Sec. 53-3.7. Annual certifications

(a) The board of directors of each insurer shall appoint one or more illustration actuaries.

(b) The illustration actuary shall certify that the disciplined current scale used in illustrations is in conformity with the Actuarial Standard of Practice No. 24 for Compliance with the NAIC Model Regulation on Life Insurance Illustrations promulgated by the Actuarial Standards Board, and that the illustrated scales used in insurer-authorized illustrations meet the requirements of this Subpart. A copy of Actuarial Standard of Practice No. 24 as adopted by the Actuarial Standards Board in December of 1995 may be obtained from the American Academy of Actuaries, 1100 Seventeenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036 and a copy is available for public inspection at the Department of Financial Services offices at One Commerce Plaza, Albany, NY and at One State Street, New York, NY and at the New York Department of State, 41 State Street, Third Floor, Albany, NY 12231.

(c) The illustration actuary shall:

(1) be a member in good standing of the American Academy of Actuaries;

(2) be familiar with the standard of practice regarding life insurance policy illustrations;

(3) not have been found by the superintendent, following appropriate notice and hearing to have:

(i) violated any provision of, or any obligation imposed by, the Insurance Law or other law in the course of his or her dealings as an illustration actuary;

(ii) been found guilty of fraudulent or dishonest practices;

(iii) demonstrated his or her incompetence, lack of cooperation, or untrustworthiness to act as an illustration actuary; or

(iv) resigned or been removed as an illustration actuary within the past five years as a result of acts or omissions indicated in any adverse report on examination or as a result of a failure to adhere to generally acceptable actuarial standards;

(4) notify the superintendent of any action taken by a commissioner or superintendent of Insurance of another state similar to that under paragraph (3) of this subdivision;

(5) disclose in the annual certification whether, since the last certification, a currently payable scale applicable for business issued within the previous five years and within the scope of the certification has been reduced for reasons other than changes in the experience factors underlying the disciplined current scale. If non-guaranteed elements illustrated for new policies are not consistent with those illustrated for similar in force policies, this shall be disclosed in the annual certification. If non-guaranteed elements illustrated for both new and in force policies are not consistent with the non-guaranteed elements actually being paid, charged or credited to the same or similar forms, this shall be disclosed in the annual certification; and

(6) disclose in the annual certification the method used to allocate overhead expenses for all illustrations:

(i) fully allocated expenses;

(ii) marginal expenses; or

(iii) a generally recognized expense table based on fully allocated expenses representing a significant portion of insurance companies and approved by the superintendent.

(d) The illustration actuary shall file a certification with the board and with the superintendent annually for all policy forms for which illustrations are used and before a new policy form is illustrated. If an error in a previous certification is discovered, the illustration actuary shall notify the board of directors of the insurer and the superintendent promptly.

(e) If an illustration actuary is unable to certify the scale for any policy form illustration the insurer intends to use, the actuary shall notify the board of directors of the insurer and the superintendent promptly of his or her inability to certify.

(f) A responsible officer of the insurer, other than the illustration actuary, shall certify annually:

(1) that the illustration formats meet the requirements of this Subpart and that the scales used in insurer-authorized illustrations are those scales certified by the illustration actuary; and

(2) that the company has provided its agents or brokers with information about the expense allocation method used by the company in its illustrations and disclosed as required in paragraph (c)(6) of this section.

(g) The annual certifications shall be provided to the superintendent each year by a date determined by the insurer.

(h) If an insurer changes the illustration actuary responsible for all or a portion of the company's policy forms, the insurer shall notify the superintendent of that fact promptly and disclose the reason for the change.