VIA ELECTRONIC DELIVERY

May 13, 2015 

Office of Regulations and Interpretations 

Employee Benefits Security Administration 

Attn: Conflict of Interest Rule, Room N-5655 

U.S. Department of Labor 

200 Constitution Avenue, NW 

Washington, DC 20210 

Re: Comment Period for Definition of Fiduciary (Conflict of Interest) RIN 1210-AB32 

Dear Sir or Madam: 

 We are writing on behalf of the Committee of Annuity Insurers (the “Committee”) to 

respectfully request an extension of the 75-day comment period regarding the Department of 

Labor’s (“Department”) proposed regulation defining the term “fiduciary,” the two new 

prohibited transaction exemptions, and the related amendments to the four existing prohibited 

transaction exemptions that the Department released on April 14 (the “Proposal”). 

The Committee is a coalition of life insurance companies formed in 1981 to participate in 

the development of federal policy with respect to annuities. The Committee’s current 29 member 

companies represent approximately 80% of the annuity business in the United States and are 

among the largest issuers of annuity contracts in connection with employer-sponsored retirement 

plans and individual retirement arrangements. A list of the Committee’s member companies is 

attached. 

The Committee understands and appreciates the significance of this Proposal and counsel 

to the Committee has already begun collecting input from Committee members. The current 

Proposal is significantly longer and more complicated than the proposal the Department released 

in 2010 and will require more, not less, time to review than the 2010 proposal. 

Of particular concern for the Committee is that the Proposal includes a number of 

provisions that will directly affect companies that issue annuity contracts in connection with 

employer-sponsored retirement plans and individual retirement arrangements. It is crucial that 

any final rules not undo the good work the Department, in coordination with the Department of 

the Treasury, has done in recent years to facilitate access to and use of lifetime income. We want 

to help the Department avoid any unintended consequences on this very important issue. The 
Department of Labor 

May 13, 2015 

Page 2 of 2 

Department has proposed to amend and partially revoke Prohibited Transaction Exemption 84-24, 

which is heavily relied upon by life insurance companies and their agents, and specifically asks 

for comment on a number of insurance and annuity related questions. In addition, many aspects 

of the Proposal require careful consideration of the interaction with rules issued by the Securities 

and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. 

For all these reasons, Committee members believe additional time will be needed in order 

to understand the effect these provisions will have on annuity issuers. The Department has 

encouraged input and the Committee appreciates the Department’s willingness to consider 

comments. The Committee believes that in order to provide meaningful input, we will need 

sufficient time to review the Proposal and determine how it will affect Committee members. 

* * * * * 

 For the reasons cited above, the Committee respectfully requests that the Proposal’s 

comment period be extended. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact the 

undersigned at 202-347-2230. 

Sincerely, 

Joseph F. McKeever, III Michael L. Hadley 

jfmckeever@davis-harman.com mlhadley@davis-harman.com

Counsel to the Committee of Annuity Insurers 

Attachment 
 

AIG Life & Retirement, Los Angeles, CA 

Allianz Life Insurance Company, Minneapolis, MN 

Allstate Financial, Northbrook, IL 

Ameriprise Financial, Minneapolis, MN 

Athene Annuity & Life Company, Des Moines, IA

AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company, New York, NY 

Fidelity Investments Life Insurance Company, Boston, MA 

Genworth Financial, Richmond, VA 

Global Atlantic Life and Annuity Companies, Southborough, MA 

Great American Life Insurance Co., Cincinnati, OH 

Guardian Insurance & Annuity Co., Inc., New York, NY 

Jackson National Life Insurance Company, Lansing, MI 

John Hancock Life Insurance Company, Boston, MA 

Life Insurance Company of the Southwest, Dallas, TX 

Lincoln Financial Group, Fort Wayne, IN 

MassMutual Financial Group, Springfield, MA 

Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, New York, NY 

Nationwide Life Insurance Companies, Columbus, OH 

New York Life Insurance Company, New York, NY 

Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, WI 

Ohio National Financial Services, Cincinnati, OH 

Pacific Life Insurance Company, Newport Beach, CA 

 Protective Life Insurance Company, Birmingham, AL 

Prudential Insurance Company of America, Newark, NJ 

Symetra Financial, Bellevue, WA 

The Transamerica companies, Cedar Rapids, IA 

TIAA-CREF, New York, NY 

USAA Life Insurance Company, San Antonio, TX 

Voya Financial, Inc., Atlanta, GA 

The Committee of Annuity Insurers was formed in 1981 to participate in the development of 

federal tax and securities law policies with respect to annuities. The member companies of the 

Committee represent approximately 80% of the annuity business in the United States.