N.M. Stat. Ann. § 59A-8-5
A. This subsection shall apply to only those policies and contracts issued prior to the operative date of Section 59A-20-31 NMSA 1978.
The legal minimum standard for valuation of life insurance contracts issued before the first day of January, 1926, shall be the method and basis of valuation heretofore applied by the insurer in the valuation of such contracts, and for life insurance contracts issued on or after this date shall be the American experience table of mortality, with interest at the rate of three and one-half percent a year; or any other basis not producing a lower net value; provided, however, that the insurer may provide for not more than one-year preliminary term insurance by incorporating in the contracts a clause plainly showing that the first year's insurance under such policies is term insurance.
Except as otherwise provided in Paragraphs (2), (3), (4) and (5) of Subsection B of this section and in Subsections C, D, and E of this section for group annuity and pure endowment contracts, the legal minimum standard for the valuation of annuities shall be the American experience table of mortality, with interest at the rate of five percent a year for group annuity and pure endowment contracts and four percent a year for other annuities.
B. Subsections B, C, D and E of this section shall apply to only those policies and contracts issued on and after the operative date of Section 59A-20-31 NMSA 1978, except as otherwise provided in Paragraphs (2), (3), (4) and (5) of this subsection and in Subsections C, D and E of this section for group annuity and pure endowment contracts issued prior to such operative date.
(1) Except as otherwise provided in Paragraphs (2), (3), (4) and (5) of this subsection and Subsections C, D, and E of this section, the minimum standard for the valuation of all such policies and contracts shall be the commissioners reserve valuation methods defined in Paragraphs (1) and (2) of Subsection E of this section, five percent interest for group annuity and pure endowment contracts and three and one-half percent interest for all other such policies and contracts, or in the case of life insurance policies and contracts, other than annuity and pure endowment contracts, issued on or after July 1, 1973, four percent interest for such policies issued prior to July 1, 1977, five and one-half percent interest for single premium life insurance policies and four and one-half percent interest for all other such policies issued on or after July 1, 1977, and the following tables:
(2) Except as provided in Paragraphs (3), (4) and (5) of this subsection and in Subsections C, D and E of this section, the minimum standard for the valuation of all individual annuity and pure endowment contracts issued on or after the operative date of this paragraph, as defined herein, and for all annuities and pure endowments purchased on or after such operative date under group annuity and pure endowment contracts, shall be the commissioners reserve valuation methods defined in Paragraphs (1) and (2) of Subsection E of this section and the following tables and interest rates:
(3) The interest rates used in determining the minimum standard for the valuation of:
(4) The calendar year statutory valuation interest rates shall be determined as follows and the results rounded to the nearest one-quarter of one percent:
where R1 is the lesser of R and .09, R2 is the greater of R and .09, R is the reference interest rate defined in Subsection D of this section, and W is the weighting factor defined in Subsection C of this section;
C. The weighting factors referred to in the formulas stated above are given in the following tables:
(1) Weighting Factors for Life Insurance:
Guarantee Duration Weighting (Years) Factors 10 or less .50 More than 10, but not more than 20 .45 More than 20 .35
Guarantee
Duration
Weighting
(Years)
Factors
10 or less
.50
More than 10, but not more than 20
.45
More than 20
.35
For life insurance, the guarantee duration is the maximum number of years the life insurance can remain in force on a basis guaranteed in the policy or under options to convert to plans of life insurance with premium rates or nonforfeiture values or both which are guaranteed in the original policy;
(2) Weighting factor for single premium immediate annuities and for annuity benefits involving life contingencies arising from other annuities with cash settlement options and guaranteed interest contracts with cash settlement options:
.80
(3) Weighting factors for other annuities and for guaranteed interest contracts, except as stated in Paragraph (2) of this subsection, shall be as specified in the tables set forth in Subparagraphs (a), (b) and (c) of this paragraph, according to the rules and definitions set forth in Subparagraphs (d), (e) and (f) of this paragraph:
(a) For annuities and guaranteed interest contracts valued on an issue year basis:
Guarantee Weighting Factor Duration for Plan Type (Years) A B C 5 or less: .80 .60 .50 More than 5, but not more than 10: .75 .60 .50 More than 10, but not more than 20: .65 .50 .45 More than 20: .45 .35 .35
Guarantee
Weighting Factor
Duration
for Plan Type
(Years)
A
B
C
5 or less:
.80
.60
.50
More than 5, but not more than 10:
.75
.60
.50
More than 10, but not more than 20:
.65
.50
.45
More than 20:
.45
.35
.35
(b) For annuities and guaranteed interest contracts valued on a change in fund basis, the factors shown in the table set forth in Subparagraph (a) of this paragraph increased by:
Plan Type A B C .15 .25 .05
Plan Type
A
B
C
.15
.25
.05
(c) For annuities and guaranteed interest contracts valued on an issue year basis (other than those with no cash settlement options) which do not guarantee interest on considerations received more than one year after issue or purchase and for annuities and guaranteed interest contracts valued on a change in fund basis which do not guarantee interest rates on considerations received more than twelve months beyond the valuation date, the factors shown in the table set forth in Subparagraph (a) of this paragraph or derived as required in the table set forth in Subparagraph (b) of this paragraph increased by:
Plan Type A B C .05 .05 .05
Plan Type
A
B
C
.05
.05
.05
D. The reference interest rate referred to in Paragraph (4) of Subsection B of this section shall be defined as follows:
E. The reserve valuation method shall be defined as follows:
(1) Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph and Paragraph (2) of this subsection, reserves according to the national association of insurance commissioners reserve valuation method, for the life insurance and endowment benefits of policies providing for a uniform amount of insurance and requiring the payment of uniform premiums, shall be the excess, if any, of the present value, at the date of valuation, of such future guaranteed benefits provided for by such policies, over the then present value of any future modified net premiums therefor. The modified net premiums for any such policy shall be such uniform percentage of the respective contract premiums for such benefits that the present value, at the date of issue of the policy, of all such modified net premiums shall be equal to the sum of the then present value of such benefits provided for by the policy and the excess of Subparagraph (a) over Subparagraph (b) of this paragraph, as follows:
(b) a net one-year term premium for such benefits provided for in the first policy year.
Provided that for any life insurance policy issued on or after January 1, 1985 for which the contract premium in the first policy year exceeds that of the second year and for which no comparable additional benefit is provided in the first year for such excess and which provides an endowment benefit or a cash surrender value or a combination thereof in an amount greater than such excess premium, the reserve according to the commissioners reserve valuation method as of any policy anniversary occurring on or before the assumed ending date defined herein as the first policy anniversary on which the sum of any endowment benefit and any cash surrender value then available is greater than such excess premium shall, except as otherwise provided in Subparagraph (e) of this paragraph, be the greater of the reserve as of such policy anniversary calculated as described previously in this paragraph and the reserve as of such policy anniversary calculated as previously described in this paragraph, but with: the value defined in Subparagraph (a) of this paragraph being reduced by fifteen percent of the amount of such excess first year premium; all present values of benefits and premiums being determined without reference to premiums or benefits provided for by the policy after the assumed ending date; the policy being assumed to mature on such date as an endowment; and the cash surrender value provided on such date being considered as an endowment benefit. In making the above comparison the mortality and interest bases stated in Paragraphs (1), (3), (4) and (5) of Subsection B of this section and in Subsections C and D of this section shall be used.
Reserves according to the commissioners reserve valuation method for: 1) life insurance policies providing for a varying amount of insurance or requiring the payment of varying premiums; 2) group annuity and pure endowment contracts purchased under a retirement plan or plan of deferred compensation, established or maintained by an employer (including a partnership or sole proprietorship) or by an employee organization, or by both, other than a plan providing individual retirement accounts or individual retirement annuities under Section 408 of the Internal Revenue Code, as now or hereafter amended; 3) disability and accidental death benefits in all policies and contracts; and 4) all other benefits, except life insurance and endowment benefits in life insurance policies and benefits provided by all other annuity and pure endowment contracts, shall be calculated by a method consistent with the principles of this paragraph, except that any extra premiums charged because of impairments or special hazards shall be disregarded in the determination of modified net premiums;
(d) reserves for any category of policies, contracts or benefits as established by the superintendent, may be calculated, at the option of the insurer, according to any standards which produce greater aggregate reserves for such category than those calculated according to the minimum standard herein provided, but the rate or rates of interest used for policies and contracts, other than annuity and pure endowment contracts, shall not be higher than the corresponding rate or rates of interest used in calculating any nonforfeiture benefits provided for therein.
Any such insurer which at any time shall have adopted any standard of valuation producing greater aggregate reserves than those calculated according to the minimum standard herein provided may, with the approval of the superintendent, adopt any lower standard of valuation, but not lower than the minimum herein provided; but, for the purpose of this section, the holding of additional reserves previously determined by a qualified actuary to be necessary to render the opinion required by Section 59A-8-7 NMSA 1978 shall not be deemed to be the adoption of a higher standard of valuation;
(e) if in any contract year the gross premium charged by any insurer on any policy or contract is less than the valuation net premium for the policy or contract calculated by the method used in calculating the reserve thereon but using the minimum valuation standards of mortality and rate of interest, the minimum reserve required for such policy or contract shall be the greater of either the reserve calculated according to the mortality table, rate of interest, and method actually used for such policy or contract, or the reserve calculated by the method actually used for such policy or contract but using the minimum standards of mortality and rate of interest and replacing the valuation net premium by the actual gross premium in each contract year for which the valuation net premium exceeds the actual gross premium. The minimum valuation standards of mortality and rate of interest referred to in this paragraph are those standards stated in Paragraphs (1), (3), (4) and (5) of Subsection B of this section.
Provided that for any life insurance policy issued on or after January 1, 1985 for which the gross premium in the first policy year exceeds that of the second year and for which no comparable additional benefit is provided in the first year for such excess and which provides an endowment benefit or a cash surrender value or a combination thereof in an amount greater than such excess premium, the foregoing provisions of Subparagraph (e) of this paragraph shall be applied as if the method actually used in calculating the reserve for such policy were the method previously described in this paragraph ignoring the unnumbered paragraph immediately following Subparagraph (b) of this paragraph. The minimum reserve at each policy anniversary of such a policy shall be the greater of the minimum reserve calculated in accordance with the method previously described in this paragraph, including the unnumbered paragraph immediately following Subparagraph (b), and the minimum reserve calculated in accordance with Subparagraph (e), of this paragraph; and
(2) This paragraph shall apply to all annuity and pure endowment contracts other than group annuity and pure endowment contracts purchased under a retirement plan or plan of deferred compensation, established or maintained by an employer (including a partnership or sole proprietorship) or by an employee organization, or by both, other than a plan providing individual retirement accounts or individual retirement annuities under Section 408 of the Internal Revenue Code, as now or hereafter amended.
Reserves according to the commissioners annuity reserve method for benefits under annuity or pure endowment contracts, excluding any disability and accidental death benefits in such contracts, shall be the greatest of the respective excesses of the present values, at the date of valuation, of the future guaranteed benefits, including guaranteed nonforfeiture benefits, provided for by such contracts at the end of each respective contract year, over the present value, at the date of valuation, of any future valuation considerations derived from future gross considerations, required by the terms of such contract, that become payable prior to the end of such respective contract year. The future guaranteed benefits shall be determined by using the mortality table, if any, and the interest rate or rates, specified in such contracts for determining guaranteed benefits. The valuation considerations are the portions of the respective gross considerations applied under the terms of such contracts to determine nonforfeiture values.
History: Laws 1984, ch. 127, § 122; 1993, ch. 320, § 20.
Cross references. — For operative date of Section 396 of the Insurance Code, the Standard Nonforfeiture Law, see 59A-20-31K NMSA 1978.
For Section 408 of the Internal Revenue Code, referred to in Subsections E(1)(b) and E(2), see 26 U.S.C. § 407.
Recompilations. — Laws 2014, ch. 59, § 20 recompiles former 59A-8-5 NMSA 1978 as 59A-8A-6 NMSA 1978. For effective date, see contingent effective date note below.
Contingent effective date. — Laws 2014, ch. 59, § 55 provided:
A. The effective date of the provisions of Sections 15 through 27 of this act is the January 1 of the first calendar year following the first July 1 after which the superintendent of insurance certifies to the New Mexico compilation commission and the director of the legislative council service that:
(1) the most recent version of the manual of valuation instructions adopted by the national association of insurance commissioners has been adopted by the national association of insurance commissioners by an affirmative vote of at least forty-two members or three-fourths of the members voting, whichever is greater;
(2) the Standard Valuation Law of the national association of insurance commissioners, as amended in 2009, or legislation including substantially similar terms and provisions, has been enacted by states that collectively represent more than seventy-five percent of written direct premiums, as reported in the life, accident and health annual statements, the health annual statements and the fraternal annual statements submitted for 2008; and
(3) the Standard Valuation Law of the national association of insurance commissioners, as amended in 2009, or legislation including substantially similar terms and provisions, has been enacted by at least forty-two of the following fifty-five jurisdictions:
(a) the fifty states of the United States;
(b) American Samoa;
(c) the Virgin Islands of the United States;
(d) the District of Columbia;
(e) Guam; and
(f) Puerto Rico.
B. If the requirements of Subsection A of this section have not been met by January 1, 2020, then Sections 15 through 27 of this act shall not take effect.
C. The effective date of the provisions of Sections 1 through 14 and 28 through 54 of this act is July 1, 2014.
The 1993 amendment, effective June 18, 1993, substituted "Section 59A-20-31 NMSA 1978" for "Section 396 (standard nonforfeiture law) of the Insurance Code" in Subsection A; in Subsection B, in the first sentence, substituted "Section 59A-20-31 NMSA 1978" for "Section 396 (standard nonforfeiture law) of the Insurance Code", in Paragraph (1), substituted "the commissioners" for "the national association of insurance commissioners" and inserted "life insurance" following "or in the case of", rewrote Paragraph (1)(a), substituted "Section 59A-20-31 NMSA 1978" for "Section 396 of the Insurance Code" in Paragraph (1)(b), substituted "the commissioners" for "the national association of insurance commissioners" in the first sentence of Paragraph (2), designated the formerly undesignated last paragraph of Paragraph (2) as Paragraph (2)(f), substituted "Section 59A-20-31 NMSA 1978" for "Section 396 of the Insurance Code" in Paragraph (3)(a) and in Paragraph (5); rewrote the introductory language in Paragraph (3) in Subsection C; substituted "the monthly average of the composite yield on seasoned corporate bonds" for "Moody's corporate bond yield average - monthly average corporates" throughout Subsection D; redesignated former Subsection E as Subsection D(7); inserted the introductory language in Subsection E; substituted "the commissioners" for "the national association of insurance commissioners" in the first sentence of the fourth and fifth paragraphs in Subsection E(1)(b), added the language beginning "but, for the purpose of this section" at the end in Subsection E(1)(d); and made stylistic changes throughout the section.