Chap. 688.—An ACT to define and regulate fraternal beneficiary associations,
orders or sucieties.

Approved March 8, 1898.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That a fra-
ternal beneficiary association, order, or society is hereby declared to be
a corporation, society, or voluntary association, which has no capital
stock, but is formed or organized and carried on for the benefit of its
members and their beneficiaries. Each such order or association shall
have a representative form of government and a lodge system, with
ritualistic form of work for the meeting of its lodges, chapters, councils,
or other designated subordinate bodies, and the benefits, insurance,
charity, or relief shall be payable by a grand or supreme body of the
same, excepting sick benefits, which may also be paid by local or subor-
dinate bodies. Such grand or supreme bodies may be composed of its
officers, incorporators, representatives elected by local, district, or grand
bodies, past oflicers, and standing committees. Such orders or associa-
tions may make a constitution, by-laws, rules, and regulations consistent
with the existing laws of the state, for the government of all under its
authority, for the management of its properties, and the due and order-
ly conduct of its affairs. Such orders or associations may make pro-
vision for the payment of benefits in case of death, sickness, temporary
or permanent physical disability, either as the result of disease, acci-
dent, or old age: provided, the period of life at which payment for old
ase commences shall not be under seventy years. Any such order
or association may also accumulate, maintain, apply, or disburse among
its membership a reserve, emergency, or other funds, as may be pro-
vided in its constitution or by-laws, or both.

The funds from which the payment of benefits shall be made, and
the funds from which the expenses shall be defrayed, shall be derived
from assessments, dues, or other payments collected from its members,
as may be provided by the constitution or by-laws of such order or asso-
elation. Payment of death benefits shall be to families, heirs, blood
relatives, afianced hushand, or affianced wife of, or to persons depend-
ent upon the member, as may be designated by the member.

Such orders or associations shall be governed by this act, and shall be
exempt from the provisions of the insurance laws of this state, and no
Jaw hereafter passed shall apply to fraternal beneficiary orders or asso-
clations, unless it be expressly designated therein: provided, that nothing
contained in this section shall prevent such taxation of the property of any
association, order, or society, doing business under the provisions of this
act, as may be hereafter imposed according to law.

2. Any fraternal beneficiary order, association or society of this, or
any other state, district, province, or territory, now having members, or
any lodge, chapter, council, or subordinate branch duly established and
organized in this state, may continue its operations and business in this
state: provided, that it hereafter complies with the provisions of this
act regulating annual reports, and the designation of the auditor of pub-
lic accounts as the person upon whom process may be served, as herein-
after provided.

3. Any fraternal beneficiary order, association, or society coming with-
in the description as set forth in section one of this act, organized under
the laws of any other state, province, district, or territory, not now
having lodges, councils, or other bodies, or members in this state shall
he permitted to do business within this state, when it shall have
filed with the auditor of public accounts a certificate from the offi-
cial in charge of insurance matters in its home state of incorpo-
ration that it is authorized to transact business therein as a fraternal
beneficiary order or association, alsoa duly certified copy of its charter
and articles of association, and a copy of its constitution or laws, cer-
tified to by its secretary or corresponding oflicer, together with an ap-
pointment of the auditor of public accounts, as the person upon whom
legal process may be served, as hereinafter provided.

4. Every such corporation, society, order, or association doing busi-
ness In this state, shall, on or before the first day of March of each vear,
make and file with the auditor of public accounts, a report of its atfairs
and operations during the year ending the thirty-first day of December
immediately preceding, which annual report shall be in lieu of all other
reports required by any other law. Such reports shall be made under
oath by the duly authorized oflicers of any such order, and shall be
published, or the substance thereof, in the annual report of the auditor
of publio accounts, and shall contain answers to the following questions:

1. Income during the year.

1. Amount received for assessments and other payments, 8
2. Rents, interests, and dividends on stocks and bonds, 3
3. Amount received from dues and fees, $
4. All other sources, namely, 3

Total amount received during the year, $

2. Expenditures during year.

1. Benefits, losses, and claims paid, No. $
2. Salaries and other compensation of officers,

$ ; and for clerical force, $ $
3. Paid for rents, $
4. Paid for office expenses, lodge supplies, organiza-

tion of lodges or branches, of building up the

same, printing, advertising, and all other ex-

penditures, S

Total amount of expenditures during year, $
1. Bonds and stocks, $
2. Loans on mortgage evidenced by notes and other- $

wise, $
3. Loans on other collateral and security, 8
4. Real estate, $
5. Cash in banks and in office, 8
6. Securities deposited in different states, if any, 38
7. All other assets, namely, 8

Total assets, $

4. Liabilities.

1. Losses and claims due and unpaid, No. $
2. Losses and claims reported, but not due, No. 8
3. Salaries due and unpaid, $
4. Due for borrowed money, g
5. All other habilities, namely, g

Total liabilities, $

5. Exhibit of membership.

1. Certificates and amount in force at the end of the

year preceding, for which this report is made, No. $
2. Give number of certificates and amount of same

issued during year, No. g
3. Total during year, No. 3
4. Deduct number and amount of certificates retiring

by withdrawal or suspension during the year, No. $
5. Deduct number who have died during the year,

and face amount of certificates. (Number of

members died », No. $

6. Total certificates in good standing December 31,
189 , No. $

®. Each such corporation, society or association now doing, o
after admitted to do business within this state, and not having it
cipal oflice within this state, and not being organized under the
this state, shall appoint in writing the auditor of public accounts
successors in office, to be its true and lawful attorney, upon wh
lawful process in any action or proceeding against it may be serve
in such writing shall agree that any lawful process against it, w
served on gaid attorney, shall be of the same legal force and vali
if served upon the order or association, and that the authority she
tinue in force so long as any liability remains outstanding in thi
and such service in this state shall alone be a legal service. Cc
such certificates, certified by said auditor of public accounts, 8!
deemed suflicient evidence thereof, and shall be admitted in e
with the same force and effect as the original thereof might be ad
Service upon such attorney shall be deemed sufficient service up
association. When legal process against any such order is served upor
said auditor of public accounts, he shall immediately notify the order o:
such service by letter, prepaid and directed to its secretary or correspond.
ing officer, and he shall, within two days after such service, forward ir
the same manner a copy of the process served on him to such officer.
The plaintiff in such process so served shall pay to the auditor of public
accounts, at the time of such service, a fee of five dollars, which shall be
recovered by him as a part of the taxable costs, if he finally prevail in
the suit. The auditor of public accounts shall keep a record of all pro-
cesses served upon him, which record shall show the day and hour when
such service was made and by whom made.

6. The auditor of public accounts shall, without undue delay, upon
the application of any order, society or association having the right to
do business in this state, as provided by this act, issue a permit in writ-
ing, authorizing it to do business within this state, for which certificate
and all proceedings in connection therewith such association shall pay
to said auditor a fee of ten dollars. This fee shall be paid annually
thereafter in advance.

¢. Any such order, association or society refusing or neglecting to
make the report to the auditor of public accounts, as provided in this
act, shall be excluded from doing business within this state. Said audi-
tor of public accounts shall, within sixty days after failureto make such
report; or in case any such order shall conduct the business fraudulently,
or shall fail to comply with this act, give notice in writing to the attor-
ney-general, who shall immediately commence an action against such
association to enjoin the same from doing anv new business whether the
state or member or other party seeks relief. No order so enjoined shall
have authority to continue to do the business of soliciting new members
until such report shall be made, or overt act or violations complained
of shall have been corrected, nor until the cost of such action be paid
by it: provided, the court shall find that such order was in default as
charged, whereupon the auditor of public accounts shall reinstate such
order, and not until then shall it be allowed to secure new members in
this state. Any officer, agent or person acting for any order or subordi-
nate body thereof, within this state, while it shall be enjoined or prohib-
ited from doing business pursuant to this act, shall be deemed guilty of
a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine
not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than one hundred dollars.

8. Any person who shall act within this state as an officer, agent or
otherwise, for any such fraternal beneficiary order in soliciting or pro-
curing new business or members, which shall have neglected or refused to
comply with this act, shall be subject to the penalty provided in the
last preceding section for the misdemeanor therein specified.

9. All laws or parts of laws in conflict with or inconsistent with this
act, be, and the same are hereby, repealed, and nothing in this act shall
be held to affect or to apply to grand or subordinate lodges of Masons,
Knights of Pythias, Odd fellows, Red men, Junior order American
mechanics, or similar orders that do not have as their principal object
the issuance of benefit certificates to members.

10. This act shall be in force from July first, eighteen hundred and

pinety-eight.

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