[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Page 23527]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          TRIBUTE TO ALEX SOTO

 Mr. MARTINEZ. Mr. President, today I congratulate Mr. Alex 
Soto as he nears the end of his term as the 102nd president of the 
Nation's largest insurance association, the Independent Insurance 
Agents & Brokers of America, IIABA. Mr. Soto was elected to the IIABA's 
executive committee in 2001 and was installed as the association's 
president last September.
  Founded in 1896, IIABA, or the Big ``I'' as it is better known, is 
the Nation's oldest and largest association of independent insurance 
agents and brokers, representing a network of more than 300,000 agents, 
brokers, and their employees. During his term as president of the Big 
``I,'' Alex Soto has been a leader on a number of issues for the 
association including natural disaster insurance, regulatory reform, 
and producer compensation. He is a national leader on enhancement and 
enforcement of building codes, which is an important issue in our home 
State of Florida. Notably, as chairman of the National Branding 
Committee and president of the IIABA, Alex devoted significant time and 
energy to the development and promotion of the ``Trusted Choice'' brand 
for independent agents. Thanks to his leadership, the Trusted Choice 
initiative has successfully created a distinctive mark that conveys the 
virtues of the independent agent insurance delivery system.
  Alex Soto is also a great American success story. He came to the 
United States as a political refugee after fleeing communist Cuba in 
1960 at the age of 11. When he arrived in this country, he did not 
speak any English and had to completely start over, learning the 
language, customs, and assimilating. Alex has gone on to achieve 
numerous accomplishments and is now the president of InSource, Inc., a 
successful and growing independent agency in Miami. He holds a degree 
in international affairs from Florida State University, the Chartered 
Property and Casualty Underwriter, CPCU, designation, and the Associate 
in Risk Management, ARM, designation. Alex has served as the chairman 
of the Florida Association of Insurance Agents, FAIA, and before that, 
as president of the Independent Insurance Agents of Dade County. He was 
vice chairman of the Florida Property Casualty Joint Underwriting 
Association, FPCJUA, in 1995-1996, as well as a member of the 
Governor's Commission on the Florida Insurance Crisis in 1993, and the 
Insurance Fraud Task Force in 1997.
  In addition, Alex is active in his community. He has taught numerous 
insurance courses with the FAIA and at the University of Miami. He also 
serves as a trustee of the Archdiocese of Miami Trust. He was a member 
of St. Hugh Catholic Church Parish Council and a member of the Grove 
Outreach Center.
  I sincerely thank Alex Soto for his work with the IIABA over the 
years and for his commitment to his profession, his community, and our 
State of Florida. His efforts are greatly appreciated. I am proud to 
count Alex as both a constituent and a friend. I wish him, his wife 
Patt, and their family all the best in their future endeavors.

                          ____________________