If 500 people show up in Washington for the fixed indexed annuity legislative "fly-in" next week, Blair O'Connor will find some place to send them.
O'Connor, president of Producer's Choice Inc., Sterling Heights, Mich., is helping to lead efforts to organize the March 17 fly-in.
O'Connor, who is legislative affairs committee chair at the National Association for Fixed Annuities, Milwaukee, and chairman of the new Independent Fixed Annuities Agents Council, Sterling Heights, and the other organizers are hoping to attract more than 100 participants.
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RULE 151A FLY-IN
Readers can follow Allison Bell at http://www.lifeandhealthinsurancenews.com/rule151a as she reports live from Capitol Hill once the event begins.
Feel free to ask Allison questions on Twitter, at http://twitter.com/NatUndLife, and join in the discussion by using the Twitter hashtag #rule151a.
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But the more people the organizers have visiting the offices of lawmakers, the better, O'Connor says.
"This is a middle-American issue, and it resonates from right to left," O'Connor says. "The senators are very cognizant of something: They represent us."
Committed fly-in participants already have lined up meetings with many senators' offices, and participants also are working to arrange meetings with House members. Members of Congress usually will try to find bigger conference rooms if citizens groups turn out to be larger than expected, and, even if all fly-in participants fail get into a meeting, the fact that they have walked in with the others sends a message about the level support that exists for their cause, O'Connor says.
IFAAC is working with NAFA, which represents both insurers and producers, and the Coalition for Insured Products, Washington, which represents insurers, to organize the fly-in.