 33 | (2) Annually, on or before March 1, the viatical |
| 34 | settlement provider licensee shall file a statement containing |
| 35 | information the commission requires and shall pay to the office |
| 36 | a license fee in the amount of $500. After December 1, 2007, the |
| 37 | annual statement shall include audited financial statements |
| 38 | prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting |
| 39 | principles by an independent certified public accountant as of |
| 40 | the last day of the preceding calendar year. If the audited |
| 41 | financial statement has not been completed, however, the |
| 42 | licensee shall include in its annual statement an unaudited |
| 43 | financial statement for the preceding calendar year and an |
| 44 | affidavit from an officer of the licensee stating that the audit |
| 45 | has not been completed. In this event, the licensee shall submit |
| 46 | the audited statement on or before June 1. The annual statement, |
| 47 | due on or before June 1 each year, shall also provide the office |
| 48 | with a report of all life expectancy providers who have provided |
| 49 | life expectancies directly or indirectly to the viatical |
| 50 | settlement provider for use in connection with a viatical |
| 51 | settlement contract or a viatical settlement investment. A |
| 52 | viatical settlement provider shall include in all statements |
| 53 | filed with the office all information requested by the office |
| 54 | regarding a related provider trust established by the viatical |
| 55 | settlement provider. The office may require more frequent |
| 56 | reporting. Failure to timely file the annual statement or the |
| 57 | audited financial statement or to timely pay the license fee is |
| 58 | grounds for immediate suspension of the license. The commission |
| 59 | may require by rule all or part of the statements or filings |
| 60 | required under this section to be submitted by electronic means |
| 61 | in a computer-readable form compatible with the electronic data |
| 62 | format specified by the commission. |
| 63 | Section 2. Subsection (13) is added to section 626.99175, |
| 64 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 65 | 626.99175 Life expectancy providers; registration |
| 66 | required; denial, suspension, revocation.-- |
| 67 | (13) The commission may require by rule all or part of the |
| 68 | statements or filings required under this section to be |
| 69 | submitted by electronic means in a computer-readable format |
| 70 | specified by the commission. |
| 71 | Section 3. Subsection (2) of section 627.836, Florida |
| 72 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 73 | 627.836 Licensee's books and records; reports.-- |
| 74 | (2) Each licensee shall annually, on or before March 1, |
| 75 | file a report with the office giving such information as the |
| 76 | office may require. The report shall be made under oath and in |
| 77 | the form prescribed by the commission and shall be accompanied |
| 78 | by the annual report filing fee specified in s. 627.849. The |
| 79 | office may make and publish annually an analysis and |
| 80 | recapitulation of such reports. In addition, the office may |
| 81 | require such additional regular or special reports as it deems |
| 82 | may deem necessary. The commission may require by rule all or |
| 83 | part of the statements or filings required under this section to |
| 84 | be submitted by electronic means in a computer-readable form |
| 85 | compatible with the electronic data format specified by the |
| 86 | commission. |
| 87 | Section 4. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section |
| 88 | 628.281, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 89 | 628.281 Exceptions to requirement that office, records, |
| 90 | and assets be maintained in this state.-- |
| 91 | (1) The provisions of s. 628.271 shall not be deemed to |
| 92 | prohibit or prevent an insurer from: |
| 93 | (c) Establishing and maintaining its principal operations |
| 94 | offices, its usual operations records, and such of its assets as |
| 95 | may be necessary or convenient for the purpose, in another state |
| 96 | in which the insurer is authorized to transact insurance in |
| 97 | order that general administration of its affairs may be combined |
| 98 | with that of an affiliated insurer or insurers, but subject to |
| 99 | the following conditions: |
| 100 | 1. That the office consent in writing to the such removal |
| 101 | of offices, records, and assets from this state upon evidence |
| 102 | satisfactory to it that the same will facilitate and make more |
| 103 | economical the operations of the insurer and will not |
| 104 | unreasonably diminish the service or protection thereafter to be |
| 105 | given the insurer's policyholders in this state and elsewhere; |
| 106 | 2. That the insurer will continue to maintain in this |
| 107 | state its principal corporate office or place of business, and |
| 108 | maintain therein available to the inspection of the office |
| 109 | complete records of its corporate proceedings and a copy of each |
| 110 | financial statement of the insurer current within the preceding |
| 111 | 5 years, including a copy of each interim financial statement |
| 112 | prepared for the information of the insurer's officers or |
| 113 | directors; |
| 114 | 3. That, upon the written request of the office, the |
| 115 | insurer will with reasonable promptness provide the office |
| 116 | remote electronic access to or produce at its principal |
| 117 | corporate offices in this state for examination or for subpoena |
| 118 | its records or copies thereof relative to a particular |
| 119 | transaction or transactions of the insurer as designated by the |
| 120 | office in its request; and |
| 121 | 4. That, if at any time the office finds that the |
| 122 | conditions justifying the maintenance of the such offices, |
| 123 | records, and assets outside this state no longer exist, or that |
| 124 | the insurer has willfully and knowingly violated any of the |
| 125 | conditions stated in subparagraphs 2. and 3., the office may |
| 126 | order the return of the such offices, records, and assets to |
| 127 | this state within such reasonable time, not less than 6 months, |
| 128 | as may be specified in the order; and that for failure to comply |
| 129 | with the such order, as thereafter modified or extended, if any, |
| 130 | the office shall suspend or revoke the insurer's certificate of |
| 131 | authority. |
| 132 | Section 5. Subsection (9) is added to section 651.026, |
| 133 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 134 | 651.026 Annual reports.-- |
| 135 | (9) The commission may require by rule all or part of the |
| 136 | statements or filings required under this section to be |
| 137 | submitted by electronic means in a computer-readable form |
| 138 | compatible with the electronic data format specified by the |
| 139 | commission. |
| 140 | Section 6. Section 651.0261, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 141 | to read: |
| 142 | 651.0261 Quarterly statements.--If the office finds, |
| 143 | pursuant to rules of the commission, that such information is |
| 144 | needed to properly monitor the financial condition of a provider |
| 145 | or facility or is otherwise needed to protect the public |
| 146 | interest, the office may require the provider to file, within 45 |
| 147 | days after the end of each fiscal quarter, a quarterly unaudited |
| 148 | financial statement of the provider or of the facility in the |
| 149 | form prescribed by the commission by rule. The commission may |
| 150 | require by rule all or part of the statements or filings |
| 151 | required under this section to be submitted by electronic means |
| 152 | in a computer-readable form compatible with the electronic data |
| 153 | format specified by the commission. |
| 154 | Section 7. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |