The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1912-08-29
WISCONSIN PLANNING
TO SELL INSURANCE
Commissioner Thinks New De-
partment VIII Be Ready
By September i.

Madison, Wis.-Insurance b. the state
OF Wisconsin, life insurance, along the
identical lines OF the great mutual and
stock companies. offered under what the
state authorities i'll call the model poll
Icy is soon to be a fact. Plans are COM
pleted for the issuance Of policies by the
state, applications are being received and
the new system will probably be launched
by September l..
The rates will not be much lower than
the charges of the present private COM
panies, but the authorities believe that
this issuance of a state life Insurance
policy instead of being a harm to the pri-
vate companies will be a distinct benefit.
in that It is expected that the Issuance by
the state of life policies will educate the
policy holders to a, better understanding
and better patronage of the private com
panies, especially as no person can take
out q policy for more than 5000 under
the new Wisconsin system.
The Wisconsin state insurance idea is
the result of the investigation by q state
legislative committee several years ago
of the life insurance situation in WILSON,
sin Insurance. Commissioner Ekern was
then a member of the legislature and
chairman of the investigating committee.
Will Issue Four Policies.
The following legislature passed laws
under which practically all of the big out
side insurance companies left the state.
and have never returned. Ekern, how
ever, had begun to frame the bill for state
insurance which has now become law and
is about, with the author as commissions
er, to go into effect. At the outset, four
different policies will be issued, and the
number may be Increased later as the
state becomes proficient in the insurance
business. These four policies will be the
ordinary life, Repayment endowment, 10
payment endowment, and term, to the
age of 65 years. Later a system of an
nuities. something like the French peas
ants favorite system, will be introduced,
the annuities to begin when the benefit
Charles reach the age of 65 years. The LA
bility OF the state in the new order Of at
fairs Is limited to the amount of money
In the insurance fund, this fund being
derived from premiums, interest, earnings
and other sources of revenue AS the poll
cies are limited to $1,000, the annuities
will be limited to $500 a year, when the
annuity plan goes into effect.
Denies socialistic Idea.
To the complaint that the idea OF
state insurance is socialistic the state
commissioner answers that insurance Is
public service, and should be under state
control, at least in sufficient force to
check any possible abuses in private COM
panies. The progress of socialism In Wis
consin, however. has been so strongly
toward such paternalistic ideas as state
insurance that the opponents of the new
pIau say lne next ehins VIII pc the es-
o.pns - =. statc-omheo u.iii.ies aiohs
80 e. AS d hlal.e oL lace the IN
soatnts 10Y" was passea py Tue aia OF tne
IT, ST. N " ne legislature
ny poih.s ~ tne system that the pollcy
limit shall be 1900, thus cutting out the
heavy insurance carrier from use Of the
soata,,a.. 10 espeoiauS On iuea u Inc
Srst go aAhu'y ~ ,ahel as ehe
M W .omaiu II sociailste luea OF
tias @ na wv WINE Inc annui-
in+o &C., ,,a4, p.oposeu pian 10 MOI go
ola nn,,o,os ' oaa ~ pe a 5 % years
o,,ar sn ..aa.sa :. oe issusu W persons
Ins ~ " iess INA years.