§ 6109 — Subscriber's operating reserve

§ 6109. Subscriber's operating reserve. (a) (1) Every subscriber of an\nauthorized reciprocal insurer in which subscribers are subject to\ncontingent liability shall accumulate a minimum operating reserve, to be\ncredited to such subscriber on the books and records of such reciprocal\ninsurer, by authorizing the attorney-in-fact to credit to such account\nat the end of the fiscal year of such reciprocal insurer, an amount not\nless than one quarter of such subscriber's underwriting earnings during\nsuch period.\n (2) Such accumulation shall be made so long as such subscriber's\noperating reserve is less than twice the amount of annual premiums in\nforce.\n (3) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the superintendent may, upon\napplication from the attorney-in-fact:\n (A) approve other methods for accumulating such subscriber's operating\nreserve; or\n (B) permit the suspension of the accumulation of the operating reserve\nfor a fiscal year provided that those earnings are returned to the\nsubscriber in accordance with subparagraph (B) of paragraph two of\nsubsection (c) of this section; or\n (C) in the case of a municipal reciprocal insurer, authorize the\nreturn of any outstanding subscriber operating reserve balance upon the\nmunicipal reciprocal insurer's demonstration that it will retain\nsufficient surplus to support its obligations and writings.\n (b) Any authorized reciprocal insurer may, pursuant to the terms of\nthe subscriber's agreement and to any action of its advisory committee\nauthorized thereunder, require its subscribers to accumulate\nsubscriber's operating reserves in excess of the minimum specified in\nsubsection (a) of this section and may require a longer period of notice\nfor the withdrawal of all or any part of such reserve than that herein\nspecified.\n (c) (1) No subscriber shall have a secured or preferred claim against\nany assets of the reciprocal insurer arising out of such operating\nreserve, but all assets held by such insurer shall be available for the\npayment of claims of policyholders and creditors of such reciprocal\ninsurer in preference to any claim for withdrawal by a subscriber as\nsuch.\n (2) Any subscriber's operating reserve accumulated by any such\nreciprocal insurer shall be maintained at all times, except that:\n (A) a subscriber may, upon withdrawal from membership and cancellation\nof all insurance contracts held by the subscriber in such insurer, and\nafter giving to the attorney-in-fact written notice of withdrawal at\nleast sixty days in advance, withdraw the amount of the subscriber's\noperating reserve less such surrender charges as may be deducted\npursuant to the subscriber's agreement; or\n (B) where the superintendent has determined that the suspension of the\naccumulation of the operating reserve would not be harmful to\npolicyholders or the people of this state, the attorney-in-fact may, in\nthe fiscal year following the year for which the suspension of the\naccumulation of the operating reserve was authorized, return to each\nsubscriber an amount equal to the underwriting earnings that would have\notherwise been credited to the subscriber's operating reserve.\n (3) No withdrawal shall be permitted after an order of liquidation of,\nor the appointment of a receiver or liquidating trustee for, any such\nreciprocal insurer or, notwithstanding any other provision of law to the\ncontrary, where there is an authorized control level event or a\nmandatory control level event as defined in section thirteen hundred\ntwenty-four of this chapter.\n