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Comedian George Gobel once said on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show "I feel like the world is a tuxedo and I am just an old pair of brown shoes." Following Pat Johnson as AASCIF President makes me feel like an old pair of brown shoes. Pat has provided smart, rock-solid and stylish leadership for AASCIF.
After working with Pat over the past two years and watching her run "AASCIF Central," as she calls it, I fully understand that the title of AASCIF President is not an honorary title. A significant commitment of time and energy, both physical and mental, is required. While I may not match Pat's effervescent personality, I'll do my best to match her commitment and work ethic.
I want to thank Fran Kaitala and Linda Boys for their work in getting AASCIF's accounts and records in better shape than ever. They have given me and my staff a great roadmap to follow in keeping up with the details of shepherding the association. Special thanks also go to Mark Ladwig for doing marvelous work on the AASCIF newsletter for the past two years and to Dave Kaiser for improving the AASCIF website.
Our association's members continue to wrestle with challenges large and small. Notable victories were won this year in Arizona and Utah in court battles over who "owns" their assets, and the ongoing political battle in Oregon over whether to abolish SAIF is capturing our attention. Other challenges include tight budgets for our members who are part of government, as well as the challenges of handling burgeoning business volumes and market shares in a number of states.
When we consider the challenges our fellow AASCIF members are facing, the axiom "If you've seen one state fund, you've seen one state fund" comes to mind. None of our business entities are identical, nor do we face identical problems, challenges or successes. But there are common issues that bind us together—the role of the "designated market" in our respective jurisdictions, the need to provide top-tier customer service, the political implications involved in operating this type of entity, and others. Even though the last several years have seen our workers' compensation insurance world change, with some of our U.S. members writing coverage outside our states' borders through partnerships or subsidiaries, we still pursue a common goal: to serve our customers who need affordable workers' compensation insurance by providing the best value we can.
As a new CEO in the mid 1990s, I benefited tremendously from the willingness of many other CEOs who were willing to share their time, advice, experience and information with me. Their help kept me away from some pitfalls and helped me direct our company toward important improvements. As my AASCIF President predecessors have reminded us before, that willingness to share experience, best practices and new ideas is still the major strength of AASCIF. We will continue to strive to give you opportunities to learn from each other through annual conference topics, specialty committee workshops, informal networking, our website and our publications, to help you address the common issues we all face.
But changing world and political landscapes have already required AASCIF as an organization to expand its role and to think in new terms. In 2002, through the dedication of both time and monetary resources, many U.S. AASCIF members helped AASCIF's Ad Hoc Committee on Terrorism Reinsurance get involved in pushing Congress to pass the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA). Through that same Ad Hoc Committee and the generous commitment of time and resources again by a number of U.S. member CEOs, we are working hard with other insurance industry and business entities to urge Congress to extend TRIA's vital coverage
Undoubtedly, other challenges will demand our attention in the future, in addition to the usual demands of operating our individual companies as effectively as possible and meeting our customers' needs. By continuing to coordinate our efforts, talents and resources, we can ensure the future vitality and effectiveness of AASCIF in addressing a broader range of issues. I ask you to join me in committing to do just that.
Congratulations to our other officers elected in Minneapolis: First Vice President Ken Ross, Vice Presidents Doug Sexsmith, Dennis Smith, Don Smith, and Joe Solomon, and Secretary/Treasurer Terry Frakes. I look forward to a busy and productive year with these Executive Committee members.
I thank the members of AASCIF for the opportunity to serve as your president and I very much look forward to working with you.
Russell R. Oliver
AASCIF President
2004 - 2005
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