GAO Report Analysis Telephone Seminar

The GAO (the U.S. Government Accountability Office) has made a number of recommendations to Congress, HUD and state regulators to improve oversight and regulation of the title insurance industry. Plan to participate in ALTA's telephone seminar which will review the GAO's findings and recommendations and outline steps the association will take to assist regulators.

This telephone seminar included a call-in segment to answer questions about the report.

Read More:

• The GAO Report (April 2007)
• Summary of the GAO Report on Title Insurance (April 2007)
• ALTA Welcomes GAO Report (April 2007 Press Release)
• ALTA Talking Points Outline (April 2007)
• ALTA Messages on GAO Report (April 2007)

About the Speakers:

Lawrence D. Cluff, Ph.D
Assistant Director, Financial Markets and Community Investment
U.S. Government Accountability Office, Washington, DC
Larry Cluff, Assistant Director, Financial Markets and Community Investment, U.S. Government Accountability Office, Washington, DC, directs a staff of experienced analysts in examining issues for Congress related to the rapidly changing financial sector and its regulation. In the area of insurance, this work has resulted in a series of reports and congressional testimonies on various aspects of insurance and insurance regulation, including how states identify and handle troubled companies, fraud, reinsurance, and the role of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in the regulatory process. Dr. Cluff’s team has also examined proposals before Congress for better handling both terrorism and natural disasters, including the establishment of a federal disaster insurance program. Recent work includes reports on the regulation of the market behavior of insurance companies; a review of the implementation of the Risk Retention Act, which allows certain liability insurers to be regulated in one state, but sell insurance anywhere; the insurability of nuclear, chemical, radiological and biological terrorist events; and title insurance. Dr. Cluff has been a speaker at numerous conferences and seminars related to insurance and its regulation, including conferences sponsored by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, A.M. Best, the National Conference of State Legislators, the Federal Reserve Board, the American Bar Association, the Society of Actuaries, and the University of Maryland School of Law. Before joining GAO in 1979, Dr. Cluff taught at the Behrend College in Erie, Pennsylvania. He received his Ph.D. from the Pennsylvania State University.

Patrick A. Ward, CPA
Senior Analyst, Financial Markets Community Investment
U.S. Government Accountability Office, Chicago, IL
Pat Ward, Senior Analyst, Financial Markets Community Investment, U.S. Government Accountability Office, Chicago, IL, has been the analyst-in-charge on several GAO projects reviewing different aspects of the insurance industry. These projects include an examination of the factors affecting medical malpractice insurance premium rates, an analysis of the preparedness of the insurance sector for wide-scale business disruptions, and a study of practices and regulation within the title insurance industry. Mr. Ward has also worked on projects related to the preparedness of the securities markets for potential terrorist attacks. Before joining GAO in 1995, Mr. Ward received his B.S. in Accounting from the University of Illinois.

Gregory M. Kosin
President of the American Land Title Association and
President, Greater Illinois Title Company in Chicago, IL
Greg Kosin, who is current President of the American Land Title Association, has been involved in the title insurance industry for over 30 years. He is a past chair of ALTA's Government Affairs Committee as well as a former director of the Illinois Association of Mortgage Brokers, the Illinois Mortgage Bankers Association, and the Society of Mortgage Professionals. He served as President of the Illinois Land Title Association for two terms and is a former member of its Board of Directors. He is a member of the Dearborn Realtist Board and NAREB, organizations dedicated to democracy in housing. He is also a Realtor® Member of the Chicago Association of Realtors® and is a former member of its Board of Directors. He is president of Greater Illinois Title Company in Chicago, IL. Greg received his BA degree from the University of Illinois.

Edward C. Miller
Chief Counsel and Vice President of Public Policy
American Land Title Association, Washington, DC
Ed Miller, ALTA's Chief Counsel and Vice President of Public Policy, leads the Association on all government relations efforts and oversees the PAC and grassroots departments. Before coming to ALTA, he was a Senior Policy Representative with the National Association of REALTORS®, where he represented NAR on legislative efforts concerning financial issues like bank powers, credit, GSE, and public and private real estate finance. Prior to NAR, Ed worked as Counsel at the American Council of Life Insurers, where he handled banking, commerce, bankruptcy and risk classification issues before Congress and federal agencies. Before that, he worked on Capitol Hill for former U.S. Representative Dan Mica as Legislative Director. Ed obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree from Manhattanville College and his Juris Doctorate from New York Law School. He is a member of the New York Bar.

Richard G. Carlston
Miller, Starr & Regalia, Walnut Creek, CA
Rich Carlston is a litigation and regulatory shareholder with Miller, Starr & Regalia, Walnut Creek, CA and a member of the ALTA's Claims Committee. He is a nationally recognized authority in the title industry and has traveled around the country to make presentations to a variety of state departments of insurance. Rich and other ALTA representatives were involved in meetings with the GAO last year to answer questions about how the title industry works.