“There is a feeling of inevitability—things got pretty dismal around here. I guess there were no surprises, it”s just the suddenness of it. There was all the anticipation of this great hearing [scheduled for June 29 and cancelled after Quackenbush”s resignation].
“Everybody”s speculating now as to what the Governor will do. I think he will have to move pretty quickly. I mean, you”ve got a major agency foundering, you need to put in someone who will turn things around.”
— Sam Sorich, vice president and western regional manager of the National Association of Independent Insurers, Sacramento
“It”s really too bad. Chuck did a great job as Commissioner and proved a regulator can both create a highly competitive insurance market and provide effective consumer protection.”
— Greg Butler, former CEO of the California Earthquake Authority, Colorado
“The California Earthquake Authority looks forward to working productively with the new leadership at the Office of the Insurance Commissioner and the corresponding appointee to the CEA Governing Board.”
— Mark Leonard, spokesman for the California Earthquake Authority, Sacramento
“In my opinion, Chuck Quackenbush did a very good job with the insurance industry over his tenure. He opened the door for carriers to once again feel comfortable writing business in California.
“The Garamendi regime treated insurance as if it were a monopoly and this discouraged many viable insurance and reinsurance companies from entering one on this country”s largest insurance markets; whereas Quackenbush championed a successful effort to reverse this perception and, along with the passage of mandatory insurance, California enjoys a surplus of insurance supply (a bit oversupplied at the present time).
“Most insurance professionals were unaware of Quackenbush”s ‘under-the-table” dealings until the last several months. It is unfortunate that he became too friendly with the very industry he was supposed to police. The real story is not his departure, it will be who the successor is and how he/she will handle all of the problems in the house of the D.O.I.”
— Fred “Sonny” DiMeo, director of the Independent Broker Network, San Jose
“The controversy that led to the resignation of Chuck Quackenbush was probably inevitable as a result of the Prop 103 provision that called for electing California”s Insurance Commissioner.
“The San Francisco Chronicle, in its June 29 editorial, suggested that either the Insurance Commissioner should be appointed by the Governor with legislative approval…or that citizens and corporations engaged in the business of insurance be prohibited from making political contributions to candidates for Commissioner in future elections.
“The latter approach would be unfair, ineffective and unconstitutional. It would be a violation of First Amendment rights to prohibit certain individuals from supporting political candidates solely because they chose insurance as a career path; moreover, such a proposal would not eliminate the corrupting influence of money. It would simply leave the playing field to lawyers and other special interests who have a direct stake in how the business of insurance is regulated…
“The current controversy unfairly taints the vast majority of Department of Insurance employees who are hard-working, experienced regulators, absolutely dedicated to the public interest, and committed to tough but fair regulation of the insurance industry. As recent events indicate, even some of these highly trained professionals are susceptible to the push and pull of partisan politics with an elected Commissioner.
“Eliminating the position of Commissioner from the political arena would make it easier for these professional regulators to do their jobs without the interference they have been forced to suffer since Prop. 103 foolishly politicized the office.”
— John E. Johnson, president of Insurance Brokers and Agents of the West, Oakland, from June 29 “Letter to the Editor,” San Francisco Chronicle
Topics California Leadership Market
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