Iowa Admin. Code r. 191-111.5 - Contents of corporate governance annual disclosure

(1) The insurer or insurance group shall be as descriptive as possible in completing the corporate governance annual disclosure, with inclusion of attachments or example documents that are used in the governance process since these may provide a means to demonstrate the strengths of the insurer's or insurance group's governance framework and practices.

(2) The corporate governance annual disclosure shall describe the insurer's or insurance group's corporate governance framework and structure, including consideration of the following:

a. The board of directors and committees thereof ultimately responsible for overseeing the insurer or insurance group and the level or levels at which that oversight occurs. The insurer or insurance group shall describe and discuss the rationale for the current board of directors' size and structure; and

b. The duties of the board of directors and each of its significant committees and how they are governed, which may include bylaws, charters, or informal mandates as well as how the board of directors' leadership is structured and a discussion of the roles of the chief executive officer and chairperson of the board of directors within the organization.

(3) The insurer or insurance group shall describe the policies and practices of the most senior governing entity and significant committees thereof, including a discussion of the following factors:

a. How the qualifications, expertise and experience of each board of directors member meet the needs of the insurer or insurance group.

b. How an appropriate amount of independence is maintained on the board of directors and its significant committees.

c. The number of meetings held by the board of directors and its significant committees over the past year as well as information on director attendance.

d. How the insurer or insurance group identifies, nominates and elects members to the board of directors and its committees. The discussion should include, for example:

(1) Whether a nomination committee is in place to identify and select individuals for consideration.

(2) Whether term limits are placed on directors.

(3) How the election and reelection processes function.

(4) Whether a board of directors diversity policy is in place and, if so, how it functions.

e. The processes in place for the board of directors to evaluate its performance and the performance of its committees, as well as any recent measures taken to improve performance, including any board of directors or committee training programs that have been put in place.

(4) The insurer or insurance group shall describe the policies and practices for directing senior management, including a description of the following factors:

a. Any processes or practices such as suitability standards to determine whether officers and key persons in control functions have the appropriate background, experience and integrity to fulfill their prospective roles, including:

(1) Identification of the specific positions for which suitability standards have been developed and a description of the standards employed.

(2) Any changes in an officer's or key person's suitability as outlined by the insurer's or insurance group's standards and procedures to monitor and evaluate such changes.

b. The insurer's or insurance group's code of business conduct and ethics, the discussion of which should consider, for example:

(1) Compliance with laws, rules, and regulations; and

(2) Proactive reporting of any illegal or unethical behavior.

c. The insurer's or insurance group's processes for performance evaluation, compensation and corrective action to ensure effective senior management throughout the organization, including a description of the general objectives of significant compensation programs and what the programs are designed to reward. The description shall include sufficient detail to allow the commissioner to understand how the organization ensures that compensation programs do not encourage or reward excessive risk taking. Elements to be discussed may include, but are not limited to, the following:

(1) The role of the board of directors in overseeing management compensation programs and practices.

(2) The various elements of compensation awarded in the insurer's or insurance group's compensation programs and how the insurer or insurance group determines and calculates the amount of each element of compensation paid.

(3) How compensation programs are related to both company and individual performance over time.

(4) Whether compensation programs include risk adjustments and how those adjustments are incorporated into the programs for employees at different levels.

(5) Any clawback provisions built into the compensation programs to recover awards or payments if the performance measures upon which the clawback provisions are based are restated or otherwise adjusted.

(6) Any other factors relevant in understanding how the insurer or insurance group monitors its compensation policies to determine whether its risk management objectives are met by incentivizing its employees.

d. The insurer's or insurance group's plans for chief executive officer and senior management succession.

(5) The insurer or insurance group shall describe the processes by which the board of directors, its committees and senior management ensure an appropriate amount of oversight to the critical risk areas impacting the insurer's or insurance group's business activities, including a discussion of:

a. How oversight and management responsibilities are delegated among the board of directors, its committees and senior management.

b. How the board of directors is kept informed of the insurer's or insurance group's strategic plans, the associated risks, and steps that senior management is taking to monitor and manage those risks.

c. How reporting responsibilities are organized for each critical risk area. The description should allow the commissioner to understand the frequency at which information on each critical risk area is reported to and reviewed by senior management and the board of directors. This description may include, but is not limited to, the following critical risk areas of the insurer:

(1) Risk management processes (An own risk and solvency assessment summary report filer may refer to the filer's own risk and solvency assessment summary report prepared pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 522);

(2) Actuarial function;

(3) Investment decision-making processes;

(4) Reinsurance decision-making processes;

(5) Business strategy and finance decision-making processes;

(6) Compliance function;

(7) Financial reporting and internal auditing; and

(8) Market conduct decision-making processes.

Notes

Iowa Admin. Code r. 191-111.5

Adopted by IAB February 03, 2016/Volume XXXVIII, Number 16, effective 3/9/2016