1/28/99
The Maine Christian Civic League may well feel it is under
siege. The word comes via Old French from the Latin sedere, to
sit, meaning a prolonged battle or period of annoyance and
oppression.
Although its an old tactic it is still used with varying degrees
of success to this day, that is, surrounding one's enemy and
remaining there (sits) until the enemy resistance breaks down at
least partly because the defenders are cut off from help and
supplies.
Innocents in this siege, especially the League's staff, have been
subjected to stress levels that are on par with war.
The League's problems began with what the Maine Bureau of
Insurance called a "marketing scheme of insuring someone's
life without an insurable interest." And it has proceeded to
this day with civil suits, court directives, threats, intrusions
of private property by wired media operatives and impoundment of
the League's computer hard drives containing private information
of private donors to the League.
The genesis of the siege dates back to September 24, 1997, when
the League's finance committee met in Bangor to hear Lisa Lumbra
speak about a plan to raise several million dollars for the
League. At that meeting, Lumbra's husband, Scott Carter who was
not a League member, also was in attendance.
On Nov. 14, 1997, Scott Carter gave a presentation of Capital
Partners Funding Group's (CPFG) "L.I.F.E Heritage
Program" designed for organizations with an IRS 501 (c)3 tax
status. The League has a 501 (c) 4 status but its affiliated
Christian Education League has a 501 (c)3.
Capital Partners Funding Group, Inc. is a Delaware corporation
("Consultant") with offices at 4659 Garden Brook Drive,
Chico, CA 95973.
The program worked this way: The League would set up a trust, the
Trust purchases and owns life insurance policies issued on lives
of people. There is no premium paid by the individual insured
persons. When the insured dies, the policy benefit goes to the
trust as the beneficiary owner of the policy and the premium
payer.
There would be start-up, up-front money required of the League.
CPFG would require, according to the contract, $100,000 on the
signing of the agreement and $1.3 million during the
implementation phase based on a percentage of total insurance
policy face amounts.
Louis Aubuchon, CPFG independent agent, and Scott Carter, Lisa
Lumbra's husband and CPFG's subagent, were to be agents of record
for the program. No specific agent fees or commissions were
disclosed.
League Director Michael Heath was concerned that the League did
not have that much up-front seed money. CPFG suggested that seed
money could be obtained from the League's own cash reserves,
investment funds, a local bank, major donors or large financial
institutions.
Heath was reluctant to submit the League to such an undertaking.
He also had other questions. Was the program legal? What was the
license status of CFPG? He asked the Maine Bureau of Insurance
which has jurisdiction over the institutional beneficiary
statute.
The BOI answered on 4/7/98. It stated in part that CFPG was not
licensed to sell insurance in the State of Maine but Scott Carter
was. But the BOI was concerned about what it called "the
legal basis for the marketing scheme of insuring someone's life
without an insurable interest." The BOI letter to Heath,
which was signed by Paul Greenier of the Market Conduct Division,
went on to say, " Suffice to say the Bureau of Insurance in
its normal mode of operation is reviewing group sales to
benevolent/religious organizations, as permitted under 24-A 2405,
institutional beneficiary statute, as requested by Capital
Partners Funding Group and their agent for any future marketing
efforts in Maine."
Heath had also signed a confidentiality agreement, co-signed by
Scott Carter as a representative of CPFG, concerning the details
of the life insurance program. According to the BOI letter about
this agreement, it stated, "As for the executed
confidentiality agreement, the Bureau of Insurance is concerned
about the need for such an agreement, whether the sales concept
is so proprietary as to require secrecy or rather an attempt to
hide something from regulatory oversight. In either case I
believe that Scott Carter is aware of our regulatory authority to
fully review his activities as well as all insurer product
offerings and any marketing organizations promoting insurance
products."
Heath and his board of directors turned down the insurance
program. Lumbra, and Rep. Henry Joy were removed from the
League's finance committee (the standing finance committee was
dissolved) by vote of the League in October, 1998, but they
continued their lawsuit. On Dec. 29,1998,. Justice Donald Marden
of Kennebec County Superior Court ordered the League to open its
books to members for a period of 90 days.
Armed with the court order, Lumbra and others invaded the League
Augusta's headquarters while Heath was away and copied
information on the hard drives of the League's computers. This
information contained confidential and specific information on
individual donations, according to Heath, and which he sees as
outside the court order.
Then on January 19, dissidents Lumbra and others entered the
League headquarters demanding Heath's personal laptop computer.
He refused to give it up as it contained personal family
information.
Throughout the agonizing siege Heath and the League have been as
much passive as have Lumbra and others been aggressive. Scott
Carter has sent somewhat identical form letters threatening
lawsuits to anyone who challenges their methods and revealing the
CPFG insurance program to the general public. Those threats
include this columnist.
There is much speculation about what is dividing the League by a
rather small group of dissidents. The majority of League members
want no part of the wrangling and discourse that has been the
League's misfortune over the past two years.
If there has been misappropriation of funds as Lumbra and others
clearly state in their accusations against Heath, they should
have found that out by now. Twice, the attorney general's office
has refused to investigate. Its latest reply of 1/15/99 says
"it has evaluated a complaint by members and past members of
the [CCL] board who have expressed concerns about the handling of
financial matters associated with the league, and after review of
that information, however, we determined that there was not a
basis to instigate an investigation."
Lumbra et al have had a friendly press, especially Christine
Young of Channel 8 in Portland who has been notified and
accompanied Young on her forays at the League headquarters. Also,
A.J. Higgins, Bangor Daily News State House reporter who did not
speak to Heath but nevertheless wrote that Heath had collected
funds turned over as offerings to the League but there was no
record of them. Heath responded with a letter to the BDN that he
not only turned over all offerings but also some $3,000 to the
League in honorarium checks to him personally.
One scenario suggests that Lumbra and others just do not like
Mike Heath. A personal vendetta. Another plausible scenario
speculation advanced by other sources is that Lumbra intends to
start her own "league" with the dissidents as the
nucleus and thereby would be in a position to further the CPFG
insurance program. On the face of it, however, it seems
preposterous that any Christian organization would allow Lumbra
and/or her husband Scott Carter to sell life insurance to any
organization's patrons of which they were officers and
beneficiaries and then get a commission for doing so.
Heath wants healing. The League deserves healing. The time for
the siege has run its course. Its over.
Reprinted: Ellsworth American/State of Maine Column/Mike Brown/Issue 1/28/99 |