§ 31-5202 — “Health, accident, and life insurance companies” defined; assets or capital stock requirements; annual required tax and financial statement; annual required examinations; revocation or suspension of license; appeal; issuance of license; exemptions.

Every corporation, joint-stock company, or association not exempt herein, transacting business in the District of Columbia, which collects premiums, dues, or assessments from its members or from holders of its certificates or policies, and which provides for the payment of indemnity on account of sickness or accident, or a benefit in case of death, shall be known as “health, accident, and life insurance companies or associations.” No such company or association shall transact business within the District of Columbia unless it shall have in assets or in capital stock fully paid up in cash, or in both together, not less than $25,000 as a capital or guarantee fund; which assets may be invested in United States, state, county, municipal bonds, and bonds of the District of Columbia, or railroad bonds; but investments in the bonds of railroads shall be limited to the bonds of those railroads which have paid dividends on their capital stock for the 10 years immediately previous to the date of the investment; or in improved real estate, or in first mortgages on improved real estate; but no loan on real estate shall be made for an amount exceeding 70% of its assessed value, such investments to be approved by the Commissioner of Insurance and Securities [Commissioner of the Department of Insurance, Securities, and Banking] of the District of Columbia. No such health, accident, and life insurance company or association, transacting on August 15, 1911, or thereafter the business of health, accident, and life insurance, or either or all said kinds of insurance, in the District of Columbia shall issue policies or certificates providing, either singly or in aggregate, a greater accident or death benefit than $500, or a greater weekly indemnity than $20, on any 1 person unless such company or association has in assets or in capital stock fully paid up in cash, or in both together, not less than $100,000 invested and approved as aforesaid. Every such company or association shall pay to the Collector of Taxes for the District of Columbia a sum of money, as tax, equal to 1% of all moneys received from members of policy or certificate holders within the District of Columbia, said tax to be paid on or before the 1st day of March of each year on the amount of such income for the year ending December 31st next preceding; and shall also file annually with said Commissioner of Insurance and Securities [Commissioner of the Department of Insurance, Securities, and Banking], on or before the 1st day of March of each year, a sworn statement, on blanks furnished by said Commissioner of Insurance and Securities [Commissioner of the Department of Insurance, Securities, and Banking], showing its true financial condition, income, disbursements, assets, and liabilities on the 31st of December next preceding, and such other information as said Commissioner of Insurance and Securities [Commissioner of the Department of Insurance, Securities, and Banking] may require; and shall pay to the said Collector of Taxes $10 for filing such statement. All companies or associations described herein shall be examined as described in Chapter 14 of this title ; and when the Mayor finds the capital stock of any such company impaired or its assets reduced in value to an amount less than required by the provisions hereof he shall at once give notice of said fact to said company or association, and unless said impairment is made good within 60 days after said notice, it shall be the duty of said Commissioner to revoke or suspend the license of said company or association until such impairment shall have been made good; and any company or association that issues policies or certificates of insurance as described herein without a license from said Commissioner or during a suspension thereof, as herein provided, shall be fined not less than $20 nor more than $100 per day; provided, that if any such company or association shall feel aggrieved by the decision of said Commissioner concerning the investment or impairment of its assets or capital stock, it shall have the right to appeal, within 10 days, from the decision of said Commissioner to the Mayor of the District of Columbia, and the Council of the District of Columbia shall prescribe rules and regulations for the hearing of said appeal, and the Mayor’s decision shall be final; provided also, that when any such company or association shall have complied with the provisions contained herein, the Commissioner of Insurance and Securities [Commissioner of the Department of Insurance, Securities, and Banking] shall issue to it a license to transact its business in the District of Columbia; provided, however, that nothing contained herein shall interfere with or abridge the rights of any fraternal beneficial association licensed to transact business under §§ 31-5701 to 31-5717 [repealed], or incorporated by special act of Congress; and provided further, that nothing contained herein shall apply to any relief association, not conducted for profit, composed solely of officers and enlisted men of the United States Army, Navy, or Air Force, or solely of employees of any other branch of the United States government service, or solely of employees of any individual, company, firm, or corporation. Civil fines, penalties, and fees may be imposed as alternative sanctions for any infraction of the provisions of this section, or any rules or regulations issued under the authority of this section, pursuant to Chapter 18 of Title 2 . Adjudication of any infraction of this section shall be pursuant to Chapter 18 of Title 2 .

Legislative History

Mar. 3, 1901, 31 Stat. 1292, ch. 854, § 653; Aug. 15, 1911, 37 Stat. 16, ch. 12, § 1; Oct. 5, 1985, D.C. Law 6-42, § 470(e), 32 DCR 4450; Oct. 21, 1993, D.C. Law 10-49, § 9(a), 40 DCR 6110; May 21, 1997, D.C. Law 11-268, § 10(d), 44 DCR 1730