8 minute read
Covering the State
By Kirsten Shaw
Hanging on the wall of Mississippi’s Insurance Commissioner is a word-art image, a gift from his daughter. The image is composed of dozens of nouns and adjectives, each offering insight into Mike Chaney. Many relate to his faith, family and career. MSU is there in big, bold type. Some references are a bit obscure, like “long short cut,” and one imagines there might be good stories behind them.
But there is another telling factor: the shape that’s formed by this collection of words. The image that emerges is that of home, of the place he’s devoted much of his life to serving – the state of Mississippi.
Tupelo native Mike Chaney graduated from Mississippi State in 1966 with a degree in banking and finance. He began his career with Humble Oil and Refining Company, a period interrupted by a tour of duty in Vietnam with his Army Reserve unit. By 1972, Chaney struck out on his own, starting an oil distribution business in Vicksburg. About seven years later, he and a partner built a topping plant – essentially a small refinery. In 1991, he moved into the wood preservation business, producing telephone and power poles treated with preservatives to withstand the elements. Chaney was also involved in real estate development, even partnering in that business with Kirk Fordice, Mississippi’s governor through most of the 1990s.
The ’90s also saw a start to Chaney’s career as an elected official. He served in the state’s House of Representatives from 1993 to 1999, then was elected to the Senate in 2000. In the Senate, he chaired the Education Committee, but another assignment would lay the groundwork for his future calling. Chaney was tapped as a member of the Senate Insurance Committee because his oil company in particular had required significant coverage and he owned interest in an insurance company, which he later sold.
“I served on the insurance committee because during the days of my oil business we would ship barge loads of crude oil and finished petroleum products,” he notes. “So I knew a whole lot about insurance – and how expensive it was!”
He expanded his knowledge and understanding of the insurance industry, and in 2007, he was elected to the statewide office of Commissioner of Insurance, seeing it as a new role in which he might serve the state and make a difference for its people. He’s been doing so ever since, having been elected and re-elected four times.
“I truly love my job,” he states. “It’s fascinating because you deal with every aspect that touches someone’s life, from before a child is born until a person dies. I’m talking about prenatal care with health insurance then burial insurance on the other end, plus life insurance and everything in between – homeowners insurance, automobile insurance, long term care – protecting people when they ride on an elevator or buy a propane bottle, fire protection…. All these things that cost money.”
The scope of the Mississippi Insurance Department is vast. Its brief, in part, includes oversight of all insurance companies operating in Mississippi; licensing for insurance companies, agents and adjusters, as well as bail agents; educating consumers on every type of insurance and preparedness for planned and unplanned life events; handling consumer complaints and fighting fraud. Chaney also serves as State Fire Marshal, which takes in oversight of fire investigations, firefighter training and enforcement of fire codes – plus less-expected areas like oversight of factory-built homes and elevator and escalator inspections.
The Department’s stated aim, in short, is to create the highest degree of economic security, quality of life, public safety and fire protection for the state’s citizens at the lowest possible cost.
“I want insurance to be available, affordable and accountable – the ‘Three As,’ as I call them,” Chaney says. “The statute I live by says that I will be certain that companies are solvent with enough surplus to pay claims and that I will protect the consumer. And the statute doesn’t say this, but if in doubt, I’ll take care of the consumer first.”
Chaney and his team also work to foster a statewide environment for economic growth, benefiting Mississippians at large.
“A bank’s not going to finance your project unless you can insure it,” he observes. “And if you don’t finance it, you have no economic development, no jobs created. So insurance is really the key that unlocks economic growth within the states.
“A prime example is the recovery of the Gulf Coast [after Hurricane Katrina]. As a state senator, I helped write the recovery bill and shortly thereafter found myself administering that program. It’s been successful. We’ve been able to keep rates competitive on the Gulf Coast. We found insurance for the citizens living in the lower six counties, which enabled them to stay on the Coast to rebuild. And during that time we passed building codes – codes that enable buyers to get cheaper insurance rates and have homes that are still there after a hurricane. Resiliency is what we call it.”
One of the biggest areas of change since Chaney became Commissioner is healthcare. What initially took about one percent of his time, he now estimates takes more than 50 percent. Longterm care insurance has become a focus, and the Department has also worked to protect patients from “surprise medical billing” – unexpected charges for services by out-of-network providers at innetwork facilities. Healthcare reforms and changes have led the Department to develop MIDhelps.org, a website to aid consumers in understanding their health insurance and provide information on legal rights and protections.
The responsibilities of the Commissioner constitute a big, complicated job, one that isn’t done single-handedly. As he talks about various projects and areas, Chaney frequently mentions involved staff members by name. It’s clear he recognizes their skills and is grateful for what they accomplish.
“I’ve got a great staff supporting our efforts,” he says. “We’ve got people who work. And we get it done.
Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney and his team work to create a high degree of economic security, quality of life, public safety and fire protection for Mississippians.
Photo by Beth Reiss, MS Insurance Department
“One of the things I’m really proud of is that we’ve been able to take care of consumer complaints. We handle about 13,000 phone calls a year in inquiries. We deal with a lot of issues related to healthcare, roofs and automobile damage. We’ve also been very successful in helping people find family members’ life insurance policies.”
Chaney’s impact on the insurance industry extends to the national level via the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Through the NAIC, state insurance regulators establish standards and best practices, conduct peer reviews and coordinate regulatory oversight. Chaney chairs its Property & Casualty Committee and serves on the Financial Condition Committee.
Mississippi State and the College of Business benefit from his involvement as well. Chaney is a fixture at MSU Insurance Day (I-Day), the annual continuing education program organized by the College and its Risk Management and Insurance (RMI) Program. Each year, he invites several of his NAIC peers to join him on an I-Day panel. He enjoys hosting them at MSU, showing off the campus and the RMI program and taking them to the I-Day baseball game reception.
“I’m really proud of Mississippi State,” he says. “They have done so much for the state of Mississippi.”
Chaney takes a keen interest in his alma mater’s students.
“He’s always engaging and interacting with them,” observes Seth Pounds, Director of the RMI Program. “When he meets a student who’s interested in a career in insurance, he goes out of his way to stop and talk.”
The Commissioner has established the Mike Chaney Risk Management & Insurance Endowed Scholarship, a need-based scholarship for Mississippi students in the RMI program. He also recruits students to join the Mississippi Insurance Department, sending representatives to campus for career fairs and encouraging them personally.
“We tell them if they’ll work for us for a couple of years, they’ll be able to write their ticket,” he says, noting that the experience gleaned at the agency puts his young employees in demand when it’s time for their next career moves.
With the demands of his job, it’s hard to imagine Chaney’s schedule allows for anything but work, but family is very important to him. With photo in hand, he proudly talks about each one – their personalities, where they live, what they do. He shares anecdotes like how he’s used binoculars for “keeping an eye” on some of the younger generations during games in Davis-Wade Stadium (they don’t seem to mind).
When he wants relaxation, a break from facts, figures, regulations and negotiations, he finds it in woodworking, tennis and painting. Though artistic talent seems to run in the family, his works are only seen by family and friends, because painting is simply something he enjoys doing for himself.
Mike Chaney could have retired years ago, after serving in the Senate, but it’s clear the role he’s held for over 14 years is almost a mission, one that energizes and fulfills.
