It was been almost 7 years since we posted the piece titled “Trade Association Membership: weighing the costs vs. the benefits”. Towards the end of that article, we discuss how the master trust sponsor fee provides a crucial source of revenue to state associations. That post was written subsequent to the dissolution of
illinois funeral directors association
A Peace Offering: Fiducary Partners and the WFDA Receiver
By Bill Stalter on
Fiduciary Partners, the corporate fiduciary for the Wisconsin and Illinois master trusts, broke its silence this week with a statement to the Funeral Service Insider. The statement was made in response to criticisms previously reported by FSI, and reflects the receiver and fiduciary working together to get their “message” out and avoid the kind of…
The Light at the End of the Tunnel: the IFDA/Merrill Lynch Settlement
By Bill Stalter on
For the past three and half years, many Illinois funeral homes teetered on the brink of financial crisis when the IFDA master trust was forced to write down the value of preneed accounts invested in a special tax exempt fund. As reported last week by the NFDA’s Memorial Business Journal*, the “new” IFDA has negotiated…
The IFDA: Charting a Correcting Course
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in IFDA
As reported by the Memorial Business Journal*, the Illinois Funeral Directors Association has taken back the helm. For the past three years, the IFDA has been a floundering ship in risk of sinking. The master trust that paved the Association’s growth, has been threatening to bring it down. The IFDA took a crucial step…
Comptroller: It’s Not My Call
By Bill Stalter on
For a brief period, the Illinois Comptroller posted a notice that sidestepped the inquiries made by funeral directors about the application of their Merrill Lynch settlements. The OIC website has since be revised.
One of the inquiries to the OIC may have involved whether the settlement funds could be applied to the litigation costs for…
The Illinois Consumer Statement: Trust Expense Disclosures
By Bill Stalter on
If their preneed contract is trust funded, Illinois consumers should soon be receiving statements from the bank or trust company that administers their account. These statements are one of the new requirements imposed by SB1682. The contents of the statements are governed by Section 2.h of the Funeral or Burial Funds Act.
The Comptroller’s Office…
The Merrill Lynch Settlement Funds: Some Strings Attached
By Bill Stalter on
Many Illinois funeral homes were surprised when they opened their mail this past week. The Illinois Department of Insurance wrote to each funeral home that was determined to have a claim in the $18,000,000 Fund established by Merrill Lynch for IFDA master trust participants. The letter included a check and a spreadsheet allocating the check amount…
The Comptroller’s Preneed Report: poor follow through
By Bill Stalter on
While the Comptroller succeeded in getting SB1682 passed, and into law this past February, the office hasn’t revised its annual preneed reporting form to reflect the law’s changes. The report contemplates depository accounts and self-trusted accounts, which were eliminated by SB1682.
Funeral directors, accustom to the IFDA’s assistance, may also find the trust report…
A Christmas Carol: the future of the IFDA
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in IFDA
The Illinois Funeral Directors Association is living out its own version of A Christmas Carol, with the Ghost of Yet to Come having painted a fate similar to that of Scrooge.
The court decision reported by the Memorial Business Journal* has all but sealed the fate of the Association. While the attorneys can…
Dig Deeper: the price of Merrill Lynch’s divorce from the IFDA
By Bill Stalter on
In rejecting the $18 million settlement forced upon IFDA members, an Illinois Circuit Court is telling Merrill Lynch Life Agency to dig deeper into its pocket to compensate funeral homes. As reported by the Springfield Journal-Register, the $18 million represents the revenues the insurance broker received from the sale of key man insurance to…