LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP

Insurance Regulation

Our insurance subsidiaries, like other insurance companies, are subject to regulation and supervision by the states, territories and countries in which they are licensed to do business. The extent of such regulation varies, but generally has its source in statutes that delegate regulatory, supervisory and administrative authority to supervisory agencies. The U.S. federal government does not directly regulate the insurance industry. In the United States, this power is vested in state insurance departments.

In supervising and regulating insurance companies, state insurance departments, charged primarily with protecting policyholders and the public rather than investors, enjoy broad authority and discretion in applying applicable insurance laws and regulation for that purpose.

LNL and FPP are domiciled in Indiana and their principal insurance regulatory authority is the Indiana Department of Insurance (“IDOI”). LLANY is domiciled in New York and its principal insurance regulatory authority is the New York Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS”). Our Bermuda-based reinsurance subsidiary, LPINE, and our Barbados-based reinsurance subsidiary, Lincoln National Reinsurance Company (Barbados) Limited, are regulated by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (“BMA”) and the Barbados Financial Services Commission, respectively, each of which enforces standards related to solvency, capital adequacy and other regulatory requirements.

The insurance departments of the domiciliary jurisdictions exercise principal regulatory jurisdiction over our insurance subsidiaries. The extent of regulation by the jurisdiction varies, but, in general, most jurisdictions have laws and regulations governing standards of solvency, adequacy of reserves, reinsurance, capital adequacy, licensing of companies and agents to transact business, prescribing and approving policy forms, regulating premium rates for some lines of business, prescribing the form and content of financial statements and reports, regulating the type and amount of investments permitted and standards of business conduct.

State insurance laws and regulations also include provisions governing marketplace activity of life and annuity insurers, including provisions governing the form and content of disclosure to consumers, such as advertising, illustrations, sales practices and complaint handling. Regulators enforce these provisions through market conduct examinations, with a focus in recent years on improper annuity and life insurance sales practices, improper illustration of certain life insurance policies and annuities, race-based underwriting or sales practices, misleading sales presentations and product suitability.

As part of their regulatory oversight process, state insurance departments also conduct periodic examinations, generally once every three to five years, of the books, records, accounts and business practices of insurers domiciled in their states. Examinations are generally carried out in cooperation with the insurance regulators of other states under guidelines promulgated by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (“NAIC”). During 2024, the IDOI, along with insurance regulators of New York, South Carolina and Vermont, conducted a coordinated risk-focused financial examination covering the five-year period ended December 31, 2022. This routine five-year examination of all our U.S. domestic insurance companies found no material deficiencies. State and federal insurance and securities regulatory authorities and other state law enforcement agencies and Attorneys General also, from time to time, make inquiries and conduct examinations or investigations regarding the compliance by our company, as well as other companies in our industry, with, among other things, insurance laws and securities laws. Our captive reinsurance and reinsurance subsidiaries are subject to periodic financial examinations by their respective domiciliary insurance regulators. We have not received any material adverse findings resulting from insurance department examinations of our insurance, reinsurance and captive reinsurance subsidiaries conducted during the three-year period ended December 31, 2024.

State insurance laws and regulations require our U.S. insurance companies to file financial statements with state insurance departments everywhere they do business, and the operations of our U.S. insurance companies and accounts are subject to examination by those departments at any time. Our U.S. insurance companies prepare statutory financial statements in accordance with accounting practices and procedures prescribed or permitted by these departments. The NAIC has approved a series of statutory accounting principles (“SAP”) that have been adopted, in some cases with minor modifications, by virtually all state insurance departments. Changes in these SAP can significantly affect our capital and surplus.

Insurance company regulation is discussed further in this section under “Insurance Holding Company Regulation.”

Current and Recent NAIC Topics

Interest Maintenance Reserve

In August 2023, the NAIC approved temporary guidance to allow companies to admit a portion of net negative interest maintenance reserves (“IMR”) as an asset under certain conditions, up to a capital and surplus percentage limit. This guidance became effective for periods ending September 30, 2023 and will sunset on December 31, 2025. This guidance has had the effect of increasing our statutory capital, corresponding to an approximate 10 percentage-point increase to our estimated risk-based capital (“RBC”) ratio as of December 31, 2024. The NAIC is continuing work towards a long-term solution.

Group Capital Calculation

The NAIC has developed and adopted a Group Capital Calculation (“GCC”) based on an RBC aggregation methodology to serve as an individual tool to help state regulators evaluate potential risks within and across insurance groups. The NAIC’s amendments to the Model Holding Company Act and Regulation in 2020 adopted the GCC Template and Instructions and implemented the annual filing requirement with an insurance group’s lead state regulator. In 2024, Indiana amended the holding company provisions within its Insurance Code to adopt the GCC for use in the IDOI’s monitoring of insurance holding companies’ solvency. The GCC filing requirement will take effect beginning January 1, 2026.

Reinsurance

The NAIC has proposed a new actuarial guideline to require asset adequacy testing (“AAT”) for ceded reinsurance. AAT is under consideration as a tool to help U.S. regulators gain deeper insights into the assets and reserves supporting ceded business. We cannot predict what changes, if any, this proposal may ultimately have on our businesses.

Regulation of Insurer Investments

The NAIC is undertaking a comprehensive review of the existing regulatory framework for the oversight and regulation of insurer investments, including evaluating the appropriate risk-based capital treatment of asset-backed securities. We cannot predict what changes, if any, these activities may ultimately have on our businesses.

Life and Annuities Reserves

The NAIC is also considering modifications to the economic scenario generator used to calculate life and annuity reserves according to the Valuation Manual (e.g., VM-20 and VM-21) and the required capital for these life and annuity contracts, which could affect the level and volatility of statutory reserves and required capital for products in scope. These modifications are expected to be implemented by January 1, 2026, at the earliest. In addition, the NAIC is also considering expanding principle-based reserving to fixed annuities (VM-22), which could affect the level of reserves required for such products. We cannot fully anticipate the effects these modifications may have on our business.

We are monitoring all potential changes and evaluating the potential impact they could have on our product offerings, financial condition and results of operations.

See also “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Legislative, Regulatory and Tax – Our businesses are heavily regulated and changes in regulation and in supervisory and enforcement policies may affect our insurance subsidiary capital requirements, reduce our profitability, limit our growth or otherwise adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.” For more information on statutory reserving and our use of captive reinsurance structures, see “Liquidity and Capital Resources – Holding Company Sources and Uses of Liquidity and Capital – Subsidiaries’ Capital” in the MD&A.

Insurance Holding Company Regulation

LNC and its insurance subsidiaries are subject to regulation pursuant to the insurance holding company laws of the states of Indiana and New York. These insurance holding company laws generally require an insurance holding company and insurers that are members of such insurance holding company’s system to register with the insurance department authorities, to file with it certain reports disclosing information, including their capital structure, ownership, management, financial condition and certain inter-company transactions, including material transfers of assets and inter-company business agreements, and to report material changes in that information. These laws also require that inter-company transactions be fair and reasonable and, under certain circumstances, prior approval of the insurance departments must be received before entering into an inter-company transaction. Further, these laws require that an insurer’s policyholders’ surplus following any dividends or distributions to shareholder affiliates is reasonable in relation to the insurer’s outstanding liabilities and adequate for its financial needs.

In general, under state holding company regulations, no person may acquire, directly or indirectly, a controlling interest in our capital stock unless such individual, corporation or other entity has obtained prior approval from the applicable insurance commissioner for such acquisition of control. Pursuant to such laws, in general, any person acquiring, controlling or holding the power to vote, directly or indirectly, 10% or more of the voting securities of an insurance company, is presumed to have “control” of such company. This presumption may be rebutted by a showing that control does not exist in fact. The insurance commissioner, however, may find that “control” exists in circumstances in which a person owns or controls a smaller amount of voting securities. To obtain approval from the insurance commissioner of any acquisition of control of an insurance company, the proposed acquirer must file with the applicable commissioner an application containing information regarding: the identity and background of the acquirer and its affiliates; the nature, source and amount of funds to be used to carry out the acquisition; the financial statements of the acquirer and its affiliates; any potential plans for disposition of the securities or business of the insurer; the number and type of securities to be acquired; any contracts with respect to the securities to be acquired; any agreements with broker-dealers; and other matters.

Other jurisdictions in which our insurance subsidiaries are licensed to transact business may have similar or additional requirements for prior approval of any acquisition of control of an insurance or reinsurance company licensed or authorized to transact business in those jurisdictions. Additional requirements in those jurisdictions may include re-licensing or subsequent approval for renewal of existing licenses upon an acquisition of control. In addition, laws that govern the holding company structure also govern payment of dividends to us by our insurance subsidiaries. See “Liquidity and Capital Resources – Holding Company Sources and Uses of Liquidity and Capital – Restrictions on Subsidiaries’ Dividends” in the MD&A for a discussion of restrictions on subsidiaries’ dividends and other payments.

Risk-Based Capital

The NAIC has adopted RBC requirements for life insurance companies to evaluate the adequacy of statutory capital and surplus in relation to investment and insurance risks. The requirements provide a means of measuring the minimum amount of statutory surplus appropriate for an insurance company to support its overall business operations based on its size and risk profile. There are five major risks involved in determining the requirements:

A company’s risk-based statutory surplus is calculated by applying factors and performing calculations relating to various asset, premium, claim, expense and reserve items. Regulators can then measure adequacy of a company’s statutory surplus by comparing it to the RBC determined by the formula. Under RBC requirements, regulatory compliance is determined by the ratio of a company’s total adjusted capital, as defined by the NAIC, to its company action level of RBC (known as the RBC ratio), also as defined by the NAIC.

Accordingly, factors that have an impact on the total adjusted capital of our insurance subsidiaries, such as the permitted practices discussed above or changes in actuarial assumptions that cause us to increase our reserves, will also affect their RBC levels. Four levels of regulatory attention may be triggered if the RBC ratio is insufficient:

•“Company action level” – If the RBC ratio is between 75% and 100%, then the insurer must submit a plan to the regulator detailing corrective action it proposes to undertake;

•“Regulatory action level” – If the RBC ratio is between 50% and 75%, then the insurer must submit a plan, but a regulator may also issue a corrective order requiring the insurer to comply within a specified period;

•“Authorized control level” – If the RBC ratio is between 35% and 50%, then the regulatory response is the same as at the “Regulatory action level,” but, in addition, the regulator may take action to rehabilitate or liquidate the insurer; and

•“Mandatory control level” – If the RBC ratio is less than 35%, then the regulator must rehabilitate or liquidate the insurer.

As of December 31, 2024, the RBC ratios of LNL, LLANY and FPP reported to their respective states of domicile and the NAIC all exceeded the “company action level.” We believe that we will be able to maintain the RBC ratios of our insurance subsidiaries in excess of “company action level” through prudent underwriting, claims handling, investing and capital management. However, no assurances can be given that developments affecting the insurance subsidiaries, many of which could be outside of our control, will not cause the RBC ratios to fall below the “company action level” or below our targeted levels, which are significantly higher than the “company action level.” These developments may include, but may not be limited to: changes to the manner in which the RBC ratio is calculated; new regulatory requirements for calculating reserves, such as principles-based reserving; economic conditions leading to higher levels of impairments of securities in our insurance subsidiaries’ general accounts; and an inability to finance life reserves such as through the issuance of letters of credit (“LOCs”) supporting inter-company reinsurance structures.

See “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Liquidity and Capital Position – A decrease in the capital and surplus of our insurance subsidiaries may result in a downgrade to our credit and insurer financial strength ratings” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Legislative, Regulatory and Tax – Our businesses are heavily regulated and changes in regulation and in supervisory and enforcement policies may affect our insurance subsidiary capital requirements, reduce our profitability, limit our growth or otherwise adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.”

Guaranty Associations and Similar Arrangements

State laws require insurance companies doing business within their jurisdictions to participate in various types of guaranty associations or other similar arrangements. These guaranty associations and arrangements provide certain levels of protection to policyholders from losses under insurance policies issued by insurance companies that become impaired or insolvent. Typically, these guaranty associations levy assessments up to a prescribed limit on a member insurer’s proportionate share of the business in the relevant jurisdiction of all member insurers in the lines of business in which the impaired or insolvent insurer is engaged. Some states permit member insurers to recover assessments that they paid through full or partial premium tax offsets, usually over a period of years. See “State Guaranty Fund Assessments” in Note 17 for information regarding amounts accrued for expected assessments and the related expected reductions in future state premium taxes.

Privacy, Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity Regulation

We collect, process and maintain personal information from individuals who interact with our business, which subjects us to numerous privacy laws and regulations. These laws require, among other things, that we institute certain policies and procedures in our business to safeguard this information from improper use or disclosure; disclose our collection, processing, use and sharing practices to individuals; allow individuals, in certain circumstances, to access, correct, and delete their personal information; and, in some cases, allow individuals to opt out of certain data sharing practices. We must also promptly notify and report certain types of incidents involving this data. The laws and regulations vary by jurisdiction, and it is expected that additional laws and regulations will continue to be enacted. The NAIC is currently considering revisions to the Privacy of Consumer Financial and Health Information Regulation Model Law that may be completed in 2025. See also “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Legislative, Regulatory and Tax – Compliance with existing and emerging privacy laws and regulations could result in increased compliance costs and/or lead to changes in business practices and policies, and any failure to protect the confidentiality of personal information could adversely affect our reputation and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.”

With the rise of innovation and technology in the financial and insurance sectors, state and federal regulators and policymakers and the NAIC are increasingly focused on the use of “big data,” including artificial intelligence (“AI”), machine learning and automatic decision-making, across various business practices such as underwriting, sales and marketing and in claims processing. In August 2020, members of the NAIC unanimously adopted guiding principles on AI to inform and articulate general expectations for businesses, professionals and stakeholders across the insurance industry as they implement AI tools to facilitate operations. In December 2023, the NAIC adopted a model bulletin on the use of AI by insurers, which was intended to remind insurance carriers that decisions impacting consumers that are made or supported by advanced analytical and computational technologies, including AI, must comply with all applicable insurance laws and regulations, including unfair trade practices. The bulletin also sets forth state insurance regulators’ expectations on how insurers should govern the use of such technologies by or on behalf of the insurer to make or support such decisions. Additionally, in October 2023, the White House issued an Executive Order on the Safe, Secure and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence, which directs federal agencies and departments to create standards and regulations for the use or oversight of AI. See also “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Legislative, Regulatory and Tax – Compliance with existing and emerging rules and regulations governing the use of AI could result in increased compliance costs and/or lead to changes in business practices and policies, and challenges with properly managing the use of AI could result in reputational harm, competitive harm, and legal liability.”

We are also subject to information security laws and regulations that impose governance and compliance obligations applicable to our business. For example, in 2017, the NYDFS enacted a regulation establishing cybersecurity requirements for financial services companies (the “NYDFS Cybersecurity Regulation”). The NYDFS Cybersecurity Regulation included specific technical safeguards as well as requirements regarding governance, incident planning, training, data management, system testing and regulator notification in the event of certain cybersecurity events. In November 2023, the NYDFS adopted amendments to the NYDFS Cybersecurity Regulation. The key changes included enhanced governance requirements, additional controls, requirements for more regular risk and vulnerability assessments, as well as more robust incident planning, updated notification requirements and updated training requirements.

While we employ robust and tested privacy and information security programs, as legislatures and regulators establish further laws and regulations for addressing privacy and cybersecurity, we may need to amend our policies and adapt our internal procedures. See also “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Legislative, Regulatory and Tax – Compliance with existing and emerging privacy laws and regulations could result in increased compliance costs and/or lead to changes in business practices and policies, and any failure to protect the confidentiality of personal information could adversely affect our reputation and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.” For information regarding cybersecurity risks, see “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Operational Matters – Our information systems may experience interruptions, breaches in security and/or a failure of disaster recovery systems that could result in a loss or disclosure of confidential information, damage to our reputation, impairment of our ability to conduct business effectively and increased expenses” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Operational Matters – We are subject to third-party information system and other operational risks due to our reliance on third-party vendors and suppliers and the outsourcing of certain of our business operations.”

Securities, Broker-Dealer and Investment Adviser Regulation

In addition to being registered under the Securities Act of 1933, some of our separate accounts as well as mutual funds that we sponsor are registered as investment companies under the Investment Company Act of 1940, and the shares of certain of these entities are qualified for sale in some or all states and the District of Columbia. We also have one subsidiary, LFD, that is registered as a broker-dealer under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (“Exchange Act”) and is subject to federal and state regulation, including, but not limited to, the Financial Industry Regulation Authority’s (“FINRA”) net capital rules. In addition, we have one subsidiary that is a registered investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. Employees registered or associated with our investment adviser or broker-dealer subsidiaries are subject to federal securities laws and to examination requirements and regulation by state and federal securities regulators. The SEC and other governmental agencies and self-regulatory organizations, as well as state securities commissions in the U.S., have the power to conduct administrative proceedings that can result in censure, fines, the issuance of cease-and-desist orders or suspension and termination or limitation of the activities of the regulated entity or its employees. In recent years, there has been increased scrutiny by these bodies across the industry, which has included more extensive examinations, regular sweep inquiries and more detailed review of disclosure documents. Certain of our subsidiaries have been, and may continue to be, the subject of such inquiries and examinations. For more information about regulatory and litigation matters generally, see Note 17.

Standard of Conduct Regulation

As a result of overlapping efforts by the Department of Labor (“DOL”), the NAIC, individual states and the SEC to impose fiduciary-like requirements in connection with the sale of annuities, life insurance policies and securities, which are each discussed in more detail below, there have been a number of proposed or adopted changes to the laws and regulations that govern the distribution of our products.

DOL Fiduciary Advice Rule

In 2016, the DOL released the DOL Fiduciary Rule, which became effective in 2017 and substantially expanded the range of activities considered to be fiduciary investment advice under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) and the Internal Revenue Code. The DOL Fiduciary Rule was subsequently vacated by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (the “Fifth Circuit”) in March 2018, and in June 2018, the Fifth Circuit issued a mandate stating that the original definition of “fiduciary,” including the original five-part test, would apply going forward.

On April 23, 2024, the DOL finalized new regulations that redefined the meaning of “investment advice fiduciary,” substantially expanding the range of activities considered to be fiduciary investment advice under ERISA. The final rule also amended the applicable prohibited transaction exemptions that allow investment advice fiduciaries to be paid compensation. As finalized, these revisions would potentially apply to almost all sales to retirement plan participants and IRA investors, resulting in more extensive disclosure and other compliance obligations as well as increased potential legal exposure for those involved in sales activities that would be newly treated as fiduciary advice. The final rule was set to become effective on September 23, 2024, while the changes to the prohibited transaction exemptions were to have a one-year phase-in from the effective date. Based on lawsuits challenging the new rule brought in two separate Texas District Courts in the Fifth Circuit, in July 2024, a stay was issued delaying the implementation of the new rule until further notice. As a result, it is uncertain at this time whether these changes will have a material impact on our business.

SEC Regulation Best Interest

In 2019, the SEC approved “Regulation Best Interest,” including a new standard of conduct for broker-dealers under the Exchange Act, which requires broker-dealers and their representatives to act in the best interest of retail customers when making recommendations of any securities transaction, without putting their financial interests ahead of the interests of retail customers. The final rule includes guidance on what constitutes a “recommendation” and a definition of who would be a “retail customer” in addition to provisions setting forth certain required disclosures, policies and procedures to identify conflicts of interest, and customer-specific best interest obligations.

In addition, the SEC approved the use of a new disclosure document, the customer or client relationship summary, or Form CRS. Form CRS is intended to provide retail investors with information about the nature of their relationship with their investment professional and supplements other more detailed disclosures, including existing Form ADV for advisers and the new disclosures under Regulation Best Interest for broker-dealers. Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS became effective as of September 10, 2019, with a transition period for compliance through June 30, 2020, as of which date broker-dealers were required to be compliant.

Finally, the SEC issued interpretative guidance regarding an investment adviser’s fiduciary obligation under the Advisers Act. The guidance indicates that investment advisers have a fiduciary duty to their clients that includes both a duty of care and a duty of loyalty and further describes an investment adviser’s responsibilities under these fiduciary duties.

State Law Standard of Conduct Rules and Regulations

In addition to the SEC and DOL rules, the NAIC and several states, including Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey and New York, have either enacted or proposed laws and regulations requiring investment advisers, broker-dealers and/or agents to meet a higher standard of care and provide additional disclosures when providing advice to their clients. The recently enacted state laws and regulations have resulted in, and upon adoption by other states such laws and regulations may result in, additional requirements related to the sale of our products. Additional disclosure and other requirements could adversely affect our business by causing us to reevaluate or change certain business practices or otherwise.

If any new rules are implemented that are more onerous than Regulation Best Interest, or are not coordinated with Regulation Best Interest, the impact on our business could be substantial. While we continue to monitor and evaluate the various proposals, we cannot predict what other proposals may be made, or what new legislation or regulation may be introduced or become law. Therefore, until such time as final rules or laws are in place, the potential impact on our business is uncertain.

Financial Reform Legislation

Since it was enacted in 2010, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”) has imposed considerable reform in the financial services industry. The ongoing implementation continues to present challenges and uncertainties for financial market participants. Additional provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act include, among other things, the creation of a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to protect consumers of certain financial products; and changes to certain corporate governance rules. The Federal Insurance Office established under the Dodd-Frank Act issues annually a wide-ranging report on the state of insurance regulation in the U.S., together with a series of recommendations on ways to monitor and improve the regulatory environment. The ultimate impact of these recommendations on our business is undeterminable at this time.

As financial services regulatory reform continues to evolve in the U.S. and abroad, and the marketplace continues to respond, the extent to which our derivatives costs and strategies may change and the extent to which those changes may affect the range or pricing of our products remains uncertain. For example, The European Market Infrastructure Regulation and matching U.K. rules impose initial margin requirements on our over-the-counter derivatives with EU- and U.K.-regulated swap providers. Beginning in 2026, these swap providers may be subject to margin requirements with respect to equity options, which may require us to post and collect additional initial margin. Until the application of initial margin requirements is complete, the impact of these provisions on liquidity and capital resources remains uncertain. See “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Legislative, Regulatory and Tax – Implementation of the provisions of the European Market Infrastructure Regulation relating to the regulation of derivatives transactions subject us to margin requirements, the impact of which remains uncertain.”

Other Federal Legislation

Tax Legislation

In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 established a new 15% corporate alternative minimum tax for corporations whose average adjusted net income for any consecutive three-year period beginning after December 31, 2022, exceeds $1.0 billion. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 also established a 1% excise tax on stock repurchases made by publicly traded corporations. Both provisions became effective for tax years beginning after December 31, 2022. Numerous forms of guidance on both provisions were published in the following years by the Internal Revenue Service and U.S. Treasury. While we have determined that we were not within the scope of the corporate alternative minimum tax for 2023 or 2024, we will continue to evaluate the potential impact of this new alternative minimum tax on our business, results of operations and financial condition in future periods.

Key provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (“TCJA”) are set to expire or revert at the end of 2025. Without action by the federal government to amend or extend the TCJA, the expiration or reversion of these provisions would result in across-the-board tax increases on individual taxpayers and automatic increases in certain business taxes under current law. We will continue to actively monitor developments with respect to the TCJA and be actively engaged with regulators and policymakers including the Trump Administration to ensure the impacts of tax policy changes on our business and our customers are well understood.

Outside of potential tax law changes, the uncertainty of federal funding and the future of the Social Security Disability Insurance (“SSDI”) program can have a substantial impact on the entire group benefit market because SSDI benefits are a direct offset to the benefits paid under group disability policies. Congress alleviated some of this uncertainty by passing the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015. The 2024 Annual Report of the Board of Trustees of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Federal Disability Insurance Trust Funds, published by the Social Security Administration, projects that the SSDI reserves will not be depleted until 2035.

Health Care Reform Legislation

In March 2010, President Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which was subsequently amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act. This legislation, as well as subsequent state and federal laws and regulations, includes provisions that provide for additional taxes to help finance the cost of these reforms and substantive changes and additions to health care and related laws, which could potentially impact some of our lines of business. We continue to monitor any efforts by the government to repeal or replace provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the effect those efforts may have on our businesses.

Patriot Act

The USA PATRIOT Act of 2001 includes anti-money laundering and financial transparency laws as well as various regulations applicable to broker-dealers and other financial services companies, including insurance companies. Financial institutions are required to collect information regarding the identity of their customers, watch for and report suspicious transactions, respond to requests for information by regulatory authorities and law enforcement agencies and share information with other financial institutions. As a result, we are required to maintain certain internal compliance practices, procedures and controls.

SECURE Act

In December 2019, President Trump signed into law the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (the “SECURE Act”). Most of the provisions of the SECURE Act were effective for plan years beginning after December 31, 2019. Among other things, the provisions of the SECURE Act make it easier for employers to offer lifetime income options in defined contribution retirement plans, facilitate the ability of small employers to offer access to retirement savings vehicles to their employees and increase opportunities for workers to save by enhancing retirement plan automatic enrollment and escalation features. Congress continued to build on the value created by the SECURE Act by passing SECURE Act 2.0 on December 29, 2022. This legislation also helps increase plan adoption and savings opportunities, while also making the offering of lifetime income in plans more feasible. We believe that the financial services industry will continue to benefit from the adoption of these legislative changes through continued or increased savings in retirement and annuity solutions, including through the utilization of Lincoln’s suite of offerings.

ERISA Considerations

ERISA is a comprehensive federal statute that applies to U.S. employee benefit plans sponsored by private employers and labor unions. Plans subject to ERISA include pension and profit-sharing plans and welfare plans, including health, life and disability plans. ERISA provisions include reporting and disclosure rules, standards of conduct that apply to plan fiduciaries and prohibitions on transactions known as “prohibited transactions,” such as conflict-of-interest transactions and certain transactions between a benefit plan and a party in interest. ERISA also provides for a scheme of civil and criminal penalties and enforcement. Our insurance, plan administrative services and other businesses provide services to employee benefit plans subject to ERISA, including services where we may act as an ERISA fiduciary. In addition, because certain of our businesses provide products and services to ERISA plans, transactions with those plans are subject to ERISA’s prohibited transaction rules, which may affect our ability to enter into transactions, or the terms on which transactions may be entered into, with such plans, even if the business entering into the transaction is unrelated to the business giving rise to party-in-interest status. See also “Securities, Broker-Dealer and Investment Adviser Regulation – DOL Fiduciary Advice Rule” above.

Environmental Considerations

Federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations apply to our ownership and operation of real property. Inherent in owning and operating real property are the risks of hidden environmental liabilities and the costs of any required clean-up. Under the laws of certain states, contamination of a property may give rise to a lien on the property to secure recovery of the costs of clean-up, which could adversely affect our commercial mortgage lending. In several states, this lien has priority over the lien of an existing mortgage against such property. In addition, in some states and under the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (“CERCLA”), we may be liable, as an “owner” or “operator,” for costs of cleaning-up releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances at a property mortgaged to us. We also risk environmental liability when we foreclose on a property mortgaged to us. Federal legislation provides for a safe harbor from CERCLA liability for secured lenders that foreclose and sell the mortgaged real estate, provided that certain requirements are met. However, there are circumstances in which actions taken could still expose us to CERCLA liability. Application of various other federal and state environmental laws could also result in the imposition of liability on us for costs associated with environmental hazards.

We routinely conduct environmental assessments for real estate we acquire for investment and before taking title through foreclosure to real property collateralizing mortgages that we hold. Although unexpected environmental liabilities can always arise, based on these environmental assessments and compliance with our internal procedures, we believe that any costs associated with compliance with environmental laws and regulations or any clean-up of properties would not have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

In addition, certain of our regulators and individual states have proposed or adopted, or may propose or adopt, environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) rules or standards that would apply to our business. For example, in March 2024, the SEC adopted extensive rule changes, which have been stayed pending the outcome of litigation challenges, that would require companies to include certain climate-related disclosures in their registration statements and periodic reports filed with the SEC, and in October 2023, the Governor of California signed two bills into law that were further amended in September 2024 and, beginning in 2026, will require significant climate-related disclosures (in some cases beyond the disclosures required by the SEC’s rule) by large entities doing business in that state. See “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Legislative, Regulatory and Tax – Increasing scrutiny and evolving expectations from investors, customers, regulators and other stakeholders regarding ESG matters may adversely affect our reputation or otherwise adversely impact our business and results of operations” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors – Legislative, Regulatory and Tax – Climate change and climate change regulation may adversely affect our investment portfolio and financial condition.”

Intellectual Property

We rely on a combination of copyright, trademark, patent and trade secret laws to establish and protect our intellectual property. We have implemented a patent strategy designed to protect innovative aspects of our products and processes which we believe distinguish us from competitors. We currently own several issued U.S. patents.

We have an extensive portfolio of trademarks and service marks that we consider important in the marketing of our products and services, including, among others, the trademarks of the Lincoln National and Lincoln Financial names, the Lincoln logo and the combination of these marks. Trademark registrations may be renewed indefinitely subject to continued use and registration requirements. We regard our trademarks as valuable assets in marketing our products and services and intend to protect them against infringement and dilution.