by Lyle Adriano
Ben Nelson, after more than two years of serving as the CEO of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, has announced his intent to leave the position.
NAIC released a statement that said Nelson’s term ends on January 31, 2016, at which point he will not renew his contract.
Nelson is leaving his post to return to the practice of law in Nebraska and Washington D.C., as well as to spend more time with his family, the statement added. He is 74.
He previously served as Nebraska governor, before representing the state in the US Senate for 12 years. He also served as insurance commissioner for Nebraska, and was an insurance executive before that.
At around the same time he assumed the CEO post, he also took a position as a senior adviser for
Agenda, a public affairs firm with offices in Washington, DC, and around the US.
There is a “cooling-off” period that prohibits senators from lobbying their former colleagues for two years after leaving the senate, but that ban expired for Nelson this year. He hasn’t said publicly whether his law practice will be with Agenda, or with another firm, but he seems poised for a lobbying practice.
In the statement, Nelson noted that he first started working on state insurance regulation almost 50 years ago.
“I have truly appreciated the opportunity to return to the NAIC following my retirement from the U.S. Senate,” he said.
