§ 97-165. Definitions. - North Carolina Statutes

Article 5.

Individual Employers.

§ 97‑165.  Definitions.

As used in this Article:

(1)        "Act"means the Workers' Compensation Act established in Article 1 of this Chapter.

(1a)      "Affiliateof" or "person affiliated with" a specific person means a personthat indirectly through one or more intermediaries or directly controls, iscontrolled by, or is under common control with the person specified.

(1b)      "AssociationAggregate Security System" means the security system established pursuantto G.S. 97‑133 whereby individual self‑insurers collectively securetheir aggregate self‑insured workers' compensation liabilities under theAct through the North Carolina Self‑Insurance Security Association.

(2)        "Certifiedaudit" means an audit on which a certified public accountant or a foreignregistered public accounting firm expresses his or her professional opinionthat the accompanying statements fairly present the financial position of theself‑insurer or the guarantor, in conformity with accounting principlesgenerally accepted in the United States or prepared in accordance withInternational Financial Reporting Standards.

(3)        "Certifiedpublic accountant" or "CPA" means a CPA who is in good standingwith the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and in all statesin which the CPA is licensed to practice. A CPA shall be recognized asindependent as long as the CPA conforms to the standards of the profession, ascontained in the Code of Professional Ethics of the American Institute ofCertified Public Accountants and Rules and Regulations and Code of Ethics andRules of Professional Conduct of the North Carolina State Board of CertifiedPublic Accountant Examiners, or similar code. The Commissioner may hold ahearing to determine whether a CPA is independent and, considering the evidencepresented, may rule that the CPA is not independent for purposes of expressingan opinion on financial statements prepared in accordance with United StatesGenerally Accepted Accounting Principles or International Financial ReportingStandards. The Commission may require the self‑insurer or the guarantorto replace the CPA with another whose relationship with the self‑insureror the guarantor is independent within the meaning of this definition.

(4)        "Commissioner"means the Commissioner of Insurance.

(4a)      "Control","controlling", "controlled by", and "under commoncontrol with" mean the direct or indirect possession of the power todirect or cause the direction of the management and policies of a personthrough ownership of or through proxies for voting of greater than fiftypercent (50%) of the voting securities, or in the case of a not‑for‑profitentity, the power to direct or cause the direction of the management andpolicies of the entity.

(5)        "Corporatesurety" means an insurance company authorized by the Commissioner to writesurety business in this State.

(5a)      "Financialstatement" means a financial statement as defined by accounting principlesgenerally accepted in the United States or a financial statement prepared inaccordance with International Financial Reporting Standards.

(6)        "Foreignregistered public accounting firm" means a public accounting firm that isorganized and operates under the laws of a non‑United Statesjurisdiction, government, or political subdivision and is registered and ingood standing with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board and authorizedby the Board to prepare or issue any audit report with respect to any issuer.

(6a)      "Guarantor"means a person within the same holding company system who controls theapplicant, whose financial statement is used by the applicant to become a self‑insurerunder the Act, and who has guaranteed the payment of the self‑insurer'sliability under the Act.

(7)        "Hazardousfinancial condition" means that, based on its present or reasonablyanticipated financial condition, a self‑insurer or guarantor is insolventor, although not yet financially impaired or insolvent, is unlikely to be ableto meet its obligations with respect to known claims and reasonably anticipatedclaims or to pay other obligations in the normal course of business.

(7a)      "Holding companysystem" means an entity comprising two or more affiliated persons.

(8)        "Management"means those persons who are authorized to direct or control the operations of aself‑insurer.

(8a)      "Person"means an individual, corporation, partnership, limited liability company,association, joint stock company, trust, unincorporated organization, or anysimilar entity or any combination of the foregoing acting in concert.

(9)        "Qualifiedactuary" means a member in good standing of the Casualty Actuarial Societyor a member in good standing of the American Academy of Actuaries, who has beenapproved as qualified for signing casualty loss reserve opinions by theCasualty Practice Council of the American Academy of Actuaries, and is incompliance with G.S. 58‑2‑171.

(10)      "Self‑insurer"means an individual self‑insurer as defined by G.S. 97‑130(5b).

(11)      "Subsidiaryof" a specific person means an affiliate controlled by such person indirectlythrough one or more intermediaries or an affiliate directly controlled by suchperson.  (1997‑362,s. 4; 1999‑132, s. 13.5; 2004‑199, s. 20(h); 2005‑400, s. 9;2009‑172, s. 5.)