Anyone who has spent time in government knows the details matter. The difference between a policy that works and one that fails is almost always buried in the fine print. That’s exactly what I thought when I heard about a proposal now before the Ohio legislature.

In Senate Bill 306, a small group of fee-only financial advisors is seeking a Fast Pass around Ohio’s consumer protection regulations so they can sell annuities in the state. This special interest group argues that because they are already legally obligated to their clients, Ohio’s consumer protection rules should not apply to them. These advisors publicly say their proposal is about helping consumers access annuities, but in reality, it is about whether these salespeople will have access to Ohio consumers without having to follow our laws.

The Ohio legislature must proceed with caution. Ohio’s consumer protection laws exist to protect Ohioans, and the changes proposed in SB 306 could undermine these protections.

Today, annuities can only be sold in Ohio by insurance agents who are licensed by the state, operate under an insurance company and who abide by regulations requiring agents to recommend products that serve their clients’ best interest. The system, which was strengthened in 2021, works, but the fee-only advisors behind SB 306 do not want to operate inside of it because Ohio’s rules do not fit their business model.

These advisors do not want to take the insurance exam. They do not want to be trained, supervised or held accountable to the insurance companies whose products they sell. Instead of adapting to the rules that protect consumers, they’ve asked the legislature to create a special new license that will accommodate their needs.

In making their sales pitch, the fee-only advisors argue that Ohio rules requiring agents to work under the training and supervision of insurance companies creates a conflict of interest that compromises their independence. This argument ignores what Ohio’s requirement is about. Requiring an ongoing relationship between someone who sells annuities and the insurer offering the product is a safeguard. Removing this relationship does not remove a conflict. It removes an important consumer protection that ensures those selling annuities are kept up to date about the products and accountable.

Here is another detail in the bill that matters: allowing annuities to be sold under two sets of rules is not in consumers’ interest.

Under SB 306, a worker in Ohio considering an annuity would have a new question to ask before they could trust the person advising them: which set of consumer protection rules do you operate under? That’s a question no Ohioan should have to think about. Today, the answer is automatic. Every person selling an annuity must hold a license, operate under an insurer and put the client’s best interest first. SB 306 would replace that clarity with a two-track system that serves the advisors asking for it, not the consumers it claims to help.

Ohio’s consumer protection laws were built with one goal in mind: protecting the people buying financial products. SB 306 turns that goal on its head and asks our laws to instead accommodate the people selling products. That approach is backwards. The legislature should pay attention to the details and tell these advisors to follow the same rules as everyone else.

John Morrow

Wellsville