Offering JBEA Credit for Your Study/Work Group

The process is not that hard. If you are already meeting (digitally or in person) with your associates and discussing actuarial types of issues, you may wish to apply to be a “Qualifying Sponsor.” In October 2020, the JBEA placed the instructions on how to attain this designation on its website. There are a few traps to be aware of, and I know this because I stumbled over them myself.

I would suggest that the first step is to read the JBEA regs issued on March 31, 2011. (See Karen Smith’s lovely article on these regs in ASAP 11-16.) I will not rehash the details here, but I will try to focus on the aspect of becoming a Qualifying Sponsor. 

By following the instructions set forth on the JBEA website, you can achieve that status for your organization. Note that the 3-year period measurement period for a “Qualifying Sponsor” is different than our individual measurement periods. For example, our personal EA requirements started the 3-year cycle began on April 1, 2020. The cycle for Qualifying Sponsors, instead, began on Jan. 1, 2021, so this is an ideal time to begin.

You will have some responsibilities:

1. Provide a Certificate of Completion to all attendees, indicating the type of credit being given (Core? Ethics?). This Certificate must also specify whether the program was “Formal” (these rules were recently relaxed, due to the pandemic), the date, instructor, location, etc. Rather than repeating all of these specifications here, the JBEA publication referred to above provides the exact regulation reference that contains these details. The certificate must be signed by the Sponsor. Some of the mistakes I made (I am renewing for my group) included not signing the Certificate, and not keeping copies of all Certificates issued. The regs require that the Sponsor be a really good record keeper. 
2. Have a written outline for the program—and keep it! My mistake was not retaining the attachments to those outlines.
3. You need strong procedures—you must keep a written record of who attends each session. If someone “intends to attend” but actually does not, then your record must be accurate and reflect this.
4. Make a judgment about core vs non-core. I do this by labelling everything as non-core, as we are happy enough to get any credits at all, and it’s just not worth the hassle of guessing on grey areas. 
5. Be careful! My understanding is that 100% of JBEA Qualifying Sponsors were audited for the prior cycle. I was impressed that, while the audit process itself was painstakingly detailed, the JBEA took somewhat of a gentle approach by not clobbering you over the head if you made a mistake. Their audit basically provided coaching instructions/advice so you won’t make the same mistake again. Upon renewal, one has to promise to follow all the rules. 

Obtaining JBEA approval for your group may well make sense if you are discussing relevant EA-type material. It’s not that hard to do, and it may be a valuable source of continuing education credit for your attendees. 

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