INSIDE COMPLIANCE – Page 56 – Loyola University Chicago School of Law

Coal Ash Regulation

October 10, 2017Uncategorized

Power plants generate a residue after burning coal called coal ash, more formally known as coal combustion residuals (CCRs). In October 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established national guidelines to address the environmental dangers and health risks of coal ash. In May, nearly two years after the rule regulating the disposal of CCRs from electric utilities came into effect, industry officials petitioned the EPA to reconsider the rule, claiming adverse effects.

complianceCoal Combustion ResidualsCoal AshEPAEnvironmental Protection AgencyEnergyCCR

Captive Insurance Compliance after Avrahami

October 10, 2017Finance & Banking

Captive insurance companies, insurance companies owned by persons related to the insureds, have long served as an important risk management tool for businesses as varied as Sears and The New York Times. In recent years, there has been an explosion of “micro-captive” insurance companies, companies with premiums that do not exceed $1.2 million in a year. Until 2017, $1.2 million was the allowable maximum amount of premiums for an insurance company to elect favorable tax treatment under I.R.C. § 831(b), allowing the small insurance company to be taxed only on its investment income. The IRS believes that these “831(b)” micro-captives are often used as tax-shelters rather than for legitimate business purposes.

captive insuranceinternational taxInsurancetaxtax shelterRegulation

Is Nuclear Energy Here to Stay?

September 26, 2017Uncategorized

Nuclear power last made front-page news approximately six years ago. Unfortunately for nuclear power, headlines on the subject more often than not represent times of trouble. In regaining the spotlight in the wake of the recent announcement to discontinue construction of the new AP 1000 reactors, clean energy advocates and companies with predominantly clean energy portfolios are making headlines again. The issue, this time, is money.

Energy ComplianceEnergyGovernment Oversight

Cybersecurity – Overview of Financial Services Initiatives

January 13, 2018Finance & Banking

The disclosures of major security breaches in 2017 such as Verizon, Equifax, Uber, the National Security Agency and the Transportation Safety Administration increased consumer concern about the safety of their personal and financial data. These disclosures also contributed to renewed Congressional analysis of data security standards in the financial services sector and review of current federal and state regulatory regimes. Insider cyber threats have become security remains a threat as well. In August 2017, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced insider trading charges against seven individuals who gained access to confidential merger and acquisition data through a technology consultant’s misuse of an investment bank’s new computer system. State actions, governmental agencies and the financial services industry are actively combatting the growth of cyber-security threats.

cyber-securitycompliancePrivacy & SecuritySECSIFMA

Newly Added Regional Medicare Fraud Strike Force Targets Opioid Crisis

September 14, 2018Fraud & Abuse

One month after the largest health care fraud enforcement action was taken, the Assistant Attorney General, Brian A. Benczkowski, of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, announced the addition of the Newark/Philadelphia Regional Medicare Strike Force. The newly added 11th Medicare Strike Force will largely focus on healthcare fraud that is contributing to the opioid epidemic.

medicareOpioidhealthcare

Enforcing Foreign Compliance with U.S. Regulations

April 18, 2018Uncategorized

Compliance standards in the United States come from the laws and policies enacted by the government and its related agencies. Administering U.S. standards on foreign institutions, public or private, poses a unique challenge. Our public and private companies are held accountable by federal, state, local, or agency rules, as well as the guidelines providedby the United States Sentencing Commission. But foreign organizations, in theory, have no real obligation to follow our lead. There have been several notable attempts in recent years to enact legislation on foreign organizations and impose sanctions for noncompliance, and it is likely a continuing trend as the compliance industry grows.

International AffairsOFACoffshore accountsforeign relationsGDPRFATCAprivacySanctions

Court’s Denial of Motion to Dismiss Advances Blocks of Offshore Drilling

April 17, 2018Uncategorized

Congress has granted the President the authority to withdraw the Secretary of the Interior’s grants of mineral rights on public lands. However, President Trump has used that same grant of power to remove withdraws of some of the protections President Obama placed. On May 3, 2017, a group of environmental non-profits filed a lawsuit against the Trump Administration in the Federal District Court of Alaska, alleging that his actions were an unauthorized use his Presidential power. On March 20, 2018, the Court denied the Defendant’s motion to dismiss.

environmental regulationenvironmentalOCSLAPresident trump

Popularity Contest: The Importance of Reputation in Modern Compliance

April 12, 2018The Art of Compliance

Modern business thinking has come to accept that reputation is as important as financials. As investors look for companies that demonstrate this understanding, compliance professionals are in a unique position to make their companies more appealing.

EthicsenforcementJournal of Regulatory ComplianceModern Compliance ProgramsSocially ConsciousReputationRegulation

Artificial Intelligence and Compliance

April 12, 2018The Art of Compliance

With the rise of the machine at our doorsteps, companies (those with foresight, anyhow) will be finding more innovative ways to gain the edge while using those machines. One of the ways companies will seek this edge is through the use of Artificial Intelligence (“AI”). AI is one of the hottest, and arguably controversial, topics confronting mainstream business today. Many are skeptical of it, but also hopeful, despite the controversy surrounding the field. While both sides of the controversy have their reasons, some on each side are generally clueless as to how AI is manifesting itself today, and how it will in the future. How will it be applied? What is it useful for? What follows is a primer on current applications of AI and how they may be applied to the compliance world.

AIartificial intelligencemachine learningthe art of compliance

Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes: “Who Watches the Watchmen” Oversight of Compliance Departments and Professionals

April 11, 2018The Art of Compliance

In the graphic novel and film “The Watchmen,” there is a reoccurring phrase: “Who watches the watchmen?” In context, it’s an indictment of the comic book world’s broken justice system. However, in a compliance context, the concept can be just as important. In a recent discussion with a hospital system’s compliance officer, he raised the point that a company’s compliance department is seen as the ultimate authority and expertise in laws and regulations, monitoring compliance and noncompliance, and implementing corrective and disciplinary actions. Yet while many compliance professionals may assume that their actions are always compliant, who oversees those who are overseeing systems and organizations? Who ensures that compliance is compliant?

compliance oversightcompliance effectivenessEthicsboard of directors oversightOIGoversightNAVEXFederal Sentencing Guidelines