UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 or 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 20212023
or
☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 or 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

COMMISSION FILE NUMBER:  000-16509

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CITIZENS, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)charter)

Colorado84-0755371
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)(I.R.S. employer identification no.)
11815 Alterra Pkwy, Suite 1500, Austin, TX 78758
(Address (Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

Registrant's telephone number, including area code (512) 837-7100

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act
Class A Common StockCIA New York Stock Exchange
(Title of each class)(Trading symbol(s))(Name of each exchange on which registered)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act
None
(Title of class)

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. ☐ Yes ☒ No
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. ☐ Yes ☒ No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.  ☒ Yes   ☐ No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).  ☒ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of "large accelerated filer," "accelerated filer," "smaller reporting company," and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act:
Large accelerated filerAccelerated filerNon-accelerated filerSmaller reporting companyEmerging growth company
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.
If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐






Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).   ☐ Yes  ☒ No





As of June 30, 2021,2023, the aggregate market value of the Class A common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant was approximately $294,118,656.$115,859,350.
NumberAs of March 6, 2024, the Registrant had 49,572,398 shares of Class A common stock outstanding as of March 04, 2022.
Class A: 49,028,634
Class B: —outstanding.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Part III of this Report incorporates by reference certain portions of the definitive proxy materials to be delivered to stockholders in connection with the 20222024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders (the "2022"2024 Proxy Statement"). The 20222024 Proxy Statement will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission within 120 days after the end of the fiscal year to which this report relates.




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TABLE OF CONTENTS
 
Page
PART I 
Item 1.
Item 1A.
Item 1B.
Item 1C.
Item 2.
Item 3.
Item 4.
PART II  
Item 5.
Item 6.
Item 7.
Item 7A.
Item 8.
Item 9.
Item 9A.
Item 9B.
Item 9C.
PART III  
Item 10.
Item 11.
Item 12.
Item 13.
Item 14.
PART IV  
Item 15.
Item 16.
 


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CITIZENS, INC.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
 
This Annual Report on Form 10-K (“Form 10-K”) contains forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, that involve risks and uncertainties. Many of the forward-looking1995. All statements are locatedcontained in Part II, Item 7 of this Form 10-K under the heading “Management’s Discussionother than statements of historical fact, including statements regarding our future results of operations and Analysis of Financial Conditionfinancial position, our business strategy and Results of Operations.”plans, our expected capital needs, and our objectives for future operations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements provide current expectations of future events based on certain assumptions and include any statement that does not directly relate to any historical or current fact. Forward-looking statements can alsomay be identified by words such as “future,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “predicts,” “will,” “would,” “could,” “can,” “may,” and similar terms. Forward-lookingWe have based these forward-looking statements include, butlargely on our current expectations and projections about future events and trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy, short-term and long-term business operations and objectives, and financial needs. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including those described in Part I, Item 1A, Risk Factors in this Form 10-K. Moreover, we operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time. It is not limited to, statements regarding:
the Company being positioned to offer stability topossible for our management team, employees and independent sales force in order to move forward with our business and strategic initiatives;
cross-selling opportunities leading to revenue growth;
efforts to develop and enhance our products, incentivize our sales force and make process and technology improvements to put the Company on a stronger financial footing and drive sustainable growth;
competitive advantages over competitors;
continued premium growth in the Home Service Insurance segment via new products and increased focus on direct sales through our independent agents;
the attractiveness and competitiveness of our standard commission structure;
the long-term value of providing agent campaigns and promotions with additional incentives;
predict all risks, nor can we assess the impact of our retention efforts on the decline in renewal premiums;
the increasing need for age-related products and increasing demand for living benefit products rather than death benefit products; and
the impact of the COVID-19 pandemicall factors on our first year premium revenue.business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements we may make. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the future events and trends discussed in this Form 10-K may not occur and actual results could differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and the Company’s actual results may differ significantly from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed in Part I, Item 1A of this Form 10-K under the heading “Risk Factors.” Currently, some of the most significant factors that could cause our actual results to differ significantly from our forward-looking statements include risks related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, such as:
a higher level of claims due to COVID-19 deaths;
decreased premium revenue due to disruption to our workforce or distribution channel resulting from required isolation, travel limitations and business restrictions;
higher surrenders and lapses due to cash needs our policyholders may have due to concerns over COVID-19 economic impacts, particularly in our international business; and
volatility in our investment portfolio due to market disruptions caused by COVID-19 related concerns such as inflation.

The Company assumesWe assume no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements for any reason, except as required by law. You should be aware that factors not referred to above could affect the accuracy of our forward-looking statements and use caution and common sense when considering our forward-looking statements.

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") maintains a website that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers, including the Company, that file electronically with the SEC. The public can obtain any documents that the Company files with the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. We also make available, free of charge, through our Internet website (http://www.citizensinc.com), our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, Section 16 Reports filed by officers and directors, and, if applicable, amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,

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as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such reports with, or furnish such reports to, the SEC.  We are not including any of the information contained on our website as part of, or incorporating it by reference into, this Form 10-K.

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CITIZENS, INC.
PART I

Item 1.   BUSINESS

OVERVIEW

Citizens, Inc. ("Citizens" or the "Company") is an insurance holding company incorporated in Colorado serving the life insurance needs of individuals in the United States since 1969 and internationally since 1975. Through our domestic insurance subsidiaries, we are licensed to provide insurance benefits to residents in 39 U.S. states and through our international subsidiaries, we provide insurance benefits to residents in 31 U.S. states and more than 70over 75 different countries. We pursue a strategy of offering traditional insurance products in niche markets where we believe we are able to achieve competitive advantages. We had approximately $1.9$1.7 billion of assets and approximately $4.9 billion of direct insurance in force at December 31, 2021 and approximately $4.2 billion of insurance in force.  2023.  

We operate in two business segments:

Life Insurance segment - Internationally, we sell U.S. dollar-denominated ordinary whole life insurance, endowment and endowmentcritical illness policies predominantly sold to non-U.S. residents, located principally in Latin America and the Pacific Rim through independent marketing consultants andRim. Domestically, we sell whole life insurance, sold domestically through independent agents;life insurance with living benefits, critical illness, credit life and disability products throughout the U.S.

Home Service Insurance segment - We sell final expense life insurance and property insurance policies marketed to middle- and lower-income households, as well as whole life products with higher allowable face values, in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas, and sold through independent agents and through funeral homes.Arkansas.

Our Principal Brands

LIFE INSURANCE SEGMENT
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Internationally, we conduct our Life Insurance segment business through CICA Life, A.I., a Puerto Rico company ("CICA International").
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Domestically, we conduct our Life Insurance segment business through CICA Life Insurance Company of America ("CICA Domestic").

HOME SERVICE INSURANCE SEGMENT
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We conduct our Home Service Insurance segment through Security Plan Life Insurance Company ("SPLIC") and Magnolia Guaranty Life Insurance Company ("Magnolia").

As an insurance provider, we collect premiums on an ongoing basis from our policyholders and invest the majority of the premiums to pay future benefits, including claims, surrenders and policyholder dividends. Accordingly, the Company derives its revenues principally from: (1) life insurance premiums earned for insurance coveragecoverages provided to insureds in our policyholders;two operating segments; and (2) net investment income. In addition to paying and reserving for insurance benefits that we pay to our policyholders, our expenses consist primarily of the costs of selling our insurance products (e.g., commissions, underwriting, marketing expenses), operating expenses and income taxes.

Because collection of premiums is the primary source of our revenues, our overall financial performance depends primarily upon the development and distribution of our products. A key to product development is the pricing of our insurance products and the accuracy of our pricing assumptions. The Company seeksWe seek to price our insurance policies such that insurance premiums and future net investment income earned on premiums received will cover the ultimate cost of paying claims on our policies, our expenses and will also yield a profit margin. Pricing adequacy depends on a number of factors, including proper evaluation of underwriting risks, the ability to project future losses based on historical loss experience adjusted for

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known trends, proper evaluation of underwriting risks, the Company’s response to competitors, the ability to obtain regulatory approvalcommission payments for rate changes,selling our products, expectations about interest rates and regulatory andor legal developments, and expense levels.

In order to manage the risks related to pricing, we employ medical underwriting procedures to assess and quantify risks before we issue policies. Insurance applications are reviewed to make two determinations: first, eligibility based on established underwriting guidelines and second, the applicable premium. We periodically review our underwriting requirements and may make changes as needed.

We also seek to manage pricing risk through:

favorable risk selection and diversification;
management of claims;
use of reinsurance;
careful monitoring of our mortality and morbidity experience; and
management of our expense ratio.

In addition to insurance premiums, the investment return, or yield, on invested assets is an important element of the Company’s earnings since life insurance products are priced with the assumption that premiums received can be invested for a period of time before benefits are paid. Pursuant to regulatory guidelines, most of the Company’s invested assets are held in available-for-sale ("AFS") fixed maturity securities, primarily in asset classes of corporate bonds, municipal bonds, and government obligation bonds. The interest rate environment has a

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significant impact on the determination of insurance contract liabilities, our investment rates and yields, and our asset/liability management. The profitability of our "spread-based" product features depends largely on the Company’s ability to earn higher returns on invested assets than the interest we credit to policyholders.

The primary investment objective for the Company is to maximize economic value, consistent with acceptable risk parameters, including the management of credit risk and interest rate sensitivity of invested assets, while generating sufficient after-tax income to meet policyholder and corporate obligations. The Company maintains a prudent investment strategy that may vary based on a variety of factors including business needs, regulatory requirements and tax considerations.

IN 2021, WE BECAME A NON-CONTROLLED COMPANY

Throughout most of our history, the Company was led and controlled by our founder Harold E. Riley and his family members. Mr. Riley passed away in 2017 and in 2020, a change-in-control of our Company occurred when the shares held by the Harold E. Riley Trust were transferred to the Harold E. Riley Foundation (the “Foundation”). As a result of this change-in-control:

On August 5, 2020, Geoffrey Kolander, our Chief Executive Officer and President resigned and Gerald W. Shields, the Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Company, was appointed Interim Chief Executive Officer and President; and
In February 2021, the Company entered into an agreement with the Foundation to purchase all of the outstanding shares of Class B common stock for a purchase price of $9.1 million (the “B Share Transaction”).

In April 2021, the Company and the Foundation obtained all regulatory approval required to consummate the B Share Transaction. In accordance with Colorado law, the shares of Class B common stock are now classified as authorized, but unissued shares and the Company's Board of Directors (the "Board") has resolved not to vote the shares of Class B common stock as long as they are so classified. Accordingly, since April 2021:

the Company has only one class of stock outstanding: the Class A common stock, which is registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”); and
the Class B Shares do not have any voting rights; and
the holders of the Class A shares are entitled to elect all of the directors at the Company’s annual meetings; and
for the first time in over 30 years, we are no longer a “controlled” company as defined under the NYSE rules.

After the consummationcompletion of the B Share Transaction, Mr. Shields, then acting as our Interim Chief Executive Officer, began working with the Board and management to create and implement a new strategy for the Company in order to set a course for long-term profitable growth. In December 2021, the Board announced that effective January 1, 2022, Mr. Shields would become the permanent CEO and President.

After the B Share Transaction and the appointment of Mr. Shields as our permanenta new Chief Executive Officer, we believe the Company believes that it iswas positioned to offer stability to our management team, employees and independent sales force in orderand was able to move forward with ournew business and strategic initiatives, as described below.

STRATEGIC INITIATIVES

As mentionedHistorically, our insurance companies have only issued a few products and had limited distribution channels. Since the change-in-control described above, in 2021, the Company became a non-controlled company for the first time in over 30 years. This change allowed the Board and management to reset and clearly define our priorities to set a course for long-term profitable growth. Our growth strategy consists ofshifted to focusing on first year sales growth improvedthrough introduction of new products and new distribution channels, retaining renewal premiums through policy retention roadmapefforts, focused execution, and financial and expense discipline. We believe these factors will lead to growth and profitability.

We believe that our roadmap execution process is key to achieving sales growth,our strategic goals as it helps us improve sales and service across our three markets (international life, domestic life and home services) by focusingfocus on three specific sales

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levers in each market-market - products, promotions and processes. Specifically, we implemented a five-quarter roadmap that lays out the following:

Products. We are focusinghave a robust product development process that focuses on our customer needs by offeringdeveloping new products tailored to our specific markets, working with partners to develop products tailored to their markets, and enhancing existing products. New products also help our sales force, as they can sell additional products to existing customers and offer a broader portfolio of products to entice prospective customers. A broader product portfolio also helps attract new distributors. Our management team meets on a monthly basis to ensure we are bringing the right products to market at the right time.

Promotions. We are focused on implementing sales promotions and campaigns in order to align our sales consultant compensation opportunities with our premium revenue goals and our growth and retention initiatives.

Processes. We are implementing process improvements and new technologies in order to get products to our customers faster and improve servicesthe experience for both our policyholders and our agents, as well as helpingagents. We also implemented new processes and technologies to help our employees work more effectively and efficiently.


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Status of New and Enhanced Products; Trends in Market Demand

As mentioned above, offering new and enhanced products are key to achieving our strategic goals. In 20212023 we:

Introduced New Products3 new products in both English and Spanish under our CICA Domestic brand, leading to first year premium revenue growth of 13% in our Home ServiceLife Insurance Segment. Over the past 18 months, our Home Service Insurance business has been a focus of transformation to drive sales growth for the Company. Prior to mid-2020, the focus of this segment was collections, i.e. renewal premiums and our sales force had sold the same life insurance product for over 30 years. In 2021, we introduced a higher face value whole life product in this segment, allowing us to expand our target customer. In December 2021, we launched a critical illness product that offers a true living benefit to policyholders by paying a lump sum amount in the event of a covered critical illness to use at the policyholder's discretion. As we continue to expand our product offerings in this market, we believe that cross-selling opportunities (i.e., selling new products to existing customers and offering more than one product to a new customer) will lead to revenue growth.segment.

Reevaluated expansion of Life Insurance Segment into Hispanic US Market. Obtained an A.M. Best rating for the first time ever in July 2023.
As we previously disclosed, in 2021 we undertook an initiative toCICA Domestic is rated as a B++ with a "Very Strong" balance sheet. We believe this will help us expand our Life Insurance segment todistribution networks and the Hispanic market in the U.S. by bringing our infrastructure to complete insurance transactions end-to-end in Spanish to the Florida market. We launched three products in this market in 2021. While we still believe that there is a need for this typeappeal of product and service in the U.S., our efforts to recruit agents to sell our products have been slower than we expected and we are re-evaluating our sales distribution approach, initiatives and domestic life insurance offerings in the Florida market in 2022.to consumers.

Retention

As policy surrenders have increased in our business overCompleted the last several years, in 2021, we formed a retention steering team in an effort to curb policy surrenders. This team focused on cultivating and executing on ideas that would increase eachmove of our segments' overall retention, while being beneficialinternational business from Bermuda to Puerto Rico, which we believe will drive greater demand for our policyholders. Both our Life Insurance segment and our Home Service Insurance segment improved policy retention in 2021 due to these efforts.international products.

As we seek to optimize value for the Company's shareholders, customers and distributors, we believe our efforts to develop and enhance our products, incentivize our sales force and make process and technology improvements will continue to put the Company on a stronger financial footing and drive sustainable growth.



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Table of ContentsLIFE INSURANCE SEGMENT

CITIZENS, INC.
LIFE INSURANCE

OurUntil December 31, 2022, our Life Insurance segment primarily operatesoperated through CICA Life Ltd. ("CICA International"Bermuda"), a Bermuda company. Upon surveying the market demands and needs of our policyholders, in 2022 we formed a new subsidiary in Puerto Rico, CICA Life, A.I. ("CICA International"). CICA International received a license in September 2022 to issue business as a Puerto Rico international insurer for the Company’s international portion of its Life Insurance segment. Beginning January 1, 2023, all new international policies are issued by CICA International (CICA Life, A.I.) and on August 31, 2023, CICA Bermuda transferred all of its insurance in force business to CICA International and we voluntarily surrendered our insurance license in Bermuda. Because CICA International provides our non-U.S. policyholders the ability to purchase policies in a U.S. territory and in a jurisdiction where the primary language spoken is Spanish, which is the primary language of the majority of our international policyholders, we believe this change will drive sales and improve policy retention, leading to revenue growth.

INTERNATIONAL LIFE INSURANCE

Sales and Distribution

We focus our international sales to residents in Latin America and the Pacific Rim. As of December 31, 2021,2023, we had insurance policies in force in more than 70over 75 foreign countries and receive the majority of our premiums from Colombia, Taiwan, Venezuela, Taiwan, Ecuador and Argentina. International direct premiums comprised approximately 96%97% of total direct premiums in the Life Insurance segment and 68%70% of our total consolidated direct premiums in 2021.2023.
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We believe positive attributes of our international insurance business typically include:

larger face amount policies issued when compared to our U.S. operations, which results in lowerlow underwriting and administrative costs per dollar of coverage;
high persistency and low mortality charges due to our customer demographics; and
premiums paid annually at the beginning of each policy year rather than monthly or quarterly, which reduces our administrative expenses, accelerates cash flow and results in lower policy lapse rates than premium payment options with more frequently scheduled payments.

Our international sales force consists ofWe sell our products internationally through independent marketing agencies and consultants who specialize in marketing life insurance products and generally have several years of insurance marketing experience.products. We enter into sales and service contracts with the independent marketing agencies pursuant to which they recruit, train and supervise their managers and associates in the sales and service of our products. These agencies receive commissions for products they sell and service, as well as commission overrides on the business that their agents produce and, in return for the override, they guarantee any debt their agents owe to us. Their sales agents also contract directly with us as independent consultants and receive commission compensation directly from us. This allows us to develop a relationship with their associates so if an agency contract is terminated for any reason, we may seek to continue the existing independent consultant marketing arrangements with the associates of such agency. Our agreements typically provide that the agencies and their agents are independent consultants responsible for their own operational expenses and are the representative of the prospective insured. Our contracts require the independent marketing agencies and consultants to understand and comply with all laws applicable to sales of our products in their country.

Products

CICA International issues primarily ordinary whole life insurance and endowment products in U.S. dollar-denominated amounts to non-U.S. residents.  The whole life insurance products are designed to provide a fixed amount of insurance coverage over the life of the insured and can include rider benefits to provide additional coverage and annuity benefits to enhance accumulations.  Our endowment contracts are principally accumulation contracts that incorporate an element of life insurance protection. These products have premium rates that are competitive with most foreign local companies and have been structured to provide the policyowners with:

U.S. dollar-denominated cash values that accumulate, beginning in the first policy year, throughout a policyholder’s lifetime;
protection against devaluation of the policyowners' local currency;currency and local hyper-inflation;
capital investment in a more secure economic environment (i.e., the U.S.); and
lifetime income guarantees for an insured or for surviving beneficiaries.

Our international products have both living and death benefit features. Most policies contain guaranteed cash values and are participating (i.e., provide for cash dividends as apportioned by CICA International's board of directors).  Once a policyowner pays the annual premium and the policy is issued, the owner becomes entitled to policy cash dividends and may elect to receive annual premium benefits.  The policyowner has several options with regards to the policy dividends and annual premium benefits, which include, among other things, electing to receive cash, crediting such amounts towards the payment of premiums on the policy, leaving such amounts on deposit with the Company to accumulate at a defined interest rate or assigning them to a third-party. Under the "assigned to a

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third-party" provision, the Company has historically allowed policyowners, after receiving a copy of the Citizens, Inc. Stock Investment Plan (the "CISIP""SIP") prospectus and acknowledging their understanding of the risks of investing in CitizensCitizens' Class A common stock, the right to assign policy values outside of the policy to the CISIP,SIP, which is administered in the United States by Computershare Trust Company, N.A., our third-party plan administrator and an affiliate of Computershare, Inc., our transfer agent. The CISIPSIP is a direct stock purchase plan available to policyowners, shareholders, our employees and directors, independent consultants, and other potential investors through the Computershare website. The Company has registered the shares of Class A common stock issuable to participants under the CISIPSIP on a registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, (the "Securities Act") that is on file with the SEC. Computershare administers the CISIPSIP in accordance with the terms and conditions of the CISIP,SIP, which is available on the Computershare website and as part of the Company’s registration statement on file with the SEC.


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Competition

The life insurance business is highly competitive.  Internationally, we compete with a number of life insurance companies, as well as with financial institutions that offer insurance products.  

We face competition from other insurance companies that operate in the same markets and manner as we do. Additionally, some of our competitors are local companies formed and operated in the country in which an insured resides, and others are companies foreign to the countries in which their products are sold, but issue insurance policies denominated in the local currency of those countries or issue products approved by regulators of those countries.  Some of these companies may have a competitive advantage over us due to their greater financial resources, histories of successful operations and brand recognition, local licensing, partnering with local insurance companies and larger marketing forces. 

We believe that we have a competitive advantage over some of our competitors because premiums on our international policies are paid in U.S. dollars, cash value is accumulated in U.S. dollars, and we pay claims and benefits in U.S. dollars. We believe this provides security and stability to our insureds, who are generally individuals in the middlemiddle- to upper-middle class in their respective countries with significant net worth and earnings.  Therefore, our products protect them from the inflationary risks and economic crises that have been common in many of our top-producing foreign countries.

DOMESTIC LIFE INSURANCE

We operatePrior to July 1, 2023, our domestic life insurance business operated through CICA Life Insurance Company of America ("CICA")Domestic and Citizens National Life Insurance Company ("CNLIC"). CNLIC merged into CICA Domestic on July 1, 2023 in order to streamline and focus our domestic life insurance business in one entity. In 2021,2023, domestic direct life insurance premiums comprised approximately 4%3% of total direct premiums in the Life Insurance segment and 3%2% of our consolidated total direct premiums. The majority of our domestic in force business results from renewal premiums from blocks of business of insurance companies we have acquired over the years. In late 2022, we began our "white label" program to expand our distribution, we began expanding CICA Domestic's state licenses, developing new final expense and CNLIC issued domestic ordinary whole lifeliving benefit products, and endowment life insurance products prior to 2017, and except for ourfiling these new domestic initiative described below, continues to sell primarily credit life and accident and health products in Texas.

In 2021, we undertook an initiative to re-start domestic sales in Florida. We believe that our experience in developing and selling products in Latin America will help us expand into the large Hispanic market in the U.S. However, our efforts to recruit agents to sell our product have been slower than we expected and we are re-evaluating our sales distribution approach, initiatives and domestic offerings in the Florida market in 2022.multiple states.

HOME SERVICE INSURANCE SEGMENT

We operate our domestic Home Service Insurance segment only in the U.S. through our subsidiaries Security Plan Life Insurance Company ("SPLIC"),SPLIC and Magnolia Guaranty Life Insurance Company ("MGLIC") and prior to June 30, 2023, Security Plan Fire Insurance Company ("SPFIC"). SPLIC and MGLIC focus onissues final expense life insurance needs ofand critical illness products to middle- and lower-income markets, primarily in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas. Prior to 2021, all of our Home Service Insurance products issued by SPLIC were soldindividuals, primarily through employee agents who worked on a debit route system. Startinghome service distribution model based in late 2020 and continuing throughout 2021, we have been transforming this segment by converting a large portion of our sales force to independent agents, reducing layers of management and introducing

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new products for the first time in almost 35 years. This transformation led to increased sales and decreased operational expenses in 2021.

Louisiana. Policies issued by MGLICMagnolia are primarily burial policies which are sold and serviced through funeral homes, who are also typically the beneficiaries of the policies.

SPFIC is a limited liability casualty company that sellsprior to June 30, 2023, sold small face value property insurance policies covering dwelling and contents, primarily in Louisiana. We ceased operations on June 30, 2023 as explained in more detail in Part II, Item 7, Managements' Discussion and Analysis, Overview section. In 2021, we expanded our product offering to Arkansas in part to mitigate the risk of hurricane-related claims that have impacted our business over the last two years.

In 2021,2023, our Home Service Insurance segment comprised 29%27% of our total consolidated direct premiums.

Products and Competition

Our Home Service Insurance products consist primarily of small face amount ordinary whole life and pre-need policies, which are designed to fund final expenses for the insured (e.g., funeral and burial costs).  The average life insurance policy face amount issued in 20212023 was approximately $7,900$12,900 per policy. Due to the lower risk associated with small face amount polices, the underwriting performed on these applications is limited. As part of the Home ServicesService Insurance segment transformation mentioned above, in 2021 we introduced a new product, Security Plan Plus, which has a higher allowed face amount. In December 2021, we also introduced a critical illness product, which pays the insured a lump sum following the diagnosis of an illness covered under the plan.  To a much lesser extent, our Home Service Insurance segment sellssold property insurance policies covering dwellings and content.content until it ceased operations on June 30, 2023. We provideprovided $30,000 maximum coverage on any one dwelling and contents policy, while content-only coverage and dwelling-only coverage arewere both limited to $20,000.

We face competition in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas from other companies specializing in final expense insurance as well as from other property & casualty insurance companies.insurance. We seek to compete based upon our emphasis onby delivering exceptional personal service to our customers.customers, enhancing our

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management team and upgrading our agent field force.  We intend to continue premium growth within this segment via our new products and increased focusby focusing on direct sales through our independent agents.agent-to-consumer sales.

REINSURANCE

We follow the industry practice of reinsuring a portion of our insurance risks with unaffiliated reinsurers. In a reinsurance transaction, a reinsurer agrees to indemnify another insurer for part or all of its liability under a policy or policies it has issued for an agreed upon premium. We participate in reinsurance activities in order to minimize exposure to significant risks, limit losses, and provide additional capacity for future growth. We enter into various agreements with reinsurers that cover individual risks, group risks or defined blocks of business, primarily on a coinsurance and yearly renewable term excess of loss or catastrophe excess basis.

For the majority of our life insurance business, we generally retain the first $100,000 of risk on any one life and reinsure the remainder of the risk. Therefore, under the terms of the reinsurance agreements, the reinsurers agree to reimburse us for the ceded amount (i.e., the death benefit amount less our retained risk) in the event a claim is paid. Cessions under reinsurance agreements do not discharge our obligations as the primary insurer. In the event reinsurers do not meet their obligations under the terms of the reinsurance agreements, reinsurance recoverable balances could become uncollectible.

For SPFIC, we obtain catastrophic reinsurance in order to minimize the risks related to payments we owe our insureds due to catastrophic events, such as hurricanes. Upon the occurrence of a catastrophic event, we retain (i.e., pay) the first $500,000 in claims, and then the reinsurer pays the next $10.5 million in claims. Upon the occurrence of a catastrophic event, in order to continue receiving reinsurance, we also have to pay reinstatement premiums in order to be covered for another catastrophic event in the same calendar year.

Our amounts recoverable from reinsurers represent receivables from and/or reserves ceded to reinsurers. The amountsamount recoverable from reinsurers were $5.5was $4.0 million as of December 31, 2021.2023.

We focus on obtaining reinsurance from a diverse group of well-established reinsurers. We have restructuredAll of our reinsurance relationships as of January 1, 2021 and reinsure our international business with three different

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reinsurers and our domestic business with two reinsurers.are rated A- (Excellent) or higher by A.M. Best. We regularly evaluate the financial condition of our reinsurers and monitor concentration risk with our reinsurers.

OTHER NON-INSURANCE ENTERPRISES

Other Non-Insurance Enterprises includes the results of our parent company, Citizens, Inc. and our non-insurance subsidiary, Computing Technology, Inc., which entities primarily provide the Company's corporate-support and information technology and corporate-support functions to the insurance operations.

OPERATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY

Most of our operations are based at our corporate headquarters in Austin, Texas. We also conduct operations for our Home Service Insurance segment from our district offices in Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi, as well as our service center in Donaldsonville, Louisiana. AtFor the international portion of our Bermuda office, we performLife Insurance segment, operations including underwriting, policy issuance, claims processing, accounting and reporting related to CICA International's policies.certain international policies were conducted in Bermuda until December 31, 2023 and are now conducted in Puerto Rico.

We have a proprietary single, integrated information technology system for our entire Company, which is a centrally-controlled, mainframe-based policy administrative system. Functionssystem ("PAS") that we use for all of our policy administrative systeminsurance companies. Our PAS performs various functions to effectively handle our insurance operations. These functions include policy set-up, administration, billing and collections, commission calculation, valuation, automated data edits, storage backup, image management and other related functions. Each company and block of business we have acquired has been converted onto our administrative system.PAS. The Company is actively engaged in continued modernization of technology to invest and expand into new opportunities. This system has been in place for more than 30 yearsmodernization allows us to bring new products to market rapidly and has been updated on an ongoing basisautomate insurance interactions to enhance user experience. This investment is foundational to the Company's growth strategy as technology has evolved.we pursue new product innovation and provides:

our customers and agents with portals to be able to access account information 24/7;
our policyholder service and claims representatives with a customer account-centric view of our policyholders and beneficiaries, reducing customer inquiry response time and claims processing time; and
business-to-business solutions.


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REGULATION

The insurance industry is heavily regulated and both Citizens and our insurance subsidiaries are subject to regulation and supervision by the U.S. states in which they do business, by U.S. federal laws, and for CICA International, by Bermuda.Puerto Rico.

REGULATION OF OUR INTERNATIONAL REGULATIONBUSINESS

BermudaPuerto Rico

CICA International, our BermudaPuerto Rico domiciled subsidiary, is subject to regulation and supervisionregulated by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (the "BMA"Puerto Rico Office of the Insurance Commissioner (“OIC”) and compliance with all applicable Bermuda laws and insurance statutes and regulations, including but not limitedis licensed pursuant to Bermuda’sthe Puerto Rico Insurance Act of 1978Code (the "Insurance Act"Code").

Although Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory, it has its own tax code and own insurance code, including a provision under its Insurance Code that allows CICA International which is incorporated to conduct long-term business, is registered as a Class E insurer, which is the license class for long-term insurers and reinsurers with total assets of more than $500 million that are not registrable as a single-parent or multi-owner long-term captive insurer or reinsurer. CICA International is not licensed to conduct any business other than life insurance business. The Insurance Act regulates the insurance business of CICA International and provides that no person may conduct any insurance business in or within Bermuda unless registeredbe established as an insurer under the Insurance Act by the BMA."international insurer" and thus export insurance to international markets. We may not insure risks of residents of Puerto Rico with this type of license and we do not issue policies to U.S. risks through CICA International.

The Insurance Act imposes solvency and liquidity standards as well as auditing and reporting requirements and confers on the BMA powers to supervise, investigate and intervene in the affairs of insurance companies. Certain requirements of the Insurance Act include: the filing of annual statutory financial returns; the filing of annual U.S. GAAP financial statements; the filing of an annual capital and solvency return; the delivery of a declaration of compliance; compliance withCode does not specifically set forth minimum enhanced capital requirements; compliance with the BMA’s Insurance Code of Conduct; compliance with minimum solvency margins; limitations on dividends and distributions that CICA International may make to Citizens, its parent company; preparation of an annual Financial Condition Report providing details of measures governing the business operations, corporate governance framework, solvency and financial performance; preparation of an assessment of an insurer's own risk and solvency requirements, referred to as a Commercial Insurer’s Solvency Self-Assessment; the establishment and maintenance of a head and principal office in Bermuda; appointment of an independent auditor; and appointment of an actuary approved by the BMA.

The BMA measures an insurer’s risk and determines appropriate levels of capitalization by using a risk-based capital model called the Bermuda Solvency Capital Requirement (“BSCR”), which CICA International uses to

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calculate its solvency requirements. The BSCR employs a standard mathematical model that correlates the risk underwritten by Bermuda insurers to their capital.
In order to minimize the risk of a shortfall in capital arising from an unexpected adverse deviation or excess risk, the BMA requires Bermuda insurers to maintain available statutory capital and surplus atstandards, but rather requires that an insurer submit a level equalbusiness plan for approval to or in excess of the enhanced capital requirement, which requires a threshold capital level (termed the Target Capital Level ("TCL")), of 120% of a company’s enhanced capital requirement. The TCL serves as an early warning tool for the BMA. In addition to being required to meet the TCL, at the request of the BMA, on April 15, 2021, Citizens and CICA International entered into a “Keep Well Agreement.” The Keep Well Agreement requires Citizens to contribute up to $10 million in capital to CICA International as necessary to ensureOIC that it has aincludes proposed minimum capital level of 120%.

Bermuda law distinguishes between those companies that are at least 60% owned and controlled by Bermudians, which are "local companies", and those which are owned and controlled by non-Bermudians, which are "exempted companies". Exempted companies may be resident in Bermuda and conduct business from Bermuda in connection with transactions and activities which are external to Bermuda or with other exempted companies, and exempted companies must obtain a license to conduct business activities within Bermuda from the Minister of Finance of Bermuda. Generally, it is not permitted without a special license granted by the Minister of Finance of Bermuda to ensure Bermuda domestic risks or risks of persons of, in or based in Bermuda and we do not offer insurance products to residents of Bermuda.

In December 2018, the Economic Substance Act (the "ES Act") came into force. The ES Act, as amended, and the regulations promulgated thereunder (collectively, "ES Law"), apply to any "relevant entity" that conducts any "relevant activity" in a "relevant financial period". Under the ES Law, insurance and holding entities are each defined as a "relevant activity" and thus the ES Act applies to CICA International. Under the provisions of the ES Law, a relevant entity that conducts a relevant activity must satisfy the economic substance requirements under the ES Law (the "ES Requirements") in relation to the relevant activity and where a relevant entity is conducting more than one relevant activity, it must meet the ES Requirements with respect to each relevant activity that it conducts. A relevant entity complies with the ES Requirements if: (a) the relevant entity is managed and directed from Bermuda; (b) the core income-generating activities are undertaken in Bermuda with respect to each relevant activity; (c) the relevant entity maintains an adequate physical presence in Bermuda; (d) there are adequate full-time employees in Bermuda with suitable qualifications; and (e) there is adequate operating expenditure incurred in Bermuda in relation to each relevant activity.

surplus. CICA International is required to demonstratemaintain a minimum of $750,000 in capital and maintain a premium to surplus ratio of 7 to 1. The Insurance Code requires us to file annual U.S. GAAP financial statements with the OIC that include schedules providing information regarding premiums written and reinsurance assumed and ceded, as well as an annual actuarial certification.

In addition to compliance with the ES Requirements by filing an annual economic substance declarationInsurance Code, CICA International must comply with other laws and regulations of Puerto Rico, most of which apply to our domestic subsidiaries as well, including the Registrar of Companies in Bermuda no later than six months after the last dayU.S. Bank Secrecy Act and other anti-money laundering laws and regulations of the relevant financial period. Companies that conduct insurance as a relevant activity are deemed to comply with the ES Requirements, with respect to their insurance business, if they comply with the existing regulatory requirements under the Insurance Act and the corporate governance provisions of the Companies Act 1981. CICA International is in compliance with these requirements as of December 31, 2021.United States.

Other International Regulation

Generally, all foreign countries in which we offer insurance products require a license or other authority to conduct insurance business in that country. Some of these countries also require that local regulatory authorities approve the terms of any insurance product sold to residents of that country. Other than formerly in Bermuda, we have never qualified to do business in any foreign country, or jurisdiction and we have never submitted our international insurance policies for approval byto any foreign or domestic insurance regulatory agency. As described above, we sell our policies to residents of foreign countries through independent marketing agencies and independent consultants located in those countries and we rely on our independent consultants to comply with laws applicable to them in marketing and servicing our insurance products in their respective countries.

We have undertaken a comprehensive compliance review of risks associated with the potential application of foreign laws to our sales of insurance policies in foreign countries. The application of foreign laws to our sales of insurance policies in foreign countries varies by country. There is a lack of uniform regulation, lack of clarity in certain regulations and lack of legal precedent in addressing circumstances similar to ours. Our compliance review has confirmed certain risks related to foreign insurance laws associated with our current business model, at least in certain jurisdictions, as described in detail in Item 1A. Risk Factors.


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U.S. REGULATION

In the United States, insurance is primarily regulated at the state level. Our domestic insurance subsidiariesprimary regulator in the U.S. is the Colorado Division of Insurance, as both Citizens and CICA Domestic are primarilyColorado companies. We are also regulated by the insurance departments of the stateinsurance in which they are domiciled (Colorado, Louisiana Texas(SPLIC and Mississippi). They are also regulated inSPFIC) and Mississippi (Magnolia), as well as each of the 3139 states and the District of Columbia in which we conduct insurance business. In supervising and regulating insurance companies, state insurance departments generally aim to protect policyholders and the public rather than investors, and enjoy broad authority and discretion in applying applicable insurance laws and regulation for that purpose. The extent of this regulation varies, but most U.S. jurisdictions have laws and regulations based upon the National Association of Insurance Commissioners ("NAIC") model rules governing the financial condition of insurers, including standards of solvency, types and concentration of investments, establishment and maintenance of reserves, credit for reinsurance and requirements of capital adequacy,adequacy; and the business conduct of insurers,

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including marketing and sales practices and claims handling.  In addition, statutes and regulations usually require the licensing of insurers and their agents, the approval of most types of policy forms and related materials (such as advertising) and the approval of rates for certain types of insurance products.

Risk-basedIn order for insurance regulators to monitor solvency, insurance companies are subject to risk-based capital ("RBC") requirements are imposedrequirements. The RBC requirement is a statutory minimum level of capital that is based on lifetwo factors - (1) the insurance company's size, and property and casualty insurance companies.  The NAIC has established minimum capital requirements in(2) the form of RBC.  RBC requirements weight the type of business underwritten by an insurance company, the qualityinherent riskiness of its financial assets and various other aspects of an insurance company's businessoperations, i.e. a company must hold capital in proportion to developits risk. The RBC requirement thus determines a minimum level of capital called "authorized control level risk-based capital"required for an insurer to support its operations and compares this levelwrite coverage. The purpose of the RBC requirements is to adjusted statutoryidentify weakly capitalized companies, which facilitates regulatory actions to ensure that the policyholders will receive the benefits promised. Regulators have the legal authority to take preventive and corrective measures depending on the capital that includes capital and surplus as reported under statutory accounting principles, plus certain investment reserves.  Shoulddeficiency indicated by the RBC result. If a company's ratio of total adjusted statutory capital to control level risk-based capital fallis above 200%, no regulatory intervention is needed. If it falls below 200%, interventions range from submission of action plans to a seriesregulatory takeover of actions would be required by the affectedmanagement of the company, including submitting a capital planwhich occurs if the ratio is below 70%. We have committed to the departmentColorado Division of insurance in the insurance company's state of domicile.Insurance that we will keep CICA Domestic's RBC ratio at or above 350%.

InsuranceIn addition to monitoring our financial condition, insurance regulatory authorities (including state law enforcement agencies and attorneys general) periodically make inquiries and regularly conduct examinations regarding compliance by us and our subsidiaries with insurance and other laws and regulations regarding the conduct of our insurance businesses.  It is our practice to fully and consistently cooperate with such inquiries and examinations and take corrective action when warranted.

In order to sell products in any state, we first have to become licensed in that state. States have various rules for obtaining a license, including capital deposit requirements and seasoning requirements, among others. Once we are licensed in a state, most states require us to file our products for their approval before being able to sell the products. The application and product forms must comply with state insurance laws regarding policy requirements. Once an application or product is approved in that state, we must use the approved forms to sell our products. We have to file our domestic forms in both English and Spanish for separate approvals. We are also subject to laws related to our advertising and may have to file certain marketing documents with state regulators as well.
 
Because Citizens is a holding company that directly and indirectly owns insurance operating subsidiaries, we are also subject to regulation in our fourthree domiciliary states that require us to furnish the respective insurance regulators with financial and other information concerning the operations of, and the interrelationships and transactions among, the companies within our holding company system that may materially affect the operations, management or financial condition of the insurers within the system. Generally, these laws and regulations require that all transactions within a holding company system between an insurer and its affiliates be fair and reasonable and that the insurer's statutory capital and surplus following any transaction with an affiliate be both reasonable in relation to its outstanding liabilities and adequate to its financial needs.  For certain types of agreements and transactions between an insurer and its affiliates, these laws and regulations require prior notification to, and non-disapproval or approval by, the insurance regulatory authority of the insurer's jurisdiction of domicile. These laws also require that a controlling party obtain the approval of the insurance commissioner of the insurance company's jurisdiction of domicile prior to acquiring or divesting control of the insurer.

The payment of dividends or other distributions to Citizens by our insurance subsidiaries is also regulated by the insurance laws and regulations of their respective state or jurisdiction of domicile.  The laws and regulations of some of these jurisdictions also prohibit an insurer from declaring or paying a dividend except out of its earned surplus or require the insurer to obtain regulatory approval before it may do so.  In addition, insurance regulators may prohibit the payment of ordinary dividends or other payments by our insurance subsidiaries to us (such as a payment under a tax sharing agreement or for employee or other services) if they determine such payment could be adverse to policyholders or insurance contract holders of the subsidiary.

In additionBecause we maintain sensitive data regarding our customers, we are also subject to additional state insurance-specific laws, U.S. laws,regulations in states where we do business, such as data security and state privacy laws.

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While primarily regulated at the USA Patriot Act of 2001, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999, the International Money Laundering Abatement and Financial Anti-Terrorism Act of 2001, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, are examples of U.S. laws that affectstate level, our business.  We aredomestic business is subject to comprehensive regulations undervarious federal laws and regulations. Some of the primary federal laws include:

USA Patriot Act and the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act, which require us to institute certain measures to detect and prevent money laundering;
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which makes it unlawful to bribe foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business;
Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which requires us to explain our information-sharing practices to our customers and to safeguard sensitive data;
Securities Act, Securities Exchange Act and Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which establish various requirements for Citizens, as a public company, to comply with, respect to money laundering, as well as federal regulations regarding privacyincluding registration of our Class A common stock, reporting and confidentiality.  disclosure requirements, and public company audit and internal control requirements;

Our U.S.-based insurance products and thus our businesses also are affected by U.S. federal, state and local tax laws.


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HUMAN CAPITAL RESOURCES

Composition and Demographics

Our human capital is a critical component to our success. Our employees implement and drive our strategic initiatives and contribute to the success of our products (development, underwriting, pricing adequacy, customer service), promotions and processes. Our employees in our claims department are ultimately tasked with "keeping our promise". Our independent consultants and agents also drive our key goals, as they sell our insurance products and provide local services to our global base of policyholders. We also believe that we derive a great deal of strength from our diverse workforce. Fostering an equitable and inclusive workplace with diverse teams produces more creative solutions, and results in more innovative products and services and is crucial to our efforts to attract, develop and retain key talent.


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As of December 31, 2021,2023, we had 215232 employees. The pie charts below illustrate the gender, racial, ethnicity, and generational make-up of our total employee workforce as of such date.

cia-20211231_g3.jpgcia-20211231_g4.jpgcia-20211231_g5.jpgcia-20211231_g6.jpgGender Composition
cia-20211231_g7.jpgcia-20211231_g8.jpg3833638337
Racial/Ethnic Composition
3833838339
Generational Composition
549755885519549755885520


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We determine race, ethnicity, gender, and generation based on our employees' self-identification or other information compiled to meet requirements of the U.S. government.

None of our employees are subject to a collective bargaining agreement.

We currently do not utilize captive employee agents to distribute our products and thus contract with almostover 1,000 actively producing independent consultants internationally and over 5002,000 independent agencies and agents domestically to sell and service our insurance products. Our international independent agentsconsultants generally reflect the demographics of the areas in which they sell their products, i.e., our agents in Latin America are almost all Hispanic or Latino and our agents in Taiwan are almost all Asian.products.

In order to continue to develop, sell and administer our products, it is crucial that we continue to attract and retain both experienced employees and independent agents.


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CompensationOVERVIEW

Citizens, Inc. ("Citizens" or the "Company") is an insurance holding company incorporated in Colorado serving the life insurance needs of individuals in the United States since 1969 and Benefitsinternationally since 1975. Through our domestic insurance subsidiaries, we are licensed to provide insurance benefits to residents in 39 U.S. states and through our international subsidiaries, we provide insurance benefits to residents in over 75 different countries. We pursue a strategy of offering traditional insurance products in niche markets where we believe we are able to achieve competitive advantages. We had approximately $1.7 billion of assets and approximately $4.9 billion of direct insurance in force at December 31, 2023.  

We operate in two business segments:

Life Insurance - Internationally, we sell U.S. dollar-denominated ordinary whole life insurance, endowment and critical illness policies to non-U.S. residents, located principally in Latin America and the Pacific Rim. Domestically, we sell whole life insurance, life insurance with living benefits, critical illness, credit life and disability products throughout the U.S.

Home Service Insurance - We sell final expense life insurance policies to middle- and lower-income households, as well as whole life products with higher allowable face values, in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas.

Our compensation program is designedPrincipal Brands

LIFE INSURANCE SEGMENT
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Internationally, we conduct our Life Insurance segment business through CICA Life, A.I., a Puerto Rico company ("CICA International").
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Domestically, we conduct our Life Insurance segment business through CICA Life Insurance Company of America ("CICA Domestic").

HOME SERVICE INSURANCE SEGMENT
SPLIC Logo.jpg
We conduct our Home Service Insurance segment through Security Plan Life Insurance Company ("SPLIC") and Magnolia Guaranty Life Insurance Company ("Magnolia").

As an insurance provider, we collect premiums on an ongoing basis from our policyholders and invest the majority of the premiums to attractpay future benefits, including claims, surrenders and retain talented individuals who possesspolicyholder dividends. Accordingly, the skills necessaryCompany derives its revenues principally from: (1) life insurance premiums earned for insurance coverages provided to supportinsureds in our business objectives, assist in the achievement of our strategic goalstwo operating segments; and create long-term value for our stockholders. We provide employees with compensation packages that include base salary and annual performance-based bonus opportunities that include cash, and for our executive officers, long-term equity awards currently in the form of restricted stock units ("RSUs"). We believe that a compensation program with both short-term cash awards and long-term equity awards provides fair and competitive compensation and aligns employee and stockholder interests.(2) net investment income. In addition to cashpaying and equity compensation,reserving for insurance benefits that we also offer standard employee benefits such as lifepay to our policyholders, our expenses consist primarily of the costs of selling our insurance products (e.g., commissions, underwriting, marketing expenses), operating expenses and health (medical, dental & vision) insurance, HSA contributions, paid parental leave, and a 401(k) plan.income taxes.

Independent agents work for themselvesBecause collection of premiums is the primary source of our revenues, our overall financial performance depends primarily upon the development and may selldistribution of our products. A key to product development is the pricing of our insurance products and the accuracy of our pricing assumptions. We seek to price our insurance policies such that insurance premiums and future net investment income earned on premiums received will cover the ultimate cost of paying claims on our policies, our expenses and will also yield a profit margin. Pricing adequacy depends on a number of factors, including the ability to project future losses based on historical loss experience adjusted for

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known trends, proper evaluation of underwriting risks, the Company’s response to competitors, commission payments for selling our products, expectations about interest rates and regulatory or legal developments, and expense levels.

In addition to insurance premiums, the investment return, or yield, on invested assets is an important element of the Company’s earnings since life insurance products are priced with the assumption that premiums received can be invested for a period of time before benefits are paid. Pursuant to regulatory guidelines, most of the Company’s invested assets are held in available-for-sale ("AFS") fixed maturity securities, primarily in asset classes of corporate bonds, municipal bonds, and government obligation bonds. The interest rate environment has a significant impact on the determination of insurance contract liabilities, our investment rates and yields, and our asset/liability management. The profitability of our "spread-based" product features depends largely on the Company’s ability to earn higher returns on invested assets than the interest we credit to policyholders.

The primary investment objective for the Company is to maximize economic value, consistent with acceptable risk parameters, including the management of credit risk and interest rate sensitivity of invested assets, while generating sufficient after-tax income to meet policyholder and corporate obligations. The Company maintains a prudent investment strategy that may vary based on a variety of insurersfactors including business needs, regulatory requirements and make most of their money through sales commissions and bonuses. We attract and retain our independent agent sales force through the use of our commission structure and agent campaigns and promotions. We believe that our standard commission structure is attractive and competitive in the market. In our Life Insurance segment, we believe our campaigns and promotions provide an extra incentive to agents that not only promote first year premium growth, but also create improvements within policyholder retention. In our Home Service Insurance segment, we believe our agent campaigns and promotions are critical in attracting and retaining our independent agent sales force. This business contains a large block of existing in force policies. To ensure we maintain this book of business, the agent campaigns and promotions provide an extra incentive to not only grow the business but to collect on the existing policies. We believe that providing agent campaigns and promotions with additional incentives that provide long-term value creates an advantage for Citizens over our competition.tax considerations.

WellnessIN 2021, WE BECAME A NON-CONTROLLED COMPANY

Throughout most of our history, the Company was led and controlled by our founder Harold E. Riley and his family members. Mr. Riley passed away in 2017 and in 2020, a change-in-control of our Company occurred when the shares held by the Harold E. Riley Trust were transferred to the Harold E. Riley Foundation (the “Foundation”). In February 2021, the Company entered into an agreement with the Foundation to purchase all of the outstanding shares of Class B common stock for a purchase price of $9.1 million (the “B Share Transaction”). After the completion of the B Share Transaction and the appointment of a new Chief Executive Officer, we believe the Company was positioned to offer stability to our management team, employees and independent sales force and was able to move forward with new business and strategic initiatives, as described below.

STRATEGIC INITIATIVES

Historically, our insurance companies have only issued a few products and had limited distribution channels. Since the change-in-control described above, our growth strategy shifted to focusing on first year sales growth through introduction of new products and new distribution channels, retaining renewal premiums through policy retention efforts, focused execution, and financial and expense discipline. We believe these factors will lead to growth and profitability.

We are committedbelieve that our roadmap execution process is key to the healthachieving our strategic goals as it helps us focus on three specific sales levers in each market - products, promotions and safety of our work force and compliance with applicable regulatory and legal requirements. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2021processes. Specifically, we implemented operating changesa five-quarter roadmap that we determined were inlays out the best interest of the health of our employees, including offering a hybrid work environment where our employees can work part- or full-time from home, depending on their position and circumstances. We also have implemented training programs to assist our independent agents with online sales efforts in order to minimize face-to-face interactions with potential customers and our policyholders.following:

Item 1A.Products RISK FACTORS. We have a robust product development process that focuses on our customer needs by developing new products tailored to our specific markets, working with partners to develop products tailored to their markets, and enhancing existing products. New products help our sales force, as they can sell additional products to existing customers and offer a broader portfolio of products to entice prospective customers. A broader product portfolio also helps attract new distributors. Our management team meets on a monthly basis to ensure we are bringing the right products to market at the right time.

You should carefully considerPromotions. We are focused on implementing sales promotions and campaigns in order to align our sales consultant compensation opportunities with our premium revenue goals and our growth and retention initiatives.

Processes. We are implementing process improvements and new technologies in order to get products to our customers faster and improve the following discussion of risks. If any of these risks develop into actual events,experience for both our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows could be materiallypolicyholders and adversely affected,our agents. We also implemented new processes and as a result, the trading price oftechnologies to help our Class A common stock could decline. These risk factors may also be important to understanding other statements in this Form 10-K. The following information should be read in conjunction with Part I. Item 3. Legal Proceedings, Part II. Item 7. Management’s Discussionemployees work more effectively and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II. Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this report..efficiently.


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BecauseStatus of the following factors, as well as other factors affecting the Company’s financial conditionNew and operating results, past financial performance should not be considered to be a reliable indicator of future performance, and investors should not use historical trends to anticipate results or trendsEnhanced Products; Trends in future periods.Market Demand

A SUBSTANTIAL PORTION OF OUR REVENUE IS GENERATED FROM INSURANCE PRODUCTS SOLD OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED STATES. WHILE OUR PRODUCTS ARE PRICED AND PAID FOR IN U.S. DOLLARS, OUR FOREIGN OPERATIONS MAY SUBJECT US TO SEVERAL RISKS.

Our salesAs mentioned above, offering new and enhanced products are key to residents of foreign countries expose us to unknown risks related to foreign regulation, foreign currency and tax laws, and political instability. A significant loss of sales in these foreign markets would have a material adverse effect onachieving our results of operations and financial condition.strategic goals. In 2023 we:

Introduced 3 new products in both English and Spanish under our CICA Domestic brand, leading to first year premium revenue growth of 13% in our Life Insurance segment.

Obtained an A.M. Best rating for the first time ever in July 2023.
CICA Domestic is rated as a B++ with a "Very Strong" balance sheet. We believe this will help us expand our distribution networks and the appeal of our products to consumers.

Completed the move of our international business from Bermuda to Puerto Rico, which we believe will drive greater demand for our international products.

As we seek to optimize value for the Company's shareholders, customers and distributors, we believe our efforts to develop and enhance our products, incentivize our sales force and make process and technology improvements will continue to put the Company on a stronger financial footing and drive sustainable growth.

LIFE INSURANCE SEGMENT

Until December 31, 2022, our Life Insurance segment primarily operated through CICA Life Ltd. ("CICA Bermuda"), a Bermuda company. Upon surveying the market demands and needs of our policyholders, in 2022 we formed a new subsidiary in Puerto Rico, CICA Life, A.I. ("CICA International"). CICA International Regulatory Risks.A substantialreceived a license in September 2022 to issue business as a Puerto Rico international insurer for the Company’s international portion of its Life Insurance segment. Beginning January 1, 2023, all new international policies are issued by CICA International (CICA Life, A.I.) and on August 31, 2023, CICA Bermuda transferred all of its insurance in force business to CICA International and we voluntarily surrendered our insurance license in Bermuda. Because CICA International provides our non-U.S. policyholders the ability to purchase policies in a U.S. territory and in a jurisdiction where the primary language spoken is Spanish, which is the primary language of the majority of our direct insurance premiums, approximately 68% at December 31, 2021, are frominternational policyholders, in foreign countries, primarily thosewe believe this change will drive sales and improve policy retention, leading to revenue growth.

INTERNATIONAL LIFE INSURANCE

Sales and Distribution

We focus our international sales to residents in Latin America and the Pacific Rim. As of December 31, 2023, we had insurance policies in force in over 75 foreign countries and receive the majority of our premiums from Colombia, Taiwan, Venezuela, Ecuador and Argentina. International direct premiums comprised approximately 97% of total direct premiums in the Life Insurance segment and 70% of our total consolidated direct premiums in 2023.
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We believe positive attributes of our international insurance business typically include:

larger face amount policies issued compared to our U.S. operations, which results in low underwriting and administrative costs per dollar of coverage;
high persistency and low mortality charges due to our customer demographics; and
premiums paid annually at the beginning of each policy year rather than monthly or quarterly, which reduces our administrative expenses, accelerates cash flow and results in lower policy lapse rates than premium payment options with more frequently scheduled payments.

We sell our products internationally through independent marketing agencies and consultants who specialize in life insurance products. We enter into contracts with the independent marketing agencies pursuant to which they recruit, train and supervise their managers and associates in the sales and service of our products. These policiesagencies receive commissions for products they sell and service, as well as commission overrides on the business that their agents produce and, in return for the override, they guarantee any debt their agents owe to us. Their agents also contract directly with us as independent consultants and receive commission compensation directly from us. This allows us to develop a relationship with their associates so if an agency contract is terminated for any reason, we may seek to continue the existing independent consultant marketing arrangements with the associates of such agency. Our agreements typically provide that the agencies and their agents are issued byindependent consultants responsible for their own operational expenses and are the representative of the prospective insured. Our contracts require the independent marketing agencies and consultants to understand and comply with all laws applicable to sales of our Bermuda subsidiary, products in their country.

Products

CICA International issues primarily ordinary whole life insurance and endowment products in U.S. dollar-denominated amounts to non-U.S. residents.  The whole life insurance products are designed to provide a fixed amount of insurance coverage over the life of the insured and can include rider benefits to provide additional coverage and annuity benefits to enhance accumulations.  Our endowment contracts are principally accumulation contracts that incorporate an element of life insurance protection. These products have premium rates that are competitive with most foreign local companies and have been structured to provide the policyowners with:

U.S. dollar-denominated cash values that accumulate, beginning in the first policy year, throughout a policyholder’s lifetime;
protection against devaluation of the policyowners' local currency and local hyper-inflation;
capital investment in a more secure economic environment (i.e., the U.S.); and
lifetime income guarantees for an insured or for surviving beneficiaries.

Our international products have both living and death benefit features. Most policies contain guaranteed cash values and are soldparticipating (i.e., provide for cash dividends as apportioned by CICA International's board of directors).  Once a policyowner pays the annual premium and the policy is issued, the owner becomes entitled to policy cash dividends and may elect to receive annual premium benefits.  The policyowner has several options with regards to the policy dividends and annual premium benefits, which include, among other things, electing to receive cash, crediting such amounts towards the payment of premiums on the policy, leaving such amounts on deposit with the Company to accumulate at a defined interest rate or assigning them to a third-party. Under the "assigned to a third-party" provision, the Company has historically allowed policyowners, after receiving a copy of the Citizens, Inc. Stock Investment Plan (the "SIP") prospectus and acknowledging their understanding of the risks of investing in Citizens' Class A common stock, the right to assign policy values outside of the policy to the SIP, which is administered in the United States by Computershare Trust Company, N.A., our third-party plan administrator and an affiliate of Computershare, Inc., our transfer agent. The SIP is a direct stock purchase plan available to policyowners, shareholders, our employees and directors, independent consultants, who are locatedand other potential investors through the Computershare website. The Company has registered the shares of Class A common stock issuable to participants under the SIP on a registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, (the "Securities Act") that is on file with the SEC. Computershare administers the SIP in accordance with the terms and conditions of the SIP, which is available on the Computershare website and as part of the Company’s registration statement on file with the SEC.


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Competition

The life insurance business is highly competitive.  Internationally, we compete with a number of life insurance companies, as well as with financial institutions that offer insurance products.  

We face competition from other insurance companies that operate in the same markets and manner as we do. Additionally, some of our competitors are local companies formed and operated in the country in which an insured resides, and others are companies foreign to the countries in which their products are sold, but issue insurance policies denominated in the local currency of those countries or issue products approved by regulators of those countries.  Some of these companies may have a competitive advantage over us due to their greater financial resources, histories of successful operations and brand recognition, local licensing, partnering with local insurance companies and larger marketing forces. 

We believe that we have a competitive advantage over some of our competitors because premiums on our international policies are sold. Other than Bermuda,paid in U.S. dollars, cash value is accumulated in U.S. dollars, and we pay claims and benefits in U.S. dollars. We believe this provides security and stability to our insureds, who are generally individuals in the middle- to upper-middle class in their respective countries with significant net worth and earnings.  Therefore, our products protect them from the inflationary risks and economic crises that have been common in many of our top-producing foreign countries.

DOMESTIC LIFE INSURANCE

Prior to July 1, 2023, our domestic life insurance business operated through CICA Domestic and Citizens National Life Insurance Company ("CNLIC"). CNLIC merged into CICA Domestic on July 1, 2023 in order to streamline and focus our domestic life insurance business in one entity. In 2023, domestic direct life insurance premiums comprised approximately 3% of total direct premiums in the Life Insurance segment and 2% of our consolidated total direct premiums. The majority of our domestic in force business results from renewal premiums from blocks of business of insurance companies we have never registeredacquired over the years. In late 2022, we began our "white label" program to expand our distribution, we began expanding CICA Domestic's state licenses, developing new final expense and living benefit products, and filing these new products in multiple states.

HOME SERVICE INSURANCE SEGMENT

We operate our domestic Home Service Insurance segment through SPLIC and Magnolia and prior to June 30, 2023, Security Plan Fire Insurance Company ("SPFIC"). SPLIC issues final expense life insurance and critical illness products to middle- and lower-income individuals, primarily through a home service distribution model based in Louisiana. Policies issued by Magnolia are primarily burial policies which are serviced through funeral homes, who are also typically the beneficiaries of the policies. SPFIC is a limited liability casualty company that prior to June 30, 2023, sold small face value property insurance policies covering dwelling and contents, primarily in Louisiana. We ceased operations on June 30, 2023 as explained in more detail in Part II, Item 7, Managements' Discussion and Analysis, Overview section. In 2023, our Home Service Insurance segment comprised 27% of our total consolidated direct premiums.

Products and Competition

Our Home Service Insurance products consist primarily of small face amount ordinary whole life and pre-need policies, which are designed to fund final expenses for the insured (e.g., funeral and burial costs).  The average life insurance policy face amount issued in 2023 was approximately $12,900 per policy. Due to the lower risk associated with small face amount polices, the underwriting performed on these applications is limited. As part of the Home Service Insurance segment transformation mentioned above, in 2021 we introduced a new product, Security Plan Plus, which has a higher allowed face amount. In December 2021, we also introduced a critical illness product, which pays the insured a lump sum following the diagnosis of an illness covered under the plan.  To a much lesser extent, our Home Service Insurance segment sold property insurance policies covering dwellings and content until it ceased operations on June 30, 2023. We provided $30,000 maximum coverage on any one dwelling and contents policy, while content-only coverage and dwelling-only coverage were both limited to $20,000.

We face competition in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas from other companies specializing in final expense insurance. We seek to compete by delivering exceptional personal service to our customers, enhancing our

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management team and upgrading our agent field force.  We intend to continue premium growth within this segment by focusing on direct independent agent-to-consumer sales.

REINSURANCE

We follow the industry practice of reinsuring a portion of our insurance risks with unaffiliated reinsurers. In a reinsurance transaction, a reinsurer agrees to indemnify another insurer for part or all of its liability under a policy or policies it has issued for an agreed upon premium. We participate in reinsurance activities in order to minimize exposure to significant risks, limit losses, and provide additional capacity for future growth. We enter into various agreements with reinsurers that cover individual risks, group risks or defined blocks of business, primarily on a coinsurance and yearly renewable term basis.

For the majority of our life insurance business, we generally retain the first $100,000 of risk on any one life and reinsure the remainder of the risk. Therefore, under the terms of the reinsurance agreements, the reinsurers agree to reimburse us for the ceded amount (i.e., the death benefit amount less our retained risk) in the event a claim is paid. Cessions under reinsurance agreements do not discharge our obligations as the primary insurer. In the event reinsurers do not meet their obligations under the terms of the reinsurance agreements, reinsurance recoverable balances could become uncollectible.

Our amounts recoverable from reinsurers represent receivables from and/or reserves ceded to reinsurers. The amount recoverable from reinsurers was $4.0 million as of December 31, 2023.

We focus on obtaining reinsurance from a diverse group of well-established reinsurers. All of our reinsurers are rated A- (Excellent) or higher by A.M. Best. We regularly evaluate the financial condition of our reinsurers and monitor concentration risk with our reinsurers.

OTHER NON-INSURANCE ENTERPRISES

Other Non-Insurance Enterprises includes the results of our parent company, Citizens, Inc. and our non-insurance subsidiary, Computing Technology, Inc., which primarily provide the Company's corporate-support and information technology functions to the insurance operations.

OPERATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY

Most of our operations are based at our corporate headquarters in Austin, Texas. We also conduct operations for our Home Service Insurance segment from our district offices in Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi, as well as our service center in Donaldsonville, Louisiana. For the international portion of our Life Insurance segment, operations including underwriting, policy issuance, claims processing, accounting and reporting related to certain international policies were conducted in Bermuda until December 31, 2023 and are now conducted in Puerto Rico.

We have a proprietary single, centrally-controlled, mainframe-based policy administrative system ("PAS") that we use for all of our insurance companies. Our PAS performs various functions to effectively handle our insurance operations. These functions include policy set-up, administration, billing and collections, commission calculation, valuation, automated data edits, storage backup, image management and other related functions. Each company and block of business we have acquired has been converted onto our PAS. The Company is actively engaged in continued modernization of technology to invest and expand into new opportunities. This modernization allows us to bring new products to market rapidly and automate insurance interactions to enhance user experience. This investment is foundational to the Company's growth strategy as we pursue new product innovation and provides:

our customers and agents with portals to be able to access account information 24/7;
our policyholder service and claims representatives with a customer account-centric view of our policyholders and beneficiaries, reducing customer inquiry response time and claims processing time; and
business-to-business solutions.


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REGULATION

The insurance industry is heavily regulated and both Citizens and our insurance subsidiaries are subject to regulation and supervision by the U.S. states in which they do business, by U.S. federal laws, and for CICA International, by Puerto Rico.

REGULATION OF OUR INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

Puerto Rico

CICA International, our Puerto Rico domiciled subsidiary, is regulated by the Puerto Rico Office of the Insurance Commissioner (“OIC”) and is licensed pursuant to the Puerto Rico Insurance Code (the "Insurance Code"). Although Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory, it has its own tax code and own insurance code, including a provision under its Insurance Code that allows CICA International to be established as an "international insurer" and thus export insurance to international markets. We may not insure risks of residents of Puerto Rico with this type of license and we do not issue policies to U.S. risks through CICA International.

The Insurance Code does not specifically set forth minimum capital and surplus standards, but rather requires that an insurer submit a business plan for approval to the OIC that includes proposed minimum capital and surplus. CICA International is required to maintain a minimum of $750,000 in these countries,capital and our products have not been approved bymaintain a governmental authority. While we have undertaken a comprehensive compliance reviewpremium to surplus ratio of risks associated7 to 1. The Insurance Code requires us to file annual U.S. GAAP financial statements with the potential applicationOIC that include schedules providing information regarding premiums written and reinsurance assumed and ceded, as well as an annual actuarial certification.

In addition to compliance with the Insurance Code, CICA International must comply with other laws and regulations of foreign lawsPuerto Rico, most of which apply to our salesdomestic subsidiaries as well, including the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act and other anti-money laundering laws and regulations of insurance policies in foreign countries, the laws vary by country and there is a lack of uniform regulation and lack of clarity in certain regulations and thus we face various risks associated with the application of foreign laws to these sales.United States.

Other International Regulation

Generally, all foreign countries in which we offer insurance products require either CICA International and/or our independent consultants to obtain a license or other authority to conduct insurance business in that country. Some of these countries also require that local regulatory authorities approve the terms of any insurance product sold to residents of that country. Other than formerly in Bermuda, where CICA International is domiciled, we have never sought to qualifyqualified to do business in any foreign country, or jurisdiction and we have never submitted theour international insurance policies thatfor approval to any regulatory agency. As described above, we issuesell our policies to residents of foreign countries for approval by any insurance regulatory agency. Some foreign governments have determined under their existing laws that their residents may not purchase life insurance from us or sell life insurance on our behalf unless we become qualified to do business in that country or unless our policies receive prior approval from their insurance regulators. Others have a "consumption abroad" model where their residents may purchase unregistered products only if they are outside of their country when the purchase is made. There is a risk that foreign governments where we sell our products will become more aggressive in enforcing any perceived violations of their laws and seek to impose monetary fines, criminal penalties, and/or order us to cease our sales in that jurisdiction. There is no assurance that, if a foreign country were to require that we qualify to do business in that country or submit our policies for approval by that country’s regulatory authorities, we would be able to, or would conclude that it is financially reasonable to comply with those requirements.

We have sought to mitigate the risks described above by, among other things, not locating any of our offices or assets in these foreign countries or jurisdictions, selling policies only through independent marketing agencies and independent consultants rather than our own employees, requiring that all applications for insurance be submitted tolocated in those countries and accepted only in our offices in Bermuda, and requiring that policy premiums be paid to us only in U.S. dollars. Wewe rely on our independent consultants to comply with laws applicable to them in marketing and servicing our insurance products in their respective countries. There is no assurance that these precautionary measures, practices and policies will partially or entirely mitigate the

We have undertaken a comprehensive compliance review of risks associated with the potential application of foreign laws to our sales of insurance policies in foreign countries. The application of foreign laws to our sales of insurance policies in foreign markets. From timecountries varies by country. There is a lack of uniform regulation, lack of clarity in certain regulations and lack of legal precedent in addressing circumstances similar to time,ours. Our compliance review has confirmed certain risks related to foreign insurance regulatorslaws associated with our current business model, at least in certain jurisdictions, as described in detail in Item 1A. Risk Factors.

U.S. REGULATION

In the United States, insurance is primarily regulated at the state level. Our primary regulator in the foreign countriesU.S. is the Colorado Division of Insurance, as both Citizens and CICA Domestic are Colorado companies. We are also regulated by the departments of insurance in Louisiana (SPLIC and SPFIC) and Mississippi (Magnolia), as well as each of the 39 states and the District of Columbia in which we operateconduct insurance business. In supervising and regulating insurance companies, state insurance departments aim to protect policyholders and the public rather than investors, and enjoy broad authority and discretion in applying applicable insurance laws and regulation for that purpose. The extent of this regulation varies, but most U.S. jurisdictions have sought to exercise regulatory authority overlaws and regulations based upon the Company,National Association of Insurance Commissioners ("NAIC") model rules governing the financial condition of insurers, including throughstandards of solvency, types and concentration of investments, establishment and maintenance of reserves, credit for reinsurance and requirements of capital adequacy; and the impositionbusiness conduct of fines and we have chosen not to do business in certain countries, such as Brazil, due to these actions. Although the Company believes that these foreign regulators do not have jurisdiction over the Company and that any actions, including fines, may be unenforceable against the Company, any regulatory action could otherwise absorb Company time and resources away from its business operations or the Company may choose to pay such fines in order to do business in a particular country. Alternatively, the Company may determine that the risks associated with a particular market and its regulatory environment outweigh the benefits of conducting further business in that market and discontinue doing business there.

Any actions by a foreign government to enforce these laws against us could cause disruption to the marketing and sale of our policies in that country or our withdrawal from doing business in that country, which could have ainsurers,

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material adverse effect on our premium revenue, our costsincluding marketing and expensessales practices and on our resultsclaims handling.  In addition, statutes and regulations require the licensing of operationsinsurers and financial condition.agents, the approval of most types of policy forms and related materials (such as advertising) and the approval of rates for certain types of insurance products.

International CurrencyIn order for insurance regulators to monitor solvency, insurance companies are subject to risk-based capital ("RBC") requirements. The RBC requirement is a statutory minimum level of capital that is based on two factors - (1) the insurance company's size, and Tax Risks.(2) the inherent riskiness of its financial assets and operations, i.eCurrency control laws or other currency exchange restrictions. a company must hold capital in foreign countries could materially adversely affect our revenues by limiting the abilityproportion to its risk. The RBC requirement thus determines a minimum level of our policyholders in such countriescapital required for an insurer to pay premiums in U.S. dollars or to receive U.S. dollar benefits. Additionally, difficulties in transferring funds from or converting currencies to U.S. dollars in certain countries could cause an increase in feessupport its operations and costs associated with such payments or receipt of benefits and therefore make our products less attractive to such policyholders.

Bermuda participates in the Common Reporting Standard (CRS), which is an information standard for the automatic exchange of information regarding financial accounts on a global level, among tax authorities who participate in CRS. CICA International complies with CRS reporting requirements and therefore we send required account information to certain foreign tax regulators. Taxes imposed upon our policyholders by these foreign countries may cause our products to be less attractive than other products which may be more tax-advantaged. A significant loss of sales or surrenders due to tax reporting could materially impact our business.

International Political Risks.Manywrite coverage. The purpose of the countries inRBC requirements is to identify weakly capitalized companies, which we operatefacilitates regulatory actions to ensure that the policyholders will receive the benefits promised. Regulators have a history of political instability, including regime changes, political uprisings,the legal authority to take preventive and anti-democratic or anti-U.S. policies. The ability of people living in these countries to purchase and continue to make premium payments on our insurance policies and our ability to sell our policies in those countries through our independent consultants or otherwise may be adversely affected by political instability. Given the nature of our products, in an economic environment characterized by higher unemployment, lower personal income and reduced consumer spending, new product sales may be adversely affected. During such periods, we may also experience higher claims incidence, longer claims duration, increase in policy lapses and/or increase in surrenders, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition. In addition, the imposition of U.S. sanctions against foreign countries where our policyholders reside could make it difficult for us to continue to issue new policies and receive premiums from policyholders in those countries.

We face significant competition in our international markets. If we are unable to compete effectively in these markets, our business, results of operations and profitability may be adversely affected.

Our international marketing plan focuses on offering U.S. dollar-denominated life insurance products to individuals residing in foreign countries and we dependcorrective measures depending on the abilitycapital deficiency indicated by the RBC result. If a company's ratio of our independent consultants in foreign countriestotal adjusted statutory capital to effectively distribute our products.control level risk-based capital is above 200%, no regulatory intervention is needed. If it falls below 200%, interventions range from submission of action plans to a regulatory takeover of the management of the company, which occurs if the ratio is below 70%. We experience considerable competition, primarily fromhave committed to the following sources, manyColorado Division of which have substantially greater financial, marketing and other resources thanInsurance that we have:

Foreign companies with U.S. dollar-denominated policies. We face direct competition from companies that operate in the same manner as we do in our international markets, including from a company recently formed by some of our former employees and independent consultants who we have sued for, among other things, unfair competition (see, Part I. Item 3. Legal Proceedings);
Foreign companies with locally operated subsidiaries that are registered in those countries and offer both local jurisdiction-regulated products in local currency and off-shore U.S. dollar-denominated policies. This arrangement creates competition in that the U.S. dollar-denominated policies are cross-sold with high-need local insurance policies such as health insurance; and
Locally operated companies with local currency policies. We compete with companies formed and operated in the country in which our foreign insureds reside.will keep CICA Domestic's RBC ratio at or above 350%.

In addition from time to time, companies entermonitoring our financial condition, insurance regulatory authorities (including state law enforcement agencies and exitattorneys general) periodically make inquiries and regularly conduct examinations regarding compliance with insurance and other laws and regulations regarding the markets in which we operate, thereby increasing competition at timesconduct of our insurance businesses.  It is our practice to fully and consistently cooperate with such inquiries and examinations and take corrective action when there are new entrants. We may lose business to competitors offering competitive products at lower prices, or for other reasons.warranted.

SinceIn order to sell products in any state, we rely on independent consultantsfirst have to become licensed in that state. States have various rules for distributionobtaining a license, including capital deposit requirements and seasoning requirements, among others. Once we are licensed in a state, most states require us to file our products for their approval before being able to sell the products. The application and product forms must comply with state insurance laws regarding policy requirements. Once an application or product is approved in that state, we must use the approved forms to sell our products. We have to file our domestic forms in both English and Spanish for separate approvals. We are also subject to laws related to our advertising and may have to file certain marketing documents with state regulators as well.
Because Citizens is a holding company that directly and indirectly owns insurance operating subsidiaries, we are also subject to regulation in our three domiciliary states that require us to furnish the respective insurance regulators with financial and other information concerning the operations of, and the interrelationships and transactions among, the companies within our holding company system that may materially affect the operations, management or financial condition of the insurers within the system. Generally, these laws and regulations require that all transactions within a holding company system between an insurer and its affiliates be fair and reasonable and that the insurer's statutory capital and surplus following any transaction with an affiliate be both reasonable in relation to its outstanding liabilities and adequate to its financial needs.  For certain types of agreements and transactions between an insurer and its affiliates, these laws and regulations require prior notification to, and non-disapproval or approval by, the insurance regulatory authority of the insurer's jurisdiction of domicile. These laws also require that a controlling party obtain the approval of the insurance commissioner of the insurance company's jurisdiction of domicile prior to acquiring or divesting control of the insurer.

The payment of dividends or other distributions to Citizens by our insurance subsidiaries is also regulated by the insurance laws and regulations of their respective state or jurisdiction of domicile.  The laws and regulations of some of these jurisdictions also prohibit an insurer from declaring or paying a dividend except out of its earned surplus or require the insurer to obtain regulatory approval before it may do so.  In addition, insurance regulators may prohibit the payment of ordinary dividends or other payments by our insurance subsidiaries to us (such as a payment under a tax sharing agreement or for employee or other services) if they determine such payment could be adverse to policyholders or insurance contract holders of the subsidiary.

Because we maintain sensitive data regarding our customers, we are also subject to additional state regulations in states where we do business, such as data security and state privacy laws.

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While primarily regulated at the state level, our domestic business is subject to various federal laws and regulations. Some of the primary federal laws include:

USA Patriot Act and the Bank Secrecy Act, which require us to institute certain measures to detect and prevent money laundering;
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which makes it unlawful to bribe foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business;
Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which requires us to explain our information-sharing practices to our customers and to safeguard sensitive data;
Securities Act, Securities Exchange Act and Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which establish various requirements for Citizens, as a public company, to comply with, including registration of our Class A common stock, reporting and disclosure requirements, and public company audit and internal control requirements;

Our U.S.-based insurance products and thus our businesses also are affected by U.S. federal, state and local tax laws.

HUMAN CAPITAL RESOURCES

Composition and Demographics

Our human capital is a critical component to our success. Our employees implement and drive our strategic initiatives and contribute to the success of our products (development, underwriting, pricing adequacy, customer service), promotions and processes. Our employees in foreign markets, regulationour claims department are ultimately tasked with "keeping our promise". Our independent consultants and licensing requirements imposed uponagents also drive our Company may impactkey goals, as they sell our abilityinsurance products and provide local services to our global base of policyholders. We also believe that we derive a great deal of strength from our diverse workforce. Fostering an equitable and inclusive workplace with diverse teams produces more creative solutions, results in more innovative products and services and is crucial to our efforts to attract, develop and retain effective sales representatives, who may choose to distribute products of our competitors.

There can be no assurance that we will be able to compete effectively in any of our markets. If we do not, our business, results of operations and financial condition will be materially adversely affected.key talent.


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We face a greater riskAs of money laundering activity associated with sales derived from residentsDecember 31, 2023, we had 232 employees. The pie charts below illustrate the gender, racial, ethnicity, and generational make-up of certain foreign countries.our total employee workforce as of such date.

Some of our top international markets are in countries identified by the U.S. Department of State as jurisdictions of high risk for money laundering. As required by the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act regulations, the Bermuda Proceeds of Crime Act 1997 and the Proceeds of Crime (Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing) Regulations 2008 applicable to insurance companies, we have developed and implemented an anti-money laundering, anti-terrorist financing and sanctions program (“AML/ATF and Sanctions Program”) that includes policies, procedures, controls, independent testing, reporting and recordkeeping requirements for deterring, preventing and detecting potential money laundering, terrorist financing, fraud and other criminal activity in order to comply with U.S. and Bermuda laws. We have an enhanced AML/ATF and Sanctions Program with additional controls, such as watch-list screening beyond sanctions screening required by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control ("OFAC") and the Financial Sanctions Implementation Unit of Bermuda, enhanced payment due diligence and transaction controls. However, there can be no assurance that these enhanced controls will entirely mitigate money laundering risk associated with these jurisdictions.Gender Composition
3833638337
Racial/Ethnic Composition
3833838339
Generational Composition
549755885519549755885520

BECAUSE MOST OF OUR REVENUE DERIVES FROM COLLECTION OF PREMIUMS ON OUR PRODUCTS, OUR OVERALL FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE DEPENDS PRIMARILY UPON THE PRICING OF OUR INSURANCE PRODUCTS AND THE ACCURACY OF OUR PRICING ASSUMPTIONS. CHANGES IN ACTUAL EXPERIENCE, IMPROPER EVALUATION OF UNDERWRITING RISK AND MISMANAGEMENT OF CLAIMS HANDLING COULD SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE OUR BENEFIT AND EXPENSE COSTS AND THUS NEGATIVELY AFFECT OUR PROFITABILITY AND FINANCIAL CONDITION.We determine race, ethnicity, gender, and generation based on our employees' self-identification or other information compiled to meet requirements of the U.S. government.

The Company’s success depends on its abilityNone of our employees are subject to accurately underwrite risks and to charge adequate premiums to policyholders.a collective bargaining agreement.

The Company’s financial condition, liquidityWe do not utilize captive employee agents to distribute our products and resultsthus contract with over 1,000 actively producing independent consultants internationally and over 2,000 independent agencies and agents domestically to sell and service our insurance products. Our international independent consultants generally reflect the demographics of operations largely depend on the Company’s ability to underwrite and set premiums accurately for the risks it faces. Premium rate adequacy is necessary to generate sufficient premiums to cover our cost of sales, costs of operations (including payment of policy benefits) and to earn a profit. In order to price products accurately, the Company must develop and apply appropriate morbidity and mortality estimates, closely monitor and timely recognize changesareas in trends, and project both severity and frequency of losses with reasonable accuracy to cover these risks. The Company must also review and properly underwrite applications for life insurance in order to charge a sufficient premium to its policyholders. The Company’s ability to undertake these efforts successfully is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation:which they sell their products.

availability of sufficient reliable data;
incorrect or incomplete analysis of available data;
uncertainties inherent in estimatesIn order to continue to develop, sell and assumptions;
selection and application of appropriate rating formulae or other pricing methodologies;
adoption of successful pricing strategies;
prediction of policyholder life expectancy and retention;
unforeseen events that may causeadminister our estimates to be wrong (such as the COVID-19 pandemic);
unanticipated legislation, regulatory action or court decisions; or
unexpected changes in interest rates or inflation.

Such risks may result in the Company’s pricing being based on outdated, inadequate, or inaccurate data, or inappropriate analyses, assumptions, or methodologies, and may cause the Company to estimate incorrectly future changes in the frequency or severity of claims. As a result, the Company could underprice risks, which would negatively affect the Company’s margins, or it could overprice risks, which could reduce the Company’s volume and competitiveness. The Company’s ability to accurately underwrite risks in insurance products, depends in part on its ability to forecast such changes and trends. If it is not successful in doing so, the Company’s operating results, financial condition,crucial that we continue to attract and cash flow could be materially adversely affected.retain both experienced employees and independent agents.


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Pricing accuracy depends upon our ability to project future losses based on historical loss experience, including policyholder retention. Unanticipated increases in early policyholder withdrawals or surrenders or elections by policyholders to receive lump sum payouts at maturity could negatively impact liquidity.

A primary liquidity concern is the risk of unanticipated or extraordinary early policyholder withdrawals or surrenders. Our insurance policies include provisions, such as surrender charges, that help limit and discourage early withdrawals. We also track and manage liabilities and align our investment portfolio in an effort to maintain sufficient liquidity to support anticipated withdrawal demands. However, early withdrawal and surrender levels may differ from anticipated levels for a variety of reasons, including changes in economic conditions, changes in policyholder behavior or financial needs, changes in relationships with our independent consultants, efforts by foreign governments to tax policyholders or increases in surrenders among policies that have been in force for more than fifteen years and are no longer subject to surrender charges.

In addition, we face potential liquidity risks if policyholders with mature policies elect to receive lump sum distributions at greater levels than anticipated. Our whole life and endowment products provide the policyholder with alternatives once the policy matures. The policyholder can choose to take a lump sum payout or leave the money on deposit at interest with the Company. The Company has a significant amount of aging endowment products that have begun reaching their maturities and policyholder election behavior is not known. It is uncertain how policyholders will react in response to these maturities. If a large number of policyholders elect lump sum distributions, the Company could be exposed to liquidity risk in years of high maturities.

If we experience unanticipated early withdrawal or surrender activity or greater than expected lump sum distributions of endowment maturities and we do not have sufficient cash flow from our insurance operations to support payment of these benefits, we may have to sell our investments in order to meet our cash needs or be forced to obtain third-party financing. The availability of such financing will depend on a variety of factors, such as market conditions, the availability of credit in general or more specifically in the insurance industry, the strength or weakness of the capital markets, the volume of trading activities, our credit capacity, and the perception of our long- or short-term financial prospects if we incur large realized or unrealized investment losses or if the level of business activity declines due to a market downturn. Therefore, if we are forced to sell our investments on unfavorable terms or obtain financing with unfavorable terms, it could have an adverse effect on our liquidity, results of operations and financial condition.

Our largest expense is payments of claims and surrenders to our policyholders. Mismanagement of claims handling or increased fraudulent claims could negatively impact our costs and financial condition.

Proper claims handling is critical to managing our benefit expenses. Many factors can affect the Company’s ability to pay claims accurately, including the following:

the training, experience, and skill of the Company’s claims representatives;
the extent of fraudulent claims and the Company’s ability to recognize and respond to such claims;
the claims organization’s culture and the effectiveness of its management, and
the Company’s ability to develop or select and implement appropriate procedures, technologies, and systems to support claims functions.

The Company’s failure to pay claims fairly, accurately, and in a timely manner, or to deploy claims resources appropriately, could result in unanticipated costs, lead to material litigation, undermine customer goodwill and the Company’s reputation in the marketplace, impair its brand image and, as a result, materially and adversely affect its competitiveness, financial results, prospects, and liquidity.

Higher than expected policyholder claims related to unforeseen events may negatively impact our sales, increase our benefits and expense costs and increase our reinsurance costs, thus negatively affecting our financial condition.

Our insurance operations are exposed to the risk of unforeseen events that could cause our pricing assumptions to be wrong. Two of these unforeseen events and the risks they pose to our business are described below:


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The COVID-19 pandemic is negatively impacting certain aspects of our business and, depending on severity and duration, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and overall business operations.

The prolonged COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant disruption to the global economy and business operations and has resulted in unfavorable impacts to our Company as well as other companies the insurance industry. Due to the unprecedented nature of these events and the uncertainty surrounding the virus and its several variants and their impacts, we cannot fully estimate the duration or full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business. However, we have identified several areas where the COVID-19 pandemic impacted our business during the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020. Events that we are unable to control, such as the spread of new variants (e.g., Delta, Omicron), spikes in the number of cases of COVID-19, lower than expected vaccination rates in certain areas and the related responses by government authorities and businesses, may continue to present unforeseen risks to our business. We are closely monitoring developments related to the COVID-19 pandemic to assess its impacts on our business.

Some of the most significant risks related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic include the following:

a higher level of claims due to COVID-19 deaths; and
decreased premium revenue due to disruption to our workforce or distribution channel resulting from required isolation, travel limitations and business restrictions; and
higher surrenders and lapses due to cash needs our policyholders may have due to concerns over COVID-19 economic impacts, particularly in our international business; and
volatility in our investment portfolio due to market disruptions caused by COVID-19 related concerns such as inflation.

While we utilize an Enterprise Risk Management framework to manage potential crisis scenarios, we do not know the long-term impact that the COVID-19 pandemic may have on our business. Some potential future risks include (i) the adequacy of our pricing assumptions due to long-term effects of COVID-19, (ii) our ability to adequately underwrite risks related to COVID-19 survivors, and (iii) our ability to ensure the safety of our employees and potential lawsuits related to safety and/or workplace policies. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to reliance on digital distribution and development of digital sales and service platforms in order to offset social distancing measures and thus our ability to develop and maintain these platforms and protect them from cyber risk is critical to our ongoing success.

While governmental and non-governmental organizations are continuing to engage in efforts to combat the spread and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic and related public health issues, these measures may not be effective. We cannot predict how legal and regulatory responses to concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic and related public health issues will impact our business. Such events or conditions could result in additional regulation or restrictions affecting the conduct of our business or results of operations in the future.

Climate Change and Impact on Natural Catastrophes

The extent of losses from a catastrophe is a function of both the total amount of insured exposure in the area affected by the event and the severity of the event. Most catastrophes are restricted to small geographic areas; however, hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis and man-made catastrophes may produce significant damage or loss of life in larger areas, especially those that are heavily populated. SPFIC sells property insurance policies in Louisiana. The vast majority of SPFIC’s claims have arisen out of natural catastrophes such as Hurricane Laura and Hurricane Delta, which both hit Louisiana in 2020, and most recently, Hurricane Ida, a category 4 hurricane that hit the coast of Louisiana in August 2021. Climate change, including rising temperatures and changes in weather patterns, could impact storm frequency and severity in our coverage areas, which could materially impact our financial performance as the volume and severity of claims also continues to rise. Furthermore, since we obtain catastrophic storm reinsurance, storm frequency could cause us to have to obtain additional reinsurance, which negatively impacts our premium revenue. Since we operate in a highly regulated and competitive environment, we may not be able to raise our rates sufficiently to recoup our losses. Additionally, the volume and severity of storms increases the risks of writing property insurance in coastal areas, which could cause us to change our business model, negatively impacting our revenue and earnings.


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Our actual claims losses may exceed our reserves for claims and we may be required to establish additional reserves, which in turn may adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition.

We maintain reserves to cover our estimated exposure for claims relating to our issued insurance policies. Reserves do not represent an exact calculation of exposure, but instead represent our best estimates using actuarial and statistical procedures. Reserve estimates are refined as experience develops, and adjustments to reserves are reflected in our statements of operations for the period in which such estimates are updated. Because establishing reserves is an inherently uncertain process involving estimates of future losses, future developments may require us to increase policy benefit reserves, which restricts our use of cash to the extent of such increased reserves and increases expenses, negatively affecting our results of operations and financial condition in the periods in which such increases occur.

We may be required to accelerate the amortization of deferred acquisition costs, which would increase our expenses and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

At December 31, 2021, we had $140.4 million of deferred policy acquisition costs, or DAC. DAC represents costs that are directly related to the successful sale and issuance of our insurance policies, which costs are deferred and amortized over the estimated life of the related insurance policies. These costs include commissions in excess of ultimate renewal commissions, solicitation and printing costs, sales material costs and some support costs, such as underwriting and contract and policy issuance expenses.

Under U.S. GAAP for our type of insurance products, DAC is amortized over the premium-paying period of the policies. Because DAC is amortized over such period, unexpected changes from our assumptions that shorten the premium-paying period, such as increased lapse and surrender rates, or lower persistency in the early years of a policy, would cause us to have to accelerate the amortization of DAC. We regularly review the quality of our DAC to determine if it is recoverable from future income. If these costs are not recoverable, the amount that is not recoverable is charged to expenses in the financial period in which we make this determination. Unfavorable experience with regards to expected expenses, investment returns, surrender and other policy charges, mortality, morbidity, lapses or persistency may cause us to increase the amortization of DAC or to record a current period expense to increase benefit reserves, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

THE DISTRIBUTION OF OUR PRODUCTS THROUGH INDEPENDENT CONSULTANTS REDUCES OUR CONTROL OVER SALES AND DISTRIBUTION AND THUS SUBJECTS US TO CERTAIN RISKS THAT COULD NEGATIVELY IMPACT OUR REVENUES, OUR IN-FORCE BUSINESS, AND OUR BENEFITS AND EXPENSE COSTS.

Sales of our insurance products could decline if we are unable to establish and maintain relationships with independent marketing agencies and independent consultants and agents.

We depend almost exclusively on the services of independent marketing agencies and independent consultants and agents for the distribution of our products. These agencies, agents and consultants are key to the development and maintenance of our relationships with our policyholders. Significant competition exists among insurers in attracting and maintaining marketers of demonstrated ability. Some of our competitors may offer better compensation packages or commissions or induce agents to sell their products due to their broader product offerings, more distribution resources, better brand recognition, more competitive pricing, lower cost structures or greater financial strength or claims paying ratings than we have. We compete with other insurers for marketing agencies, agents and independent consultants primarily on the basis of our compensation, products and support services. Any reduction in our ability to attract and retain effective sales representatives could materially adversely affect our revenues, results of operations and financial condition.

Additionally, as we disclosed in Item 3. Legal Proceedings, we are subject to a risk of our independent consultants leaving our Company to sell products for a competitor and inducing our policyholders to lapse or surrender their policies, or otherwise terminate their relationship with us, in order to purchase products from the independent consultant with our competitor company.


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There may be adverse tax, legal or financial consequences if our sales representatives are determined not to be independent consultants.

Our sales representatives are independent consultants who operate their own businesses. Although we believe that we have properly classified our representatives as independent consultants, there is nevertheless a risk that the IRS, a foreign agency, a court or other authority will take the different view that our sales representatives should be classified as employees. The tests governing the determination of whether an individual is considered to be an independent consultant or an employee are typically fact-sensitive and vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Laws and regulations that govern the status and misclassification of independent sales representatives are subject to change and interpretation.

If there is a change in the manner in which our independent consultants are classified or an adverse determination with respect to some or all of our independent consultants by a court or governmental agency, we could incur significant costs in complying with such laws and regulations, including in respect of tax withholding, social security payments, government and private pension plan contributions and recordkeeping, or we may be required to modify our business model, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, there is the risk that we may be subject to significant monetary liabilities arising from fines or judgments as a result of any such actual or alleged non-compliance with applicable federal, state, local or foreign laws.

INSURANCE IS A HIGHLY REGULATED BUSINESS. REGULATIONS VARY FROM JURISDICTION TO JURISDICTION AND MAY CHANGE FROM TIME TO TIME. THESE REGULATIONS AFFECT OUR OPERATIONS AND CHANGES COULD NEGATIVELY IMPACT OUR CASH FLOW, THE RESULTS OF OUR OPERATIONS, OUR LIQUIDITY AND OUR FINANCIAL CONDITION.

LEGAL REGULATION AND RISKS

In addition to the legal risks related to our international operations discussed above in this Item 1A, Risk Factors, we are subject to risks related to the laws and regulations in the jurisdictions where we are domiciled and registered to do business, including Bermuda and various U.S. states. These material risks are described below.

Our insurance subsidiaries are subject to minimum capital and surplus requirements, and any failure to meet these requirements could subject us to regulatory action or other restrictions.

The capacity for an insurance company's growth in premiums is partially a function of its required statutory surplus. Maintaining appropriate levels of statutory surplus, as measured by statutory accounting practices prescribed or permitted by a company's jurisdiction of domicile, is considered important by insurance regulatory authorities. Failure to maintain required levels of statutory surplus could result in increased regulatory scrutiny and enforcement action by regulatory authorities.

Our insurance subsidiaries are subject to minimum capital and surplus requirements in both the U.S. and Bermuda, as described below. If we fail to meet these standards and requirements, our various regulators may require specified actions to be taken, including without limitation:

restricting distributions from our subsidiaries to Citizens; or
requiring Citizens to contribute additional capital to a subsidiary; or
requiring Citizens to enter into a guaranty or other agreement to contribute capital to such subsidiary under certain circumstances;

all of which could have a material and adverse impact on the Company’s competitiveness, operational flexibility, financial condition, and results of operations. Additionally, failure to maintain certain levels of statutory surplus could result in increased regulatory scrutiny or action by regulatory authorities.

In April 2021, Citizens and CICA International entered into a Keep Well Agreement, as described in Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Liquidity and Capital

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Resources. If CICA International's minimum capital level fell below the minimum required by the BMA, Citizens may have to contribute capital to CICA International, which could negatively impact our capital resources and liquidity.

Citizens is a holding company that has minimal operations of its own and depends on the ability of our insurance subsidiaries to pay dividends or make service payments to us in sufficient amounts to fund our operations. If they cannot make such payments, Citizens may need to sell its investments or seek external capital to cover its operational costs.

As a holding company, our assets consist of the capital stock of our subsidiaries, cash and investments. Accordingly, we rely primarily on statutorily permissible payments from our insurance company subsidiaries, principally through dividends or service agreements we have with our subsidiaries, to meet our working capital needs. As discussed above, the ability of our insurance company subsidiaries to make payments to us is subject to regulation by the states and jurisdictions in which they are domiciled, and in addition to maintaining minimum capital and surplus ratios, these payments depend primarily on regulatory approval of dividend payments and approved service agreements between us and these subsidiaries.

Except to the extent that we are a creditor with recognized claims against our subsidiaries, claims of our subsidiaries' creditors, including policyholders, have priority with respect to the assets and earnings of the subsidiaries over the claims of other creditors (including us) and shareholders. If any of our subsidiaries becomes insolvent, liquidates or otherwise reorganizes, our policyholders will have a priority to receive the assets of such subsidiary and Citizens may have no rights to receive cash or other assets of such subsidiaries.

If our internal sources of liquidity prove to be insufficient to cover our holding company operations, we may have to sell investments earlier than we want to sell them or in less than favorable market conditions, or we may have to seek external sources of capital. Out of an abundance of caution, in May 2021, we entered into a Credit Facility with Regions Bank. See Part IV, Item 1, Note 7, Commitments and Contingencies in the notes to our consolidated financial statements, herein, for a description of the Credit Facility. To date, we have not utilized the Credit Facility, but if internal sources of capital are not sufficient to meet our operating needs, we may need to utilize the Credit Facility or increase the borrowing availability under the Credit Facility. We may also need to raise capital through issuing our stock. Borrowing money, increasing our borrowing availability under the Credit Facility or obtaining financing for even a small amount of capital could be challenging or expensive in unfavorable market conditions and during periods of economic uncertainty. The availability of financing will depend on a variety of factors such as market conditions, the general availability of credit, the overall availability of credit to the financial services industry, and the possibility that customers or lenders could develop a negative perception of our financial prospects. Raising capital in unfavorable market conditions could increase our interest expense or negatively impact our shareholders through dilution of their common stock ownership of the Company.

Citizens and our insurance subsidiaries are subject to extensive governmental regulation in Bermuda and in the U.S. The rules and regulations to which we are subject may change and impose greater restrictions on our business, which could increase our costs of doing business, restrict the conduct of our business, increase capital requirements for our insurance subsidiaries and negatively impact our results of operations, liquidity and financial condition.

CICA International is registered in Bermuda and is subject to regulation by the Bermuda Monetary Authority ("BMA") and the provisions of the Bermuda Insurance Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, as well as other laws which apply to Bermuda-based companies, such as compliance with Common Reporting Standards, which are administered by the Bermuda Ministry of Finance ("MOF"). Citizens and our domestic insurance subsidiaries are subject to extensive regulation and supervision in U.S. jurisdictions where we are domiciled and where we do business. These rules and regulations require us to comply with privacy, anti-money laundering, bank secrecy, anti-corruption and foreign asset control laws among others.

In the U.S., we are subject to federal laws, as well as state-level regulation, including a requirement to obtain approval of forms and rates in the states we sell our insurance policies. Insurance company regulation is generally designed to protect the interests of policyholders, with substantially lesser protections to shareholders of the regulated insurance companies. To that end, all the U.S. states in which we do business have insurance regulatory agencies with broad legal powers with respect to licensing companies to transact business, mandating capital and surplus requirements, regulating claims practices, approving service agreements between a holding company and

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its operating subsidiary, restricting companies' ability to enter and exit markets, and restricting or prohibiting the payment of dividends by our subsidiaries to us.

The BMA and most U.S. insurance regulatory authorities have broad discretion to grant, renew, suspend and revoke licenses and approvals, and could preclude or temporarily suspend us from carrying on some or all of our activities, including acquisitions of other insurance companies, require us to add capital to our insurance company subsidiaries, or fine us. If we are unable to maintain all required licenses and approvals, or if our insurance business is determined not to comply fully with the wide variety of applicable laws and regulations and their interpretations, our revenues, results of operations and financial condition and our reputation could be materially adversely affected.

FINANCIAL REGULATION AND RISKS

Changes in accounting standards may adversely affect our reported results of operations and financial condition.

Our consolidated financial statements are subject to the application of GAAP in the U.S. and Bermuda, which is periodically revised and/or expanded. Accordingly, we are required to adopt new or revised accounting standards issued by recognized authoritative bodies, including the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB"), the BMA and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners ("NAIC"). Future accounting standards we adopt, including the FASB’s Accounting Standard Update related to long-duration insurance contracts (known as LDTI), will change current accounting and disclosure requirements applicable to our consolidated financial statements. Such changes may have a material effect on our reported results of operations or financial condition. In addition, the required adoption of new accounting standards may result in significant incremental costs associated with initial implementation and ongoing compliance. See Note 1. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the notes to our consolidated financial statements contained herein for additional information regarding accounting updates.

Unexpected losses in future reporting periods may require us to record a valuation allowance against our deferred tax assets.

Under U.S. GAAP, we are required to evaluate our deferred tax assets ("DTA") quarterly for recoverability based on available evidence. This process involves management's judgment about assumptions, which are subject to change from period to period due to tax rate changes or variances between our projected operating performance and our actual results. Ultimately, future adjustments to the DTA valuation allowance, if any, will be determined based upon changes in the expected realization of the net deferred tax assets. The realization of the deferred tax assets depends on the existence of sufficient taxable income in either the carry back or carry forward periods under applicable tax law. Due to significant estimates utilized in establishing the valuation allowance and the potential for changes in facts and circumstances, it is reasonably possible that we may be required to record a valuation allowance in future reporting periods. Such an adjustment could have a material adverse effect on our results of operation and financial condition.

APPROXIMATELY 25% OF OUR TOTAL REVENUES FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31,2021 CONSISTED OF INVESTMENT INCOME. THE INVESTMENT RETURN, OR YIELD, ON INVESTED ASSETS IS AN IMPORTANT ELEMENT OF OUR EARNINGS SINCE INSURANCE PRODUCTS ARE PRICED WITH THE ASSUMPTION THAT PREMIUMS RECEIVED CAN BE INVESTED FOR A PERIOD OF TIME BEFORE BENEFITS ARE PAID. CHANGES IN THE GLOBAL OR U.S. INVESTMENT ENVIRONMENT, OR MARKET DISRUPTIONS THAT AFFECT INTEREST RATES AND INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES, AS WELL AS DECLINES IN THE VALUE OF OUR INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO, MAY ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR RESULTS OF OPERATION AND FINANCIAL CONDITION.

Sustained periods of low interest rates in the long-term investment market may adversely affect our reported net investment income and the discount rates used in reserving for our insurance products, which may adversely affect our results of operations or financial condition.

The low interest rate environment continues to limit increases in profit margins for insurers, including us. We have been impacted by the historically low interest rate environment over the past several years as our fixed maturity investment portfolio, primarily invested in callable securities, has generally been reinvested at lower yields, leading to lower net investment income than assumed in the pricing and reserving for our insurance products. An interest or

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discount rate is used in calculating reserves for our insurance products. We set our reserve discount rate assumptions based on our current and expected future investment yield for assets supporting the reserves, considering current and expected future market conditions. Spread compression and related effects to profitability caused by lower interest rates affect the valuation of in-force business more significantly than the valuation of new business, as new business pricing assumptions reflect the current and anticipated future interest rate environment. Estimates of fair value are inherently uncertain and represent management’s reasonable expectations regarding future developments. If the discount rate assumed in our reserve calculations is higher than our future investment returns, our invested assets will not earn enough investment income to support our future benefit payments. In that case, we may be required to amortize any remaining DAC, record additional liabilities and/or increase our capital contributions to our insurance subsidiaries in the period this occurs, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition.

Changes in market interest rates may significantly affect our profitability.

We are exposed to significant capital market risk related to changes in interest rates. Our investment performance, including yields and realization of gains and losses, may vary depending on economic and market conditions. Substantial and sustained changes, up or down, in market interest rate levels can materially affect the profitability of our products.

If interest rates decrease or remain at low levels, we may be forced to reinvest proceeds from investments that have matured, prepaid, been sold, or called at lower yields, reducing our investment margin. We have experienced significant call activity on our fixed maturity portfolio over the years due to the low interest rate environment. Our fixed maturity bond portfolio is exposed to interest rate risk as approximately 52% of the portfolio is callable as of December 31, 2021, with 4% that could be called within the next year. If subject to increased call activity, the Company would have to reinvest the resulting investment portfolio cash proceeds from calls as well as from maturities in lower yielding instruments, further reducing our investment income. Some of our products, principally traditional whole life insurance with annuity riders, expose us to the risk that changes in interest rates will reduce our "spread," or the difference between the amounts we are required to pay under our contracts to policyholders and the rate of return we are able to earn on our investments intended to support obligations under the contracts. As a key component of profitability, a narrowing of our “spread” may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition. Lowering our interest crediting rates can help offset decreases in investment margins on some of our products. However, our ability to lower these rates could be limited by competition or contractually guaranteed minimum rates and may not match the timing or magnitude of changes in asset yields.

An increase in interest rates will decrease the net unrealized gain position of our investment portfolio and may subject us to disintermediation risk. Disintermediation risk is the risk that in a change from a low interest rate period to a significantly higher and increasing interest rate period, policyholders may surrender their policies or make early withdrawals to increase their returns, requiring us to liquidate investments in an unrealized loss position (i.e. the market value less the carrying value of the investments).

Our investment portfolio is subject to various risks that may result in investment related losses. In particular, decreases in the fair value of fixed maturities may significantly reduce the value of our investments, and as a result, our financial condition may suffer.

We are subject to credit risk in our investment portfolio. Defaults by third parties in the payment or performance of their obligations under these securities could reduce our investment income and investment related gains or result in the recognition of investment losses. The value of our investments may be materially adversely affected by increases in interest rates, downgrades in the bonds included in our portfolio and by other factors that may result in the recognition of credit related allowances. Each of these events may cause us to reduce the carrying value of our investment portfolio.

In particular, at December 31, 2021, fixed maturities represented $1.5 billion or 90.6% of our total investments of $1.6 billion. The fair value of fixed maturities and the related investment income fluctuates depending on general economic and market conditions. The fair value of these investments generally increases or decreases in an inverse relationship with fluctuations in interest rates, while net investment income realized by us will generally increase or decrease in line with changes in market interest rates. In addition, actual net investment income and/or cash flows from investments that carry prepayment risk, such as mortgage-backed and other asset-backed securities, may differ from those anticipated at the time of investment as a result of interest rate fluctuations. An investment has

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prepayment risk when there is a risk that the timing of cash flows resulting from the repayment of principal might occur earlier than anticipated because of declining interest rates or later than anticipated because of rising interest rates. The impact of value fluctuations affects our consolidated financial statements, as all of our fixed maturities are classified as available-for-sale, with changes in fair value reflected in our stockholders' equity (accumulated other comprehensive income or loss). No similar adjustment is made for liabilities to reflect a change in interest rates. Therefore, interest rate fluctuations and economic conditions could adversely affect our stockholders' equity, total comprehensive income and/or cash flows. Although 98.0% of our fixed maturities were investment grade with 59.5% rated A or above at December 31, 2021, all of our fixed maturities are subject to credit risk. If any of the issuers of our fixed maturities suffer financial setbacks, the ratings on the fixed maturities could be downgraded (with a concurrent decrease in fair value) and, in a worst-case scenario, the issuer could default on its financial obligations. If the issuer defaults, we could have realized losses associated with the impairment of the securities.

The determination of valuation and impairments of our investments include estimations and assumptions that are subjective and prone to differing interpretations and could materially impact our results of operations or financial condition.

The Company makes assumptions regarding the fair value and expected performance of its fixed maturity securities and other investments. Valuations may include inputs and assumptions that are less observable or require greater estimation, particularly during periods of market disruption, resulting in values which may be less than the value at which the investments may ultimately be sold. Further, rapidly changing and/or unprecedented credit and equity market conditions could materially impact the valuation of investments as reported in our consolidated financial statements, and the period-to-period changes in value could vary significantly. Decreases in value may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition.

The decision of whether to record a credit impairment is determined by our assessment of the financial condition and prospects of a particular issuer, projections of future cash flows and recoverability as well as our ability and intent to hold the securities to recovery or maturity. We evaluate our investment portfolio for impairments. There can be no assurance that we have accurately assessed the level of impairments taken. Additional impairments may need to be taken in the future, and historical trends may not be indicative of future impairments. Any event reducing the value of our securities other than on a temporary basis may have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, or financial condition.

FROM TIME TO TIME, WE HAVE EXPANDED OUR BUSINESS BY PURCHASING OTHER INSURANCE COMPANIES OR BLOCKS OF BUSINESS. SUCH ACQUISITIONS SUBJECT US TO POTENTIAL RISKS THAT COULD MATERIALLY NEGATIVELY AFFECT OUR RESULTS OF OPERATIONS OR FINANCIAL CONDITION.

We may be required to accelerate the costs of insurance acquired, which would increase our expenses and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

When we acquire a block of insurance policies, we assign a portion of the purchase price to the right to receive future net cash flows from existing insurance and investment contracts and policies. This intangible asset, called the cost of insurance acquired, or COIA, represents the actuarially estimated present value of future cash flows from the acquired policies. At December 31, 2021, we had $10.6 million of COIA.

We amortize the value of this intangible asset in a manner similar to the amortization of DAC; it is subject to acceleration and generally depends upon anticipated profits from investments, surrender and other policy charges, mortality, morbidity, persistency and maintenance expense margins. If actual experience was not as expected when the policies were acquired, we might be required to accelerate the amortization of expenses we deferred in connection with the acquisition of the policy. We regularly review the quality of our COIA to determine if it is recoverable from future income. If these costs are not recoverable, the amount that is not recoverable is charged to expenses in the financial period in which we make this determination.

Unfavorable experience with regards to expected expenses, investment returns, surrender and other policy charges, mortality, morbidity, lapses or persistency may cause us to increase the amortization of COIA, or to record a current period expense to increase benefit reserves, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.


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THE COMPANY RELIES ON OUR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS, AND THE DATA MAINTAINED WITHIN THOSE SYSTEMS, TO MANAGE MANY ASPECTS OF OUR BUSINESS. CYBERSECURITY RISKS, THE FAILURE OF OUR SYSTEMS TO OPERATE PROPERLY AND/OR THE FAILURE TO MAINTAIN THE CONFIDENTIALITY, INTEGRITY, AND AVAILABILITY OF POLICYHOLDER AND CLAIMS DATA, INCLUDING PERSONAL IDENTIFYING INFORMATION, COULD RESULT IN A MATERIALLY ADVERSE EFFECT ON OUR BUSINESS, REPUTATION, FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS.

Our failure to maintain effective information systems could adversely affect our business.

We must maintain and enhance our existing information systems and develop and integrate new information systems to keep pace with continuing changes in information processing technology, evolving industry and regulatory standards and changing customer preferences in a cost-effective manner. If we do not maintain adequate systems, we could experience adverse consequences, including inadequate information on which to base pricing, underwriting and reserve decisions, regulatory problems, failure to meet prompt payment obligations, increases in administrative expenses and loss of customers. Our failure to maintain effective and efficient information systems, or our failure to consolidate our existing systems could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Some of our information technology systems and software are mainframe-based, legacy-type systems that require an ongoing commitment of resources to maintain current standards. Our systems utilize proprietary code requiring highly skilled personnel. Due to the unique nature of our proprietary operating environment, we could have difficulty finding personnel with the skills required to provide ongoing system maintenance and development as we seek to keep pace with changes in our products and business models, information processing technology, evolving industry and regulatory standards and policyholder needs.

We are continuously evaluating and enhancing systems and creating new systems and processes as our business depends on our ability to maintain and improve our technology. Due to the complexity and interconnectedness of our systems and processes, these changes, as well as changes designed to update and enhance our protective measures to address new threats, increase the risk of a system or process failure or the creation of a gap in our security measures. Any such failure or gap could adversely affect our business operations and results of operations.

A cyber attack or other security breach could disrupt our operations, result in the unauthorized disclosure or loss of confidential data, damage our reputation or relationships, and expose us to significant financial and legal liability, which may adversely affect our business, results of operations, or financial condition.

We store confidential information about our business and our policyholders, independent marketing firms, and independent agents, consultants and others on our information technology systems, including proprietary and personally identifiable information. As part of our normal business operations, we use this information and engage third-party providers, including outsourcing, cloud computing, and other business partners, that store, access, process, and transmit such information on our behalf. We devote significant resources and employ security measures to help protect our information technology systems and confidential information, and we have programs in place to detect, contain, and respond to information security incidents. However, because the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access, disable or degrade service, or sabotage systems change frequently and may be difficult to detect for long periods of time, we and our third-party providers may be unable to anticipate these techniques or implement adequate preventative measures. In addition, hardware, software, or applications we develop or procure from third parties or through open source solutions may contain defects in design or manufacture or other problems that could unexpectedly compromise our information security. Unauthorized parties, whether within or outside our company, may disrupt or gain access to our systems, or those of third parties with whom we do business, through human error, misfeasance, fraud, trickery, or other forms of deceit, including break-ins, use of stolen credentials, social engineering, phishing, or other cyber attacks, computer viruses, malicious codes, and similar means of unauthorized and destructive tampering.

We and our third-party providers experience information security incidents from time to time. There is no assurance that our security systems and measures will be able to prevent, mitigate, or remediate future incidents. A successful penetration or circumvention of the security of our information technology systems, or those of third parties with whom we do business, could cause serious negative consequences for us, including significant disruption of our operations, unauthorized disclosure or loss of confidential information, harm to our brand or reputation, loss of customers and revenues, violations of privacy and other laws, and exposure to litigation, monetary damages,

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regulatory enforcement proceedings, fines, and potentially criminal proceedings and penalties. If we are unaware of the incident for some time after it occurs, our exposure could increase. In addition, the costs to address or remediate systems disruptions or security threats or vulnerabilities, whether before or after an incident, could be significant. As we continue to build our digital capabilities and focus on enhancing the customer experience, the amount of information that we retain and share with third parties is likely to grow, increasing the cost to prevent data security breaches and the cost and potential consequences of such breaches. An information technology systems failure could also interfere with our ability to comply with financial reporting and other regulatory requirements, exposing us to potential disciplinary action by regulators.

Although we have insurance against some cyber risks and attacks, we may be subject to litigation and financial losses that exceed our policy limits, are subject to deductibles or are not covered under any of our current insurance policies.

The failure of our business recovery and incident management processes to resume our business operations in the event of a catastrophe, an epidemic, a cyber attack, or other event could adversely affect our profitability, results of operations, or financial condition.

In the event of a disaster such as a catastrophe, an epidemic, a cyber attack, cyber security breach or other information technology systems failure, a terrorist attack, or war, unanticipated problems with our disaster recovery systems could have a material adverse impact on our ability to conduct business and on our results of operations and financial condition, particularly if those problems affect our information technology systems and destroy valuable data or result in a significant failure of our internal control environment. In addition, in the event that a significant number of our employees were unavailable in the event of a disaster, our ability to effectively conduct business could be severely compromised.

The failure of our information technology and/or disaster recovery systems for any reason could cause significant interruptions or malfunctions in our or our customers’ operations and result in the loss, theft, or failure to maintain the security, confidentiality or privacy of sensitive data, including personal information relating to our customers. Such a failure could harm our reputation, subject us to regulatory sanctions, legal claims, and increased expenses, and lead to a loss of customers and revenues.

RISKS RELATED TO OUR HOLDING SECURITIES

The number and location of our shareholders may make it difficult to obtain approval of certain corporate actions.

Because we allow our policyholders to use their policy dividends to purchase our Class A common stock through our CISIP, we have over 86,000 shareholders and approximately 40% of our shareholders hold less than 100 shares each. Additionally, many of these shareholders are located in Latin America and the Pacific Rim, where most of our policies are sold, and English may not be their native language. We believe that because of this, we typically have low voter turn-out at our annual meetings and therefore any proposal, such as one related to a merger or an acquisition of our Company, or an amendment to our articles of incorporation, that may require the affirmative vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of our Class A common stock, may be logistically difficult to approve.

Our Class A common stock is not registered in any foreign country.

As mentioned above, a significant portion of our Class A common stock has been purchased under the CISIP by foreign holders of life insurance policies. The Class A common stock sold under the CISIP is registered with the SEC pursuant to a Form S-3 registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933 but is not registered under the laws of any foreign jurisdiction. If a foreign securities regulatory authority were to determine the offer and sale of our Class A common stock under the CISIP was not allowed under applicable laws and regulations of its jurisdiction, such authority may issue or assert a fine, penalty or cease and desist order against our offer and sale of Class A common stock in that foreign jurisdiction. There is a risk our Class A common stock price could be negatively impacted by a decrease in participation in the CISIP.


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Applicable insurance laws in the jurisdictions where our insurance subsidiaries are domiciled may discourage takeovers and business combinations that our shareholders might consider to be in their best interests.

Insurance laws in the jurisdictions in which our insurance subsidiaries are domiciled require regulatory actions for certain transactions, such as a merger or acquisition of our Company, that our shareholders might consider in their best interests. As previously described, the insurance regulators consider the best interests of our policyholders over the best interests of our shareholders. As a result, our shareholders may be prevented from receiving the benefit from any premium to the market price of our Class A common stock that may be offered by a bidder in a takeover context or such regulatory approval requirement may delay, deter, render more difficult or prevent a takeover attempt or a change in control.

GENERAL RISK FACTORS

Litigation and regulatory actions and investigations are common in our businesses and may result in financial losses and/or harm to our reputation.

From time to time we are, and have been, subject to a variety of legal and regulatory actions and investigations relating to our business operations. We are, and in the future may be, parties in various litigation matters. An adverse outcome in one or more of these actions, investigations or litigation matters may, depending on the nature, scope and amount of the ruling, materially and adversely affect our results of operations or financial condition, encourage other litigation, and limit our ability to write new business, particularly if the adverse outcomes negatively impact our reputation.

In the absence of countervailing considerations, we would expect to defend any such actions, investigations or litigation matters vigorously. However, in doing so, we could incur significant defense costs, including attorneys' fees, other direct litigation costs and the expenditure of substantial amounts of management time that otherwise would be devoted to our business. Further, if we suffer an adverse judgment as a result of any claim, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Reinsurance may not be available or affordable, or reinsurers may be unwilling or unable to meet their obligations under our reinsurance contracts, which may adversely affect our results of operations or financial condition.

As part of our overall risk management and capital management strategies, we purchase reinsurance for certain risks underwritten by our various insurance subsidiaries. Market conditions beyond our control determine the availability and cost of reinsurance. Any decrease in the amount of reinsurance will increase our risk of loss and may impact the level of capital requirements for our insurance subsidiaries, and any increase in the cost of reinsurance will, absent a decrease in the amount of reinsurance, reduce our results of operations. Accordingly, we may be forced to incur additional expenses for reinsurance or may be unable to obtain sufficient reinsurance on acceptable terms, which may adversely affect our ability to write future business, result in the assumption of more risk with respect to the policies we issue, and increase our capital requirements. The collectability of our reinsurance recoverable is primarily a function of the solvency of the individual reinsurers. We cannot provide assurance that our reinsurers will pay the reinsurance recoverable owed to us or that they will pay these recoverables on a timely basis. The insolvency of a reinsurer or the inability or unwillingness of a reinsurer to comply with the terms of a reinsurance contract may have an adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition.

Events that damage our reputation may adversely affect our business, results of operations, or financial condition.

There are many events which may harm our reputation, including, but not limited to, those discussed in this Item 1A regarding regulatory investigations, legal proceedings, cyber or other information security incidents and disputes with our independent agents and consultants.

In addition, as an insurance company, we are paid to accept certain risks. Those who conduct our business, including executive officers and members of management, and to some extent, independent agents and consultants, do so in part by making decisions that involve exposing us to risk. These include decisions such as maintaining effective underwriting and pricing discipline, maintaining effective claim management and customer

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service performance, managing our investment portfolio, delivering effective technology solutions, complying with established sales practices, executing our capital management strategy, exiting a line of business and/or pursuing strategic growth initiatives, and other decisions. Although we have a risk management framework and employ controls and procedures designed to monitor business decisions and prevent us from taking excessive risks or unintentionally failing to comply with internal policies and practices such that errors occur, there can be no assurance that these controls and procedures will be effective. If our employees and independent agents and consultants take excessive risks and/or fail to comply with internal policies and practices, the impact of those events may damage our market position and reputation.

Depending on the severity of the damage to our reputation, we may be unable to effectively compete for new products or retain our existing business, which could adversely affect our results of operations or financial condition. Damage to our reputation may also hinder our ability to raise new capital and/or increase our cost of capital.

Item 1B.UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

Item 2.PROPERTIES

We lease our principal office at the Domain in Austin, Texas to service all business entities and operations. We lease space for our office in Bermuda related to CICA International and in Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi related to our Home Service Insurance operations. We also own properties in Louisiana related to our Home Service Insurance operations.

Item 3.LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

The following are material pending legal proceedings in which we or any of our subsidiaries is a party or in which any of our or their property is the subject.

Trade Secret Lawsuit

As previously disclosed, on November 7, 2018, Citizens, CICA International and CICA (defined as "we", "us", "our" or "Plaintiffs" in this Item 3) filed a lawsuit in the District Court of Travis County, Texas (the “District Court”) against (i) Randall Riley (“Riley”), a former Citizens executive and son of Citizens’ founder Harold E. Riley, (ii) CALI, copycat companies formed by Riley and (iii) Alexis Enrique Delgado, Carlos Nalsen Landa, Enrique Pinzon Ruiz, Johan Emilio Mikuski Silva and Esperanza Peralta de Delgado, former independent consultants of Citizens (collectively, the “Los Raudales Defendants,” and together with Riley and CALI, collectively the “Original Defendants”).

On September 10, 2019, we filed an amended complaint and added additional defendants to the lawsuit (with the Original Defendants, collectively, "Defendants"), including (i) Michael P. Buchweitz (a former underwriter for Citizens), Jonathan M. Pollio (a former actuary for Citizens), Jeffrey J. Wood (a former Chief Financial Officer and the current Chief Financial Officer of First Trinity) and Steven A. Rekedal (former marketing officer), (ii) First Trinity Financial Corporation, and Trinity American, Inc. (collectively, “First Trinity”) and International Marketing Group S.A., LLC, entities that have founded a business on the exploitation of Citizens’ trade secrets and goodwill, and (iii) Gregg E. Zahn, the CEO of First Trinity. Our lawsuit claims that:

Riley and First Trinity tortiously interfered with Citizens’ contracts with its agents and former employees and that they “willfully and intentionally” induced the Los Raudales Defendants and other agents and former employees to breach those contracts by disclosing Citizens’ confidential information;
The Los Raudales Defendants were properly terminated for cause under their independent consultant contracts and thus not entitled to additional commissions under such contracts;
Defendants stole Citizens’ information in order to unfairly compete with us;
Defendants wrongfully secured benefits from Citizens and thus Citizens is entitled to those benefits (unjust enrichment); and
Defendants conspired to achieve the theft of Citizens’ trade secrets, including by using a confusingly similar name and logo.


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In January 2019, the Original Defendants filed a motion to dismiss certain claims alleged in the suit, which the District Court denied in its entirety. In May 2019, we filed a motion for a preliminary injunction to bar the Original Defendants from continuing to engage in unfair competition and misappropriation of Citizens’ trade secrets and tortious interference with Citizens’ existing contracts with its independent consultants. The District Court denied the application for a temporary injunction and in August 2020, the Third Court of Appeals in Austin, Texas affirmed the District Court’s decision.

In June 2021, the Defendants filed a traditional and no evidence Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (the “Motion”), which was denied in its entirety by the District Court. Defendants’ Motion claimed that we should not be able to proceed with our claims against them for unfair competition, tortious interference with contract, conspiracy and unjust enrichment, because we “have no evidence to support these theories.” By denying Defendants’ Motion in its entirety, we can proceed to trial with all of the claims described above.

In September 2021, the District Court denied the requests of Alexis Enrique Delgado, Enrique Pinzon Ruiz, and Esperanza Peralta de Delgado to be dismissed from the lawsuit and denied Michael Buchweitz’s and Jonathan Pollio’s requests that the claim against each of them for breach of his confidentiality agreement be dismissed. While the District Court allowed the CEO (Zahn) and CFO (Wood) of First Trinity to be dismissed individually from the lawsuit, the ruling does not affect Citizens’ claims against First Trinity described above.

Trial in the lawsuit has been delayed several times due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The trial is currently scheduled to start in May 2022.

Item 4.MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
Not applicable.

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PART II
Item 5.MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Market Information.Our Class A common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") under the symbol CIA. Our Class B common stock is not registered with the SEC nor traded on any exchange. As of December 31, 2021, we held 100% of our Class B common stock in treasury so it is no longer outstanding.

Holders.The number of stockholders of record as of March 4, 2022 was as follows:

Class A Common Stock -86,270 
Class B Common Stock -— 

Dividend Policy.We have never paid cash dividends on our Class A or B common stock and do not expect to pay cash dividends in the foreseeable future, as it is our policy to retain earnings for use in the operation and expansion of our business.  

Company Purchases of Equity Securities.We did not repurchase any shares of our Class A common stock during the fourth quarter of 2021.

See Part III. Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters for equity compensation plan information.

PERFORMANCE COMPARISON

The following graph compares, for the five-year period ended December 31, 2021, the change in the Company’s cumulative total stockholder return on its Class A common stock to that of the NYSE Composite and NASDAQ Insurance indexes. The graph assumes a $100 investment on December 31, 2016, and reinvestment of all dividends in each of the Company’s Class A common stock, the NYSE Composite and the NASDAQ Insurance Index. Note that historical stock price performance is not necessarily indicative of future stock price performance.
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 201620172018201920202021
Citizens, Inc.$100.00 74.85 76.58 68.74 58.35 54.07 
NYSE Composite$100.00 118.73 108.10 135.68 145.16 175.18 
NASDAQ Insurance$100.00 113.68 102.76 136.99 137.65 158.73 

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Item 6.   [RESERVED]



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Item 7.MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

This section of this Annual Report on Form 10-K generally discusses 2021 and 2020 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2021 and 2020. Discussions of 2019 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2020 and 2019 that are not included in this Form 10-K can be found in “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Part II, Item 7 of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020 (the "2020 10-K").

OVERVIEW

Citizens, Inc. ("Citizens" or the "Company") is an insurance holding company incorporated in Colorado serving the life insurance needs of individuals in the United States since 1969 and internationally since 1975. Through our domestic insurance subsidiaries, we are licensed to provide insurance benefits to residents in 39 U.S. states and through our international subsidiaries, we provide insurance benefits to residents in over 75 different countries. We pursue a strategy of offering traditional insurance products in niche markets where we believe we are able to achieve competitive advantages. We had approximately $1.7 billion of assets and approximately $4.9 billion of direct insurance in force at December 31, 2023.  

We operate in two business segments:

Life Insurance - Internationally, we sell U.S. dollar-denominated ordinary whole life insurance, endowment and critical illness policies to non-U.S. residents, located principally in Latin America and the Pacific Rim. Domestically, we sell whole life insurance, life insurance with living benefits, critical illness, credit life and disability products throughout the U.S.

Home Service Insurance - We sell final expense life insurance policies to middle- and lower-income households, as well as whole life products with higher allowable face values, in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas.

Our Principal Brands

LIFE INSURANCE SEGMENT
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Internationally, we conduct our Life Insurance segment business through CICA Life, A.I., a Puerto Rico company ("CICA International").
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Domestically, we conduct our Life Insurance segment business through CICA Life Insurance Company of America ("CICA Domestic").

HOME SERVICE INSURANCE SEGMENT
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We conduct our Home Service Insurance segment through Security Plan Life Insurance Company ("SPLIC") and Magnolia Guaranty Life Insurance Company ("Magnolia").

As an insurance provider, we collect premiums on an ongoing basis from our policyholders and invest the majority of the premiums to pay future benefits, including claims, surrenders and policyholder dividends. Accordingly, the Company derives its revenues principally from: (1) life insurance premiums earned for insurance coverages provided to insureds in our two operating segments; and (2) net investment income. In addition to paying and reserving for insurance benefits that we pay to our policyholders, our expenses consist primarily of the costs of selling our insurance products (e.g., commissions, underwriting, marketing expenses), operating expenses and income taxes.

Because collection of premiums is the primary source of our revenues, our overall financial performance depends primarily upon the development and distribution of our products. A key to product development is the pricing of our insurance products and the accuracy of our pricing assumptions. We seek to price our insurance policies such that insurance premiums and future net investment income earned on premiums received will cover the ultimate cost of paying claims on our policies, our expenses and will also yield a profit margin. Pricing adequacy depends on a number of factors, including the ability to project future losses based on historical loss experience adjusted for

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known trends, proper evaluation of underwriting risks, the Company’s response to competitors, commission payments for selling our products, expectations about interest rates and regulatory or legal developments, and expense levels.

In addition to insurance premiums, the investment return, or yield, on invested assets is an important element of the Company’s earnings since life insurance products are priced with the assumption that premiums received can be invested for a period of time before benefits are paid. Pursuant to regulatory guidelines, most of the Company’s invested assets are held in available-for-sale ("AFS") fixed maturity securities, primarily in asset classes of corporate bonds, municipal bonds, and government obligation bonds. The interest rate environment has a significant impact on the determination of insurance contract liabilities, our investment rates and yields, and our asset/liability management. The profitability of our "spread-based" product features depends largely on the Company’s ability to earn higher returns on invested assets than the interest we credit to policyholders.

The primary investment objective for the Company is to maximize economic value, consistent with acceptable risk parameters, including the management of credit risk and interest rate sensitivity of invested assets, while generating sufficient after-tax income to meet policyholder and corporate obligations. The Company maintains a prudent investment strategy that may vary based on a variety of factors including business needs, regulatory requirements and tax considerations.

IN 2021, WE BECAME A NON-CONTROLLED COMPANY

Throughout most of our history, the Company was led and controlled by our founder Harold E. Riley and his family members. Mr. Riley passed away in 2017 and in 2020, a change-in-control of our Company occurred when the shares held by the Harold E. Riley Trust were transferred to the Harold E. Riley Foundation (the “Foundation”). In February 2021, the Company entered into an agreement with the Foundation to purchase all of the outstanding shares of Class B common stock for a purchase price of $9.1 million (the “B Share Transaction”). After the completion of the B Share Transaction and the appointment of a new Chief Executive Officer, we believe the Company was positioned to offer stability to our management team, employees and independent sales force and was able to move forward with new business and strategic initiatives, as described below.

STRATEGIC INITIATIVES

Historically, our insurance companies have only issued a few products and had limited distribution channels. Since the change-in-control described above, our growth strategy shifted to focusing on first year sales growth through introduction of new products and new distribution channels, retaining renewal premiums through policy retention efforts, focused execution, and financial and expense discipline. We believe these factors will lead to growth and profitability.

We believe that our roadmap execution process is key to achieving our strategic goals as it helps us focus on three specific sales levers in each market - products, promotions and processes. Specifically, we implemented a five-quarter roadmap that lays out the following:

Products. We have a robust product development process that focuses on our customer needs by developing new products tailored to our specific markets, working with partners to develop products tailored to their markets, and enhancing existing products. New products help our sales force, as they can sell additional products to existing customers and offer a broader portfolio of products to entice prospective customers. A broader product portfolio also helps attract new distributors. Our management team meets on a monthly basis to ensure we are bringing the right products to market at the right time.

Promotions. We are focused on implementing sales promotions and campaigns in order to align our sales consultant compensation opportunities with our premium revenue goals and our growth and retention initiatives.

Processes. We are implementing process improvements and new technologies in order to get products to our customers faster and improve the experience for both our policyholders and our agents. We also implemented new processes and technologies to help our employees work more effectively and efficiently.


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Status of New and Enhanced Products; Trends in Market Demand

As mentioned above, offering new and enhanced products are key to achieving our strategic goals. In 2023 we:

Introduced 3 new products in both English and Spanish under our CICA Domestic brand, leading to first year premium revenue growth of 13% in our Life Insurance segment.

Obtained an A.M. Best rating for the first time ever in July 2023.
CICA Domestic is rated as a B++ with a "Very Strong" balance sheet. We believe this will help us expand our distribution networks and the appeal of our products to consumers.

Completed the move of our international business from Bermuda to Puerto Rico, which we believe will drive greater demand for our international products.

As we seek to optimize value for the Company's shareholders, customers and distributors, we believe our efforts to develop and enhance our products, incentivize our sales force and make process and technology improvements will continue to put the Company on a stronger financial footing and drive sustainable growth.

LIFE INSURANCE SEGMENT

Until December 31, 2022, our Life Insurance segment primarily operated through CICA Life Ltd. ("CICA Bermuda"), a Bermuda company. Upon surveying the market demands and needs of our policyholders, in 2022 we formed a new subsidiary in Puerto Rico, CICA Life, A.I. ("CICA International"). CICA International received a license in September 2022 to issue business as a Puerto Rico international insurer for the Company’s international portion of its Life Insurance segment. Beginning January 1, 2023, all new international policies are issued by CICA International (CICA Life, A.I.) and on August 31, 2023, CICA Bermuda transferred all of its insurance in force business to CICA International and we voluntarily surrendered our insurance license in Bermuda. Because CICA International provides our non-U.S. policyholders the ability to purchase policies in a U.S. territory and in a jurisdiction where the primary language spoken is Spanish, which is the primary language of the majority of our international policyholders, we believe this change will drive sales and improve policy retention, leading to revenue growth.

INTERNATIONAL LIFE INSURANCE

Sales and Distribution

We focus our international sales to residents in Latin America and the Pacific Rim. As of December 31, 2023, we had insurance policies in force in over 75 foreign countries and receive the majority of our premiums from Colombia, Taiwan, Venezuela, Ecuador and Argentina. International direct premiums comprised approximately 97% of total direct premiums in the Life Insurance segment and 70% of our total consolidated direct premiums in 2023.
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We believe positive attributes of our international insurance business typically include:

larger face amount policies issued compared to our U.S. operations, which results in low underwriting and administrative costs per dollar of coverage;
high persistency and low mortality charges due to our customer demographics; and
premiums paid annually at the beginning of each policy year rather than monthly or quarterly, which reduces our administrative expenses, accelerates cash flow and results in lower policy lapse rates than premium payment options with more frequently scheduled payments.

We sell our products internationally through independent marketing agencies and consultants who specialize in life insurance products. We enter into contracts with the independent marketing agencies pursuant to which they recruit, train and supervise their managers and associates in the sales and service of our products. These agencies receive commissions for products they sell and service, as well as commission overrides on the business that their agents produce and, in return for the override, they guarantee any debt their agents owe to us. Their agents also contract directly with us as independent consultants and receive commission compensation directly from us. This allows us to develop a relationship with their associates so if an agency contract is terminated for any reason, we may seek to continue the existing independent consultant marketing arrangements with the associates of such agency. Our agreements typically provide that the agencies and their agents are independent consultants responsible for their own operational expenses and are the representative of the prospective insured. Our contracts require the independent marketing agencies and consultants to understand and comply with all laws applicable to sales of our products in their country.

Products

CICA International issues primarily ordinary whole life insurance and endowment products in U.S. dollar-denominated amounts to non-U.S. residents.  The whole life insurance products are designed to provide a fixed amount of insurance coverage over the life of the insured and can include rider benefits to provide additional coverage and annuity benefits to enhance accumulations.  Our endowment contracts are principally accumulation contracts that incorporate an element of life insurance protection. These products have premium rates that are competitive with most foreign local companies and have been structured to provide the policyowners with:

U.S. dollar-denominated cash values that accumulate, beginning in the first policy year, throughout a policyholder’s lifetime;
protection against devaluation of the policyowners' local currency and local hyper-inflation;
capital investment in a more secure economic environment (i.e., the U.S.); and
lifetime income guarantees for an insured or for surviving beneficiaries.

Our international products have both living and death benefit features. Most policies contain guaranteed cash values and are participating (i.e., provide for cash dividends as apportioned by CICA International's board of directors).  Once a policyowner pays the annual premium and the policy is issued, the owner becomes entitled to policy cash dividends and may elect to receive annual premium benefits.  The policyowner has several options with regards to the policy dividends and annual premium benefits, which include, among other things, electing to receive cash, crediting such amounts towards the payment of premiums on the policy, leaving such amounts on deposit with the Company to accumulate at a defined interest rate or assigning them to a third-party. Under the "assigned to a third-party" provision, the Company has historically allowed policyowners, after receiving a copy of the Citizens, Inc. Stock Investment Plan (the "SIP") prospectus and acknowledging their understanding of the risks of investing in Citizens' Class A common stock, the right to assign policy values outside of the policy to the SIP, which is administered in the United States by Computershare Trust Company, N.A., our third-party plan administrator and an affiliate of Computershare, Inc., our transfer agent. The SIP is a direct stock purchase plan available to policyowners, shareholders, our employees and directors, independent consultants, and other potential investors through the Computershare website. The Company has registered the shares of Class A common stock issuable to participants under the SIP on a registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, (the "Securities Act") that is on file with the SEC. Computershare administers the SIP in accordance with the terms and conditions of the SIP, which is available on the Computershare website and as part of the Company’s registration statement on file with the SEC.


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Competition

The life insurance business is highly competitive.  Internationally, we compete with a number of life insurance companies, as well as with financial institutions that offer insurance products.  

We face competition from other insurance companies that operate in the same markets and manner as we do. Additionally, some of our competitors are local companies formed and operated in the country in which an insured resides, and others are companies foreign to the countries in which their products are sold, but issue insurance policies denominated in the local currency of those countries or issue products approved by regulators of those countries.  Some of these companies may have a competitive advantage over us due to their greater financial resources, histories of successful operations and brand recognition, local licensing, partnering with local insurance companies and larger marketing forces. 

We believe that we have a competitive advantage over some of our competitors because premiums on our international policies are paid in U.S. dollars, cash value is accumulated in U.S. dollars, and we pay claims and benefits in U.S. dollars. We believe this provides security and stability to our insureds, who are generally individuals in the middle- to upper-middle class in their respective countries with significant net worth and earnings.  Therefore, our products protect them from the inflationary risks and economic crises that have been common in many of our top-producing foreign countries.

DOMESTIC LIFE INSURANCE

Prior to July 1, 2023, our domestic life insurance business operated through CICA Domestic and Citizens National Life Insurance Company ("CNLIC"). CNLIC merged into CICA Domestic on July 1, 2023 in order to streamline and focus our domestic life insurance business in one entity. In 2023, domestic direct life insurance premiums comprised approximately 3% of total direct premiums in the Life Insurance segment and 2% of our consolidated total direct premiums. The majority of our domestic in force business results from renewal premiums from blocks of business of insurance companies we have acquired over the years. In late 2022, we began our "white label" program to expand our distribution, we began expanding CICA Domestic's state licenses, developing new final expense and living benefit products, and filing these new products in multiple states.

HOME SERVICE INSURANCE SEGMENT

We operate our domestic Home Service Insurance segment through SPLIC and Magnolia and prior to June 30, 2023, Security Plan Fire Insurance Company ("SPFIC"). SPLIC issues final expense life insurance and critical illness products to middle- and lower-income individuals, primarily through a home service distribution model based in Louisiana. Policies issued by Magnolia are primarily burial policies which are serviced through funeral homes, who are also typically the beneficiaries of the policies. SPFIC is a limited liability casualty company that prior to June 30, 2023, sold small face value property insurance policies covering dwelling and contents, primarily in Louisiana. We ceased operations on June 30, 2023 as explained in more detail in Part II, Item 7, Managements' Discussion and Analysis, Overview section. In 2023, our Home Service Insurance segment comprised 27% of our total consolidated direct premiums.

Products and Competition

Our Home Service Insurance products consist primarily of small face amount ordinary whole life and pre-need policies, which are designed to fund final expenses for the insured (e.g., funeral and burial costs).  The average life insurance policy face amount issued in 2023 was approximately $12,900 per policy. Due to the lower risk associated with small face amount polices, the underwriting performed on these applications is limited. As part of the Home Service Insurance segment transformation mentioned above, in 2021 we introduced a new product, Security Plan Plus, which has a higher allowed face amount. In December 2021, we also introduced a critical illness product, which pays the insured a lump sum following the diagnosis of an illness covered under the plan.  To a much lesser extent, our Home Service Insurance segment sold property insurance policies covering dwellings and content until it ceased operations on June 30, 2023. We provided $30,000 maximum coverage on any one dwelling and contents policy, while content-only coverage and dwelling-only coverage were both limited to $20,000.

We face competition in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas from other companies specializing in final expense insurance. We seek to compete by delivering exceptional personal service to our customers, enhancing our

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management team and upgrading our agent field force.  We intend to continue premium growth within this segment by focusing on direct independent agent-to-consumer sales.

REINSURANCE

We follow the industry practice of reinsuring a portion of our insurance risks with unaffiliated reinsurers. In a reinsurance transaction, a reinsurer agrees to indemnify another insurer for part or all of its liability under a policy or policies it has issued for an agreed upon premium. We participate in reinsurance activities in order to minimize exposure to significant risks, limit losses, and provide additional capacity for future growth. We enter into various agreements with reinsurers that cover individual risks, group risks or defined blocks of business, primarily on a coinsurance and yearly renewable term basis.

For the majority of our life insurance business, we generally retain the first $100,000 of risk on any one life and reinsure the remainder of the risk. Therefore, under the terms of the reinsurance agreements, the reinsurers agree to reimburse us for the ceded amount (i.e., the death benefit amount less our retained risk) in the event a claim is paid. Cessions under reinsurance agreements do not discharge our obligations as the primary insurer. In the event reinsurers do not meet their obligations under the terms of the reinsurance agreements, reinsurance recoverable balances could become uncollectible.

Our amounts recoverable from reinsurers represent receivables from and/or reserves ceded to reinsurers. The amount recoverable from reinsurers was $4.0 million as of December 31, 2023.

We focus on obtaining reinsurance from a diverse group of well-established reinsurers. All of our reinsurers are rated A- (Excellent) or higher by A.M. Best. We regularly evaluate the financial condition of our reinsurers and monitor concentration risk with our reinsurers.

OTHER NON-INSURANCE ENTERPRISES

Other Non-Insurance Enterprises includes the results of our parent company, Citizens, Inc. and our non-insurance subsidiary, Computing Technology, Inc., which primarily provide the Company's corporate-support and information technology functions to the insurance operations.

OPERATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY

Most of our operations are based at our corporate headquarters in Austin, Texas. We also conduct operations for our Home Service Insurance segment from our district offices in Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi, as well as our service center in Donaldsonville, Louisiana. For the international portion of our Life Insurance segment, operations including underwriting, policy issuance, claims processing, accounting and reporting related to certain international policies were conducted in Bermuda until December 31, 2023 and are now conducted in Puerto Rico.

We have a proprietary single, centrally-controlled, mainframe-based policy administrative system ("PAS") that we use for all of our insurance companies. Our PAS performs various functions to effectively handle our insurance operations. These functions include policy set-up, administration, billing and collections, commission calculation, valuation, automated data edits, storage backup, image management and other related functions. Each company and block of business we have acquired has been converted onto our PAS. The Company is actively engaged in continued modernization of technology to invest and expand into new opportunities. This modernization allows us to bring new products to market rapidly and automate insurance interactions to enhance user experience. This investment is foundational to the Company's growth strategy as we pursue new product innovation and provides:

our customers and agents with portals to be able to access account information 24/7;
our policyholder service and claims representatives with a customer account-centric view of our policyholders and beneficiaries, reducing customer inquiry response time and claims processing time; and
business-to-business solutions.


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REGULATION

The insurance industry is heavily regulated and both Citizens and our insurance subsidiaries are subject to regulation and supervision by the U.S. states in which they do business, by U.S. federal laws, and for CICA International, by Puerto Rico.

REGULATION OF OUR INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

Puerto Rico

CICA International, our Puerto Rico domiciled subsidiary, is regulated by the Puerto Rico Office of the Insurance Commissioner (“OIC”) and is licensed pursuant to the Puerto Rico Insurance Code (the "Insurance Code"). Although Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory, it has its own tax code and own insurance code, including a provision under its Insurance Code that allows CICA International to be established as an "international insurer" and thus export insurance to international markets. We may not insure risks of residents of Puerto Rico with this type of license and we do not issue policies to U.S. risks through CICA International.

The Insurance Code does not specifically set forth minimum capital and surplus standards, but rather requires that an insurer submit a business plan for approval to the OIC that includes proposed minimum capital and surplus. CICA International is required to maintain a minimum of $750,000 in capital and maintain a premium to surplus ratio of 7 to 1. The Insurance Code requires us to file annual U.S. GAAP financial statements with the OIC that include schedules providing information regarding premiums written and reinsurance assumed and ceded, as well as an annual actuarial certification.

In addition to compliance with the Insurance Code, CICA International must comply with other laws and regulations of Puerto Rico, most of which apply to our domestic subsidiaries as well, including the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act and other anti-money laundering laws and regulations of the United States.

Other International Regulation

Generally, all foreign countries in which we offer insurance products require a license or other authority to conduct insurance business in that country. Some of these countries also require that local regulatory authorities approve the terms of any insurance product sold to residents of that country. Other than formerly in Bermuda, we have never qualified to do business in any foreign country, and we have never submitted our international insurance policies for approval to any regulatory agency. As described above, we sell our policies to residents of foreign countries through independent marketing agencies and independent consultants located in those countries and we rely on our independent consultants to comply with laws applicable to them in marketing and servicing our insurance products in their respective countries.

We have undertaken a comprehensive compliance review of risks associated with the potential application of foreign laws to our sales of insurance policies in foreign countries. The application of foreign laws to our sales of insurance policies in foreign countries varies by country. There is a lack of uniform regulation, lack of clarity in certain regulations and lack of legal precedent in addressing circumstances similar to ours. Our compliance review has confirmed certain risks related to foreign insurance laws associated with our current business model, at least in certain jurisdictions, as described in detail in Item 1A. Risk Factors.

U.S. REGULATION

In the United States, insurance is primarily regulated at the state level. Our primary regulator in the U.S. is the Colorado Division of Insurance, as both Citizens and CICA Domestic are Colorado companies. We are also regulated by the departments of insurance in Louisiana (SPLIC and SPFIC) and Mississippi (Magnolia), as well as each of the 39 states and the District of Columbia in which we conduct insurance business. In supervising and regulating insurance companies, state insurance departments aim to protect policyholders and the public rather than investors, and enjoy broad authority and discretion in applying applicable insurance laws and regulation for that purpose. The extent of this regulation varies, but most U.S. jurisdictions have laws and regulations based upon the National Association of Insurance Commissioners ("NAIC") model rules governing the financial condition of insurers, including standards of solvency, types and concentration of investments, establishment and maintenance of reserves, credit for reinsurance and requirements of capital adequacy; and the business conduct of insurers,

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including marketing and sales practices and claims handling.  In addition, statutes and regulations require the licensing of insurers and agents, the approval of most types of policy forms and related materials (such as advertising) and the approval of rates for certain types of insurance products.

In order for insurance regulators to monitor solvency, insurance companies are subject to risk-based capital ("RBC") requirements. The RBC requirement is a statutory minimum level of capital that is based on two factors - (1) the insurance company's size, and (2) the inherent riskiness of its financial assets and operations, i.e. a company must hold capital in proportion to its risk. The RBC requirement thus determines a minimum level of capital required for an insurer to support its operations and write coverage. The purpose of the RBC requirements is to identify weakly capitalized companies, which facilitates regulatory actions to ensure that the policyholders will receive the benefits promised. Regulators have the legal authority to take preventive and corrective measures depending on the capital deficiency indicated by the RBC result. If a company's ratio of total adjusted statutory capital to control level risk-based capital is above 200%, no regulatory intervention is needed. If it falls below 200%, interventions range from submission of action plans to a regulatory takeover of the management of the company, which occurs if the ratio is below 70%. We have committed to the Colorado Division of Insurance that we will keep CICA Domestic's RBC ratio at or above 350%.

In addition to monitoring our financial condition, insurance regulatory authorities (including state law enforcement agencies and attorneys general) periodically make inquiries and regularly conduct examinations regarding compliance with insurance and other laws and regulations regarding the conduct of our insurance businesses.  It is our practice to fully and consistently cooperate with such inquiries and examinations and take corrective action when warranted.

In order to sell products in any state, we first have to become licensed in that state. States have various rules for obtaining a license, including capital deposit requirements and seasoning requirements, among others. Once we are licensed in a state, most states require us to file our products for their approval before being able to sell the products. The application and product forms must comply with state insurance laws regarding policy requirements. Once an application or product is approved in that state, we must use the approved forms to sell our products. We have to file our domestic forms in both English and Spanish for separate approvals. We are also subject to laws related to our advertising and may have to file certain marketing documents with state regulators as well.
Because Citizens is a holding company that directly and indirectly owns insurance operating subsidiaries, we are also subject to regulation in our three domiciliary states that require us to furnish the respective insurance regulators with financial and other information concerning the operations of, and the interrelationships and transactions among, the companies within our holding company system that may materially affect the operations, management or financial condition of the insurers within the system. Generally, these laws and regulations require that all transactions within a holding company system between an insurer and its affiliates be fair and reasonable and that the insurer's statutory capital and surplus following any transaction with an affiliate be both reasonable in relation to its outstanding liabilities and adequate to its financial needs.  For certain types of agreements and transactions between an insurer and its affiliates, these laws and regulations require prior notification to, and non-disapproval or approval by, the insurance regulatory authority of the insurer's jurisdiction of domicile. These laws also require that a controlling party obtain the approval of the insurance commissioner of the insurance company's jurisdiction of domicile prior to acquiring or divesting control of the insurer.

The payment of dividends or other distributions to Citizens by our insurance subsidiaries is also regulated by the insurance laws and regulations of their respective state or jurisdiction of domicile.  The laws and regulations of some of these jurisdictions also prohibit an insurer from declaring or paying a dividend except out of its earned surplus or require the insurer to obtain regulatory approval before it may do so.  In addition, insurance regulators may prohibit the payment of ordinary dividends or other payments by our insurance subsidiaries to us (such as a payment under a tax sharing agreement or for employee or other services) if they determine such payment could be adverse to policyholders or insurance contract holders of the subsidiary.

Because we maintain sensitive data regarding our customers, we are also subject to additional state regulations in states where we do business, such as data security and state privacy laws.

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While primarily regulated at the state level, our domestic business is subject to various federal laws and regulations. Some of the primary federal laws include:

USA Patriot Act and the Bank Secrecy Act, which require us to institute certain measures to detect and prevent money laundering;
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which makes it unlawful to bribe foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business;
Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which requires us to explain our information-sharing practices to our customers and to safeguard sensitive data;
Securities Act, Securities Exchange Act and Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which establish various requirements for Citizens, as a public company, to comply with, including registration of our Class A common stock, reporting and disclosure requirements, and public company audit and internal control requirements;

Our U.S.-based insurance products and thus our businesses also are affected by U.S. federal, state and local tax laws.

HUMAN CAPITAL RESOURCES

Composition and Demographics

Our human capital is a critical component to our success. Our employees implement and drive our strategic initiatives and contribute to the success of our products (development, underwriting, pricing adequacy, customer service), promotions and processes. Our employees in our claims department are ultimately tasked with "keeping our promise". Our independent consultants and agents also drive our key goals, as they sell our insurance products and provide local services to our global base of policyholders. We also believe that we derive a great deal of strength from our diverse workforce. Fostering an equitable and inclusive workplace with diverse teams produces more creative solutions, results in more innovative products and services and is crucial to our efforts to attract, develop and retain key talent.


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As of December 31, 2023, we had 232 employees. The pie charts below illustrate the gender, racial, ethnicity, and generational make-up of our total employee workforce as of such date.

Gender Composition
3833638337
Racial/Ethnic Composition
3833838339
Generational Composition
549755885519549755885520

We determine race, ethnicity, gender, and generation based on our employees' self-identification or other information compiled to meet requirements of the U.S. government.

None of our employees are subject to a collective bargaining agreement.

We do not utilize captive employee agents to distribute our products and thus contract with over 1,000 actively producing independent consultants internationally and over 2,000 independent agencies and agents domestically to sell and service our insurance products. Our international independent consultants generally reflect the demographics of the areas in which they sell their products.

In order to continue to develop, sell and administer our products, it is crucial that we continue to attract and retain both experienced employees and independent agents.


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Compensation and Benefits

Our compensation program is designed to attract and retain talented individuals who possess the skills necessary to support our business objectives, assist in the achievement of our strategic goals and create long-term value for our stockholders. We provide employees with compensation packages that include base salary and annual performance-based bonus opportunities that include cash, and for certain employees, long-term equity awards in the form of restricted stock units ("RSUs"). We believe that a compensation program with both short-term cash awards and long-term equity awards provides fair and competitive compensation and aligns employee and stockholder interests. In addition to cash and equity compensation, we also offer standard employee benefits such as life and health (medical, dental and vision) insurance, 401(k) and HSA contributions, life insurance, long-term and short-term disability, including paid parental leave, and a generous PTO plan.

Independent agents work for themselves and may sell insurance policies for a variety of insurers and make most of their money through sales commissions and bonuses. We attract and retain our independent agent sales force through the use of our commission structure and agent campaigns and promotions, including annual sales conventions. We believe that our commission structure is attractive and competitive in the markets in which we do business. In our Life Insurance segment, we believe our campaigns and promotions provide an extra incentive to agents that not only promote first year premium growth, but also create improvements within policyholder retention. In our Home Service Insurance segment, we believe our agent campaigns and promotions are critical in attracting and retaining our independent agent sales force. This business contains a large block of existing in force policies. To ensure we maintain this book of business, the agent campaigns and promotions provide an extra incentive to not only grow the business but to collect on the existing policies. We believe that creating agent campaigns and promotions with additional incentives provides long-term value for our shareholders.

Wellness

We are committed to the health and safety of our work force and compliance with applicable regulatory and legal requirements. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2021, we implemented operating changes that we determined were in the best interest of the health of our employees, including offering a hybrid work environment where our employees can work part- or full-time from home, depending on their position and circumstances. We have continued with the hybrid work environment as it offers employees flexibility and helps attract and retain talent. We also have implemented training programs to assist our independent agents with online sales efforts in order to minimize face-to-face interactions with potential customers and our policyholders when necessary.

Item 1A. RISK FACTORS

As a smaller reporting company, we are not required to disclose information required by this Item 1A. However, we have elected to provide the following discussion of risks as we feel it is important to provide adequate information to our investors regarding the risks of investing in our securities. If any of these risks develop into actual events, our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows could be materially and adversely affected, and, as a result, the trading price of our Class A common stock could decline. These risk factors may also be important to understanding other statements in this Form 10-K. The following information should be read in conjunction with Part II. Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II. Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this report.

Because of the following factors, as well as other factors affecting the Company’s financial condition and operating results, past financial performance should not be considered to be a reliable indicator of future performance, and investors should not use historical trends to anticipate results or trends in future periods.


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INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS RISKS

A SUBSTANTIAL PORTION OF OUR REVENUE IS GENERATED FROM INSURANCE PRODUCTS SOLD OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED STATES. WHILE OUR PRODUCTS ARE PRICED AND PAID FOR IN U.S. DOLLARS, OUR FOREIGN BUSINESS MAY SUBJECT US TO SEVERAL RISKS.

Our sales to residents of foreign countries expose us to unknown risks related to foreign regulation, foreign currency restrictions, and political instability. A significant loss of sales in these foreign markets would have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

International Regulatory Risks.A substantial majority of our direct insurance premiums, approximately 70% at December 31, 2023, are from policyholders in foreign countries, primarily those in Latin America and the Pacific Rim.  As described in Part I, Item 1, Business, these policies are issued by our Puerto Rico subsidiary, CICA International, which is licensed as an international insurer in Puerto Rico. Our products are sold by independent consultants who are located in the foreign countries in which the policies are sold. Generally, the foreign countries in which we offer insurance products require either us and/or our independent consultants to obtain a license or register to conduct insurance business in that country. Some of these countries also require that local regulatory authorities approve the terms and rates of any insurance product sold to residents of that country. Some of these countries have laws that state that their residents may not purchase life insurance from us or a consultant may not sell life insurance on our behalf unless we become qualified to do business in that country or unless our policies receive prior approval from their insurance regulators. Others have a "consumption abroad" model where their residents may purchase unregistered products only if they are outside of their country when the purchase is made. Other than Puerto Rico and formerly Bermuda, we have never registered to do business in these countries or sought to have our international products approved by a governmental authority.

While we have undertaken a comprehensive compliance review of risks associated with the potential application of foreign laws to our sales of insurance policies in foreign countries, the laws vary by country and there is a lack of uniform regulation and lack of clarity in certain regulations and thus we face various risks associated with the application of foreign laws to these sales. There is a risk that foreign governments where we sell our products will become more aggressive in enforcing any perceived violations of their laws and seek to impose monetary fines or criminal penalties on us or our independent consultants, and/or order us to cease our sales in that jurisdiction. There is no assurance that, if a foreign country were to require that we qualify to do business in that country or submit our policies for approval by that country’s regulatory authorities, we would be able to, or would conclude that it is financially reasonable to comply with those requirements.

We have sought to mitigate the risks described above by, among other things, not locating any of our offices or assets in these foreign countries or jurisdictions, and selling policies only through independent consultants rather than our own employees. We rely on our independent consultants to comply with laws applicable to them in marketing and servicing our insurance products in their respective countries. There is no assurance that these precautionary measures, practices and policies will partially or entirely mitigate the risks associated with the potential application of foreign laws to our sales of insurance policies in our foreign markets. Although the Company believes that these foreign regulators do not have jurisdiction over the Company and that any actions, including fines, may be unenforceable against the Company, any regulatory action could otherwise absorb Company time and resources (including independent consultants) away from its business operations or the Company may choose to pay such fines in order to do business in a particular country. Alternatively, the Company may determine that the risks associated with a particular market and its regulatory environment outweigh the benefits of conducting further business in that market and discontinue doing business there.

Any actions by a foreign government to enforce these laws against us could cause disruption to the marketing and sale of our policies in that country or our withdrawal from doing business in that country, which could have a material adverse effect on our premium revenue, our costs and expenses and on our results of operations and financial condition.

International Currency Risks. While we only sell U.S. dollar denominated products, currency control laws or other currency exchange restrictions in foreign countries could materially adversely affect our revenues by limiting the ability of our policyholders in such countries to pay premiums in U.S. dollars or to receive U.S. dollar benefits. Difficulties in transferring funds from or converting currencies to U.S. dollars in certain countries could cause an increase in fees and costs associated with such payments or receipt of benefits and therefore make our products less attractive to such policyholders.

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International Political Risks.Many of the countries in which we operate have a history of political instability, including regime changes, political uprisings, and anti-democratic or anti-U.S. policies. The ability of people living in these countries to purchase and continue to make premium payments on our insurance policies and our ability to sell our policies in those countries through our independent consultants or otherwise may be adversely affected by political instability. Given the nature of our products, in an economic environment characterized by higher unemployment, lower personal income and reduced consumer spending, new product sales may be adversely affected. During such periods, we may also experience higher claims, longer claims duration, increase in policy lapses and/or increase in surrenders, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition. In addition, the imposition of U.S. sanctions against foreign countries where our policyholders reside could make it difficult for us to continue to issue new policies and receive premiums from policyholders in those countries.

We face significant competition in our international markets. If we are unable to compete effectively in these markets, our business, results of operations and profitability may be adversely affected.

We experience considerable competition for sales of our policies, primarily from the following sources, many of which have substantially greater financial, marketing and other resources than we have:

Offshore companies with U.S. dollar-denominated policies. We face direct competition from companies that operate in the same manner as we do in our international markets;
Foreign companies with locally operated subsidiaries that are registered in those countries and offer both local jurisdiction-regulated products in local currency and offshore U.S. dollar-denominated policies. This arrangement creates competition in that the U.S. dollar-denominated policies are cross-sold with high-need local insurance policies such as health insurance; and
Locally operated companies with local currency policies. We compete with companies formed and operated in the country in which our foreign insureds reside.

In addition, from time to time, companies enter and exit the markets in which we operate, thereby increasing competition at times when there are new entrants. We may lose business to competitors offering competitive products at lower prices, or for other reasons.

Since we rely on independent consultants for distribution of our products in foreign markets, regulation and licensing requirements imposed upon our Company may impact our ability to attract and retain effective sales representatives, who may choose to distribute products of our competitors.

There can be no assurance that we will be able to compete effectively in any of our markets. If we do not, our business, results of operations and financial condition will be materially adversely affected.

We face a greater risk of money laundering activity associated with sales derived from residents of certain foreign countries.

The insurance industry is highly vulnerable to money laundering. Money laundering in the insurance industry typically involves the exploitation of various products and mechanisms to obscure the origins of illicit funds. One common method is through the purchase of insurance policies, such as life insurance, with the use of dirty money. Criminals may overpay premiums, surrender policies prematurely, or make fictitious claims to cycle the illicit funds back as legitimate payout. To combat global financial crime, governments and international authorities implement a range of anti-money laundering and countering of terrorist financing (AML/CFT) regulations that impact the insurance sector. Penalties for compliance failures can include heavy fines.

Some of our top international markets, such as Colombia and Venezuela, are countries that have been identified by the U.S. Department of the Treasury as jurisdictions of high risk for money laundering. Accordingly, as required by applicable U.S. laws and best business practices, we have developed and implemented an anti-money laundering, anti-terrorist financing and sanctions program that includes policies, procedures, controls, independent testing, reporting and recordkeeping requirements for deterring, preventing and detecting potential money laundering, terrorist financing, fraud and other criminal activity and have an officer of the Company responsible for managing this program. Despite our efforts to prevent money laundering through our companies, there can be no assurance that these enhanced controls will entirely mitigate money laundering risk associated with our insurance products, whether in these foreign countries or in the United States.


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INSURANCE RISKS

BECAUSE MOST OF OUR REVENUE DERIVES FROM COLLECTION OF PREMIUMS ON OUR PRODUCTS, OUR OVERALL FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE DEPENDS UPON THE ACCURACY OF OUR PRODUCT PRICING AND ABILITY TO MANAGE PRICING ADEQUACY. DIFFERENCES IN ACTUAL EXPERIENCE, IMPROPER EVALUATION OF UNDERWRITING RISK, MISMANAGEMENT OF CLAIMS, OR OTHER UNFORESEEN EVENTS COULD CAUSE OUR ACTUAL RESULTS TO DIFFER FROM OUR ASSUMPTIONS, WHICH WOULD REDUCE OUR MARGINS AND THUS NEGATIVELY AFFECT OUR PROFITABILITY AND FINANCIAL CONDITION.

Pricing accuracy depends upon our ability to project future losses based on historical loss experience, adjusted for known trends.

In order to price products accurately, the Company must develop and apply appropriate morbidity and mortality estimates, closely monitor and timely recognize changes in trends, and project both severity and frequency of losses with reasonable accuracy to cover these risks. Pricing adequacy is necessary to generate sufficient premiums to cover our cost of sales, costs of operations (including payment of policy benefits) and to earn a profit. Pricing adequacy is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation:

availability of sufficient reliable data;
incorrect or incomplete analysis of available data;
uncertainties inherent in estimates and assumptions;
selection and application of appropriate rating formulae or other pricing methodologies;
adoption of successful pricing strategies;
prediction of policyholder life expectancy and retention;
unforeseen events that may cause our estimates to be wrong (such as the COVID-19 pandemic);
unanticipated legislation, regulatory action or court decisions; or
unexpected changes in interest rates or inflation.

Such risks may result in the Company’s pricing being based on outdated, inadequate, or inaccurate data, or inappropriate analyses, assumptions, or methodologies, and may cause the Company to estimate incorrectly future changes in the frequency or severity of claims. As a result, the Company could underprice risks, which would negatively affect the Company’s margins, or it could overprice risks, which could reduce the Company’s volume and competitiveness.

Pricing accuracy depends upon our ability to project future losses based on historical loss experience, including policyholder retention. Unanticipated increases in early policyholder withdrawals or surrenders or elections by policyholders to receive lump sum payouts at maturity could negatively impact liquidity.

A primary liquidity concern is the risk of unanticipated or extraordinary early policyholder withdrawals or surrenders. Some of our insurance policies include provisions, such as surrender charges, that help limit and discourage early withdrawals. However, early withdrawal and surrender levels may differ from anticipated levels for a variety of reasons, including changes in economic conditions, changes in policyholder behavior or financial needs, changes in relationships with our independent consultants, efforts by foreign governments to tax policyholders or increases in surrenders among policies that have been in force for more than fifteen years and are no longer subject to surrender charges. These changes in surrender activity may result in remeasurement gains or losses which could increase volatility in our results of operations.

In addition, we face potential liquidity risks if policyholders with mature policies elect to receive lump sum distributions at greater levels than anticipated. Our whole life and endowment products provide the policyholder with alternatives once the policy matures. The policyholder can choose to take a lump sum payout or leave the money on deposit at interest with the Company. The Company has a significant amount of aging endowment products that have begun reaching their maturities and policyholder election behavior is not known. It is uncertain how policyholders will react in response to these maturities. If a large number of policyholders elect lump sum distributions, the Company could be exposed to liquidity risk in years of high maturities.

If we experience unanticipated early withdrawal or surrender activity or greater than expected lump sum distributions of endowment maturities and we do not have sufficient cash flow from our insurance operations to support payment of these benefits, we may have to sell our investments in order to meet our cash needs or be

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forced to obtain third-party financing. The availability of such financing will depend on a variety of factors, such as market conditions, the availability of credit in general or more specifically in the insurance industry, the strength or weakness of the capital markets, the volume of trading activities, our credit capacity, and the perception of our long- or short-term financial prospects if we incur large realized or unrealized investment losses or if the level of business activity declines due to a market downturn. Therefore, if we are forced to sell our investments on unfavorable terms or obtain financing with unfavorable terms, it could have an adverse effect on our liquidity, results of operations and financial condition.

The Company’s success depends on its ability to accurately underwrite risks in order to charge adequate premiums to policyholders.

The Company’s financial results largely depend on the Company’s ability to underwrite and set premiums accurately for the risks it faces. Failure to adequately underwrite health risks (i.e., to charge lower premiums than should be charged based on an individual’s health or to accept risks of extremely unhealthy individuals) or other types of risks (e.g., political risks) could negatively impact profitability as we could pay higher benefits than our products are priced for.

Historically, we have fully underwritten most of our products in order to properly evaluate risk. For many of our newer products, primarily in the U.S., we utilize a “simplified” underwriting process. Simplified issue life insurance uses a simple form of underwriting. Applicants must answer some health-related questions but do not have to take a life insurance medical exam. The underwriting decision is based on questions answered on the application and may be supplemented with additional medical claims history and lab data information.

Any shortcomings in the process used to evaluate and price our policies, or significant inaccuracies in the life expectancy estimates relating to those policies, could have a material and adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Policyholder claims is one of our largest expenses. Mismanagement of claims handling or increased fraudulent claims could negatively impact our costs and financial condition.

Proper claims handling is critical to managing our benefit expenses. Many factors can affect the Company’s ability to pay claims accurately, including the following:

the training, experience, and skill of the Company’s claims representatives;
the extent of fraudulent claims and the Company’s ability to recognize and respond to such claims; and
the Company’s ability to develop or select and implement appropriate procedures, technologies, and systems to support claims functions.

The Company’s failure to pay claims fairly, accurately, and in a timely manner, or to deploy claims resources appropriately, could result in unanticipated costs, lead to material litigation, undermine customer goodwill and the Company’s reputation in the marketplace, impair its brand image and, as a result, materially and adversely affect its competitiveness, financial results, prospects, and liquidity.

Higher than expected policyholder claims related to unforeseen events may negatively impact our premium revenues, increase our benefits and expense costs and increase our reinsurance costs, thus negatively affecting our financial condition.

Our life and health insurance products are particularly exposed to risks of catastrophic mortality, such as a pandemic or other events that result in a large number of deaths. In addition, the occurrence of such an event in a concentrated geographic area could have a severe disruptive effect on our workforce and business operations. The likelihood and severity of such events cannot be predicted and are difficult to estimate. In such an event, the impact to our operations could have a material adverse impact on our ability to conduct business and on our results of operations and financial condition, particularly if those problems affect employees performing operational tasks and supporting computer-based data processing, or destroy the capability to transmit, store, and retrieve valuable data. In addition, in the event that a significant number of our management were unavailable following a disaster, the achievement of our strategic objectives could be negatively impacted.


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Reinsurance may not be available or affordable, or reinsurers may be unwilling or unable to meet their obligations under our reinsurance contracts, which may adversely affect our results of operations or financial condition.

As part of our overall risk management and capital management strategies, we purchase reinsurance for certain risks underwritten by our various insurance subsidiaries. Market conditions beyond our control determine the availability and cost of reinsurance. Any decrease in the amount of reinsurance will increase our risk of loss and may impact the level of capital requirements for our insurance subsidiaries, and any increase in the cost of reinsurance will, absent a decrease in the amount of reinsurance, reduce our results of operations. Accordingly, we may be forced to incur additional expenses for reinsurance or may be unable to obtain sufficient reinsurance on acceptable terms, which may adversely affect our ability to write future business, result in the assumption of more risk with respect to the policies we issue, and increase our capital requirements. The collectability of our reinsurance recoverable is primarily a function of the solvency of the individual reinsurers. We cannot provide assurance that our reinsurers will pay the reinsurance recoverable owed to us or that they will pay these recoverables on a timely basis. The insolvency of a reinsurer or the inability or unwillingness of a reinsurer to comply with the terms of a reinsurance contract may have an adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition.

Our actual claims losses may exceed our reserves for claims and we may be required to establish additional reserves, which in turn may adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition.

We maintain reserves to cover our estimated exposure for claims relating to our issued insurance policies. Reserves do not represent an exact calculation of exposure, but instead represent our best estimates using actuarial and statistical procedures. Reserve estimates are refined as experience develops, and adjustments to reserves are reflected in our consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss) for the period in which such estimates are updated. Because establishing reserves is an inherently uncertain process involving estimates of future losses, future developments may require us to increase policy benefit reserves, which restricts our use of cash to the extent of such increased reserves and increases expenses, negatively affecting our results of operations and financial condition in the periods in which such increases occur.

THE DISTRIBUTION OF OUR PRODUCTS THROUGH INDEPENDENT CONSULTANTS AND AGENCIES REDUCES OUR CONTROL OVER SALES AND DISTRIBUTION AND THUS SUBJECTS US TO CERTAIN RISKS THAT COULD NEGATIVELY IMPACT OUR REVENUES, OUR IN-FORCE BUSINESS, AND OUR BENEFITS AND EXPENSE COSTS.

Sales of our insurance products could decline if we are unable to establish and maintain relationships with independent marketing agencies, independent consultants and agents.

We depend almost exclusively on the services of a small number of independent consulting agencies in our international markets and on independent marketing organizations, general agencies and independent agents in our domestic markets for the distribution of our products. The loss of any of these producers could negatively affect our sales and policy retention.

Significant competition exists among insurers in attracting and maintaining marketers of demonstrated ability. Some of our competitors may offer better compensation packages or commissions or induce agents to sell their products due to their broader product offerings, more distribution resources, better brand recognition, more competitive pricing, lower cost structures or greater financial strength or claims paying ratings than we have. We compete with other insurers for marketing agencies, agents and independent consultants primarily on the basis of our compensation, products and support services. Any reduction in our ability to attract and retain effective sales representatives could materially adversely affect our revenues, results of operations and financial condition.

Additionally, we are subject to a risk of our independent consultants leaving our Company to sell products for a competitor and inducing our policyholders to lapse or surrender their policies, or otherwise terminate their relationship with us, in order to purchase products from the independent consultant with a competitor company.

Because we sell our products through independent agents, we have less control over the manner in which they sell our products.

As described above in Item 1, Business, Regulation, insurance regulators focus on market conduct, i.e., the way we sell our products. In the United States, there are several insurance regulations and federal laws that limit how we

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sell our products, such as the Telephone Consumer Protection Act ("TCPA"), which governs how our agents can contact customers or potential customers via telephone and text. While we expect our agents to comply with their contractual obligations to us and laws such as the TCPA, we have limited control over how they conduct their business. If violations, such as TCPA violations, were attributed to us, we could incur significant fines and if attributed to our agents, may cause them to stop selling our products.

REGULATORY RISKS

INSURANCE IS A HIGHLY REGULATED BUSINESS. REGULATIONS VARY FROM JURISDICTION TO JURISDICTION AND MAY CHANGE FROM TIME TO TIME. THESE REGULATIONS AFFECT OUR OPERATIONS AND CHANGES COULD NEGATIVELY IMPACT OUR CASH FLOW, THE RESULTS OF OUR OPERATIONS, OUR LIQUIDITY AND OUR FINANCIAL CONDITION.

In addition to the legal risks related to our international operations discussed above in this Item 1A, Risk Factors, we are subject to risks related to the laws and regulations in the jurisdictions where we are domiciled and registered to do business, including Puerto Rico and various U.S. states. The material risks are described below.

Our insurance subsidiaries are subject to minimum capital and surplus requirements, and any failure to meet these requirements could subject us to regulatory action or other restrictions, including ceasing business.

The capacity for an insurance company's growth in premiums is partially a function of its required statutory surplus. Maintaining appropriate levels of statutory surplus, as measured by statutory accounting practices prescribed or permitted by a company's jurisdiction of domicile, is the most important solvency measure for insurance regulatory authorities. Failure to maintain required levels of statutory surplus could result in increased regulatory scrutiny and enforcement action by regulatory authorities.

Our insurance subsidiaries are subject to minimum capital and surplus requirements in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. If we fail to meet these standards and requirements, our various regulators may require specified actions to be taken, including without limitation:

restricting distributions from our subsidiaries to Citizens; or
requiring Citizens to contribute additional capital to a subsidiary; or
requiring Citizens to enter into a guaranty or other agreement to contribute capital to such subsidiary under certain circumstances; or
requiring the applicable insurance company to stop selling new business;

all of which could have a material and adverse impact on the Company’s competitiveness, operational flexibility, financial condition, and results of operations.

In August 2023, in order to comply with the requirements of the Bermuda regulators to transfer our international business to CICA International in Puerto Rico, Citizens and CICA International entered into a Keep Well Agreement, as described in Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Liquidity and Capital Resources. If CICA International's minimum capital level falls below certain thresholds as set forth in the agreement, Citizens may have to contribute capital to CICA Bermuda, which could negatively impact our capital resources and liquidity.

In our CICA Domestic business, we pay advance commissions on some of our insurance products, meaning we pay an agent their commission immediately upon sale of a policy, rather than "as earned", or when premiums are received by us. Because of this, another liquidity concern is the risk that rapid growth in first year sales of these products could create a significant increase in commission payments, which increases expenses and thus reduces our statutory capital until the commissions are recouped from premiums paid. CICA Domestic sales have increased significantly since the third quarter of 2023 and continue to grow rapidly. To mitigate this risk and strain on capital, we may seek options, such as reinsurance or loans at the holding company level (from the Credit Facility or otherwise) that would allow us to reduce the liquidity risk should CICA Domestic's required commission payments exceed current resources. If we are unable to purchase reinsurance protection in amounts that we consider sufficient or unable to borrow money to contribute capital to CICA Domestic, we could be exposed to cash flow strain. For CICA Domestic, commission advances are non-admitted assets, which increases required regulatory

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capital and reduces the excess capital available. As discussed above, management is investigating various options in order to reduce both regulatory capital and liquidity risk should the capital required to support this growth exceed current resources. Citizens may have to contribute capital to CICA Domestic to maintain the required RBC ratio.

Citizens is a holding company that has minimal operations of its own and depends on the ability of our insurance subsidiaries to pay dividends or make service payments to us in sufficient amounts to fund our operations. If they cannot make such payments, Citizens may need to sell investments or seek external capital to cover its operational costs.

As a holding company, our assets consist of the capital stock of our subsidiaries, cash and investments. Accordingly, we rely primarily on statutorily permissible payments from our insurance subsidiaries, principally through dividends or service agreements we have with our subsidiaries, to meet our working capital needs. As discussed above, the ability of our insurance subsidiaries to make payments to us is subject to regulation by the states and jurisdictions in which they are domiciled, and in addition to maintaining minimum capital and surplus ratios, these payments depend primarily on regulatory approval of dividend payments and approved service agreements between us and these subsidiaries.

Except to the extent that we are a creditor with recognized claims against our subsidiaries, claims of our subsidiaries' creditors, including policyholders, have priority with respect to the assets and earnings of the subsidiaries over the claims of other creditors (including us) and shareholders. If any of our subsidiaries become insolvent, liquidates or otherwise reorganizes, our policyholders will have a priority to receive the assets of such subsidiary and Citizens may have no rights to receive cash or other assets of such subsidiaries.

If our internal sources of liquidity prove to be insufficient to cover our holding company operations, we may have to sell investments earlier than we want to sell them or in less than favorable market conditions, or we may have to seek external sources of capital. Out of an abundance of caution, in May 2021, we entered into a Credit Facility with Regions Bank. See Part IV, Item 15, Note 8, Commitments and Contingencies in the notes to our consolidated financial statements, herein, for a description of the Credit Facility. To date, we have not utilized the Credit Facility, but if internal sources of capital are not sufficient to meet our operating needs, we may need to utilize the Credit Facility or increase the borrowing availability under the Credit Facility. We may also need to raise capital through issuing our stock. Borrowing money, increasing our borrowing availability under the Credit Facility or obtaining financing for even a small amount of capital could be challenging or expensive in unfavorable market conditions and during periods of economic uncertainty. The availability of financing will depend on a variety of factors such as market conditions, the general availability of credit, the overall availability of credit to the financial services industry, and the possibility that customers or lenders could develop a negative perception of our financial prospects. Raising capital in unfavorable market conditions could increase our interest expense or negatively impact our shareholders through dilution of their common stock ownership of the Company.

Citizens and our insurance subsidiaries are subject to extensive governmental regulation in Puerto Rico and in the U.S. The rules and regulations to which we are subject may change and impose greater restrictions on our business, which could increase our costs of doing business, restrict the conduct of our business, increase capital requirements for our insurance subsidiaries and negatively impact our results of operations, liquidity and financial condition.

CICA International is registered in Puerto Rico and is subject to regulation by the Puerto Rico Office of the Insurance Commissioner ("OIC"). As a Puerto Rico International Insurer, CICA International is governed by Chapter 61 of the Puerto Rico Insurance Code. Additionally, CICA International must comply with other laws and regulations of Puerto Rico, most of which apply to our domestic subsidiaries as well, including U.S. federal laws such as the Bank Secrecy Act.

In the U.S., we are primarily subject to regulation at the state-level. Insurance company regulation is generally designed to protect the interests of policyholders, with substantially less protections to shareholders of the regulated insurance companies or their holding companies. To that end, all the U.S. states in which we do business have insurance regulatory agencies with broad legal powers with respect to licensing companies to transact business, mandating capital and surplus requirements, regulating claims practices, approving service agreements between a holding company and its operating subsidiary, restricting companies' ability to enter and exit markets, approving

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product forms and to a lesser extent, rates, and restricting or prohibiting the payment of dividends by our subsidiaries to us.

The OIC and most U.S. insurance regulatory authorities have broad discretion to grant, renew, suspend and revoke licenses and approvals, and could preclude or temporarily suspend us from carrying on some or all of our activities, including acquisitions of other insurance companies, require us to add capital to our insurance subsidiaries, or fine us. If we are unable to maintain all required licenses and approvals, or if our insurance business is determined not to comply fully with the wide variety of applicable laws and regulations and their interpretations, our revenues, results of operations and financial condition and our reputation could be materially adversely affected.

Non-compliance with laws or regulations related to customer and consumer privacy and information security, including a failure to ensure that our business associates with access to sensitive customer and consumer information maintain its confidentiality, could materially adversely affect our reputation and business operations.

The collection, maintenance, use, disclosure and disposal of personally identifiable information by our insurance subsidiaries are highly regulated. Applicable laws and rules are subject to change by legislation or administrative or judicial interpretation. Various state laws address the use and disclosure of personally identifiable information to the extent they are more restrictive than those contained in the privacy and security provisions in the federal Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. Noncompliance with any privacy laws, whether by us or by one of our business associates, could have a material adverse effect on our business, reputation and results of operations and could result in material fines and penalties, various forms of damages, consent orders regarding our privacy and security practices, adverse actions against our licenses to do business, and injunctive relief.

FINANCIAL RISKS

Changes in accounting standards may adversely affect our reported results of operations and financial condition.

Our consolidated financial statements are subject to the application of GAAP in the U.S., which is periodically revised and/or expanded. Accordingly, we are required to adopt new or revised accounting standards issued by recognized authoritative bodies, including the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners ("NAIC"). Updates or revisions, including underlying assumptions, projections, estimates or judgments/interpretations by management, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, the required adoption of new accounting standards may result in significant incremental costs associated with initial implementation and ongoing compliance. See Note 1. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the notes to our consolidated financial statements contained herein for additional information regarding accounting updates.

Unexpected losses in future reporting periods may require us to record a valuation allowance against our deferred tax assets.

Under U.S. GAAP, we are required to evaluate our deferred tax assets ("DTA") quarterly for recoverability based on available evidence. This process involves management's judgment about assumptions, which are subject to change from period to period due to tax rate changes or variances between our projected operating performance and our actual results. Ultimately, future adjustments to the DTA valuation allowance, if any, will be determined based upon changes in the expected realization of the net deferred tax assets. The realization of the deferred tax assets depends on the existence of sufficient taxable income in either the carry back or carry forward periods under applicable tax law. Due to significant estimates utilized in establishing the valuation allowance and the potential for changes in facts and circumstances, it is reasonably possible that we may be required to record a valuation allowance in future reporting periods. Such an adjustment could have a material adverse effect on our results of operation and financial condition.

A ratings downgrade or other negative action by a rating agency could materially affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

A.M.Best reviews CICA Domestic and publishes its financial strength rating as an indicator of our ability to fulfill our contractual obligations. This rating is important to maintaining public confidence in our insurance products. A downgrade or other negative action by A.M. Best with respect to the financial strength rating of CICA Domestic

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could negatively affect us by limiting or restricting the ability of CICA Domestic to attract independent insurance agencies to distribute our products or reduce the attractiveness of our products to consumers.

ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT RISKS

INVESTMENT INCOME IS A MATERIAL PORTION OF OUR TOTAL REVENUES. CHANGING FINANCIAL CONDITIONS SUCH AS MARKET VOLATILITY, CHANGES IN INTEREST RATES, OR INFLATION MAY ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR REVENUES, OUR RESULTS OF OPERATION AND OUR FINANCIAL CONDITION.

Global or regional changes in the financial markets or economic conditions could adversely affect our business in many ways, including the following:

Inflation, a potential recession, as well as declines in consumer confidence or increase in unemployment rates, could lead to a conservation of cash and decline in the volume of new sales and renewal premiums, or increased surrenders and lapses, and therefore to a decline in our premium revenue or increase in benefit expenses paid out.

Market volatility, specifically declining equity markets, negatively impact the fair market value of our equity securities, leading to investment-related losses that negatively affect our GAAP operating revenue and profitability.

We are subject to credit risk in our investment portfolio. Defaults by third parties in the payment or performance of their obligations under these securities could reduce our investment income or result in the recognition of realized losses. Additionally, downgrades in the bonds in our portfolio may result in the recognition of credit related allowances and cause us to reduce the carrying value of our investment portfolio. This could negatively affect our stockholders' equity.

Low or declining interest rates could negatively affect us for many reasons, including:
Our fixed maturity investment portfolio is primarily invested in callable securities. As interest rates have declined and remained ultra-low over the past decade, many of these securities were called and we have had to reinvest in lower interest rate bonds, leading to reduced net investment income and low yields.
Some of our products, principally endowment products and traditional whole life insurance with annuity riders, expose us to the risk that decreases in interest rates will reduce our "spread", or the difference between the amounts we are required to pay under our contracts to policyholders and the rate of return we are able to earn on our investments intended to support obligations under the contracts.
An interest or discount rate is used in calculating reserves for our insurance products. We set our reserve discount rate assumptions based on our current and expected future investment yield for assets supporting the reserves, considering current and expected future market conditions. If the discount rate assumed in our reserve calculations is higher than our future investment returns (due to lower interest rates), our invested assets will not earn enough investment income to support our future benefit payments. In that case, we may be required to record additional liabilities and/or increase our capital contributions to our insurance subsidiaries in the period this occurs.

Rising interest rates may negatively affect us as follows:
Rising interest rates typically reduce the market values of fixed income assets, as the interest payments on such assets become less competitive relative to newer high rate fixed income instruments. This leads to material unrealized losses and negatively affects our stockholders' equity.
Policies may become less attractive to our policyholders in a rising interest rate environment. They may surrender their policies or make early withdrawals to increase their returns, requiring us to liquidate investments and realize an actual loss.

Some of our investments, such as mortgage-backed and other asset-backed securities, carry prepayment risk. As interest rates increase, the likelihood of prepayment is lower, as the issuer will want to make payments based on the lower interest rates. If the repayment of principal occurs later than we expected, our cash flow could be negatively impacted. As interest rates decrease, issuers are more likely to pre-pay, which could cause us to have to re-invest the pre-paid cash at lower interest rates, reducing our yields and net investment income.


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The decision of whether to record a credit loss impairment is determined by our assessment of the financial condition and prospects of a particular issuer, projections of future cash flows and recoverability as well as our ability and intent to hold the securities to recovery or maturity. There can be no assurance that we have accurately assessed the level of impairments taken. Historical trends may not be indicative of future impairments and additional impairments may need to be taken in the future. Any event reducing the value of our securities on an other than temporary basis may have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, or financial condition.

CYBERSECURITY AND TECHNOLOGY RISKS

THE COMPANY RELIES ON OUR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS, AND THE DATA MAINTAINED WITHIN THOSE SYSTEMS, TO MANAGE MANY ASPECTS OF OUR BUSINESS. CYBERSECURITY RISKS, THE FAILURE OF OUR SYSTEMS TO OPERATE PROPERLY AND/OR THE FAILURE TO MAINTAIN THE CONFIDENTIALITY, INTEGRITY, AND AVAILABILITY OF POLICYHOLDER AND CLAIMS DATA, INCLUDING PERSONAL IDENTIFYING INFORMATION, COULD RESULT IN A MATERIALLY ADVERSE EFFECT ON OUR BUSINESS, REPUTATION, FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS.

Our failure to maintain effective information systems could adversely affect our business.

We must maintain and enhance our existing information systems and develop and integrate new information systems to keep pace with continuing changes in information processing technology, evolving industry and regulatory standards and changing customer preferences in a cost-effective manner. If we do not maintain adequate systems, we could experience adverse consequences, including inadequate information on which to base pricing, underwriting and reserve decisions, regulatory problems, failure to meet prompt payment obligations, increases in administrative expenses and loss of customers. Our failure to maintain effective and efficient information systems, or our failure to consolidate our existing systems could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Some of our information technology systems and software are mainframe-based, legacy-type systems that require an ongoing commitment of resources to maintain current standards. Our systems utilize proprietary code requiring highly skilled personnel. Due to the unique nature of our proprietary operating environment, we could have difficulty finding personnel with the skills required to provide ongoing system maintenance and development as we seek to keep pace with changes in our products and business models, information processing technology, evolving industry and regulatory standards and policyholder needs.

We are continuously evaluating and enhancing systems and creating new systems and processes as our business depends on our ability to maintain and improve our technology. Due to the complexity and interconnectedness of our systems and processes, these changes, as well as changes designed to update and enhance our protective measures to address new threats, increase the risk of a system or process failure or the creation of a gap in our security measures. Any such failure or gap could adversely affect our business operations and results of operations.

A cyber attack or other security breach could disrupt our operations, result in the unauthorized disclosure or loss of confidential data, damage our reputation or relationships, and expose us to significant financial and legal liability, which may adversely affect our business, results of operations, or financial condition.

We store confidential information about our business and our policyholders, independent marketing firms, and independent agents, consultants and others on our information technology systems, including proprietary and personally identifiable information. As part of our normal business operations, we use this information and engage third-party providers, including outsourcing, cloud computing, and other business partners, that store, access, process, and transmit such information on our behalf. We devote significant resources and employ security measures to help protect our information technology systems and confidential information, and we have programs in place to detect, contain, and respond to information security incidents. However, because the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access, disable or degrade service, or sabotage systems change frequently and may be difficult to detect for long periods of time, we and our third-party providers may be unable to anticipate these techniques or implement adequate preventative measures. In addition, hardware, software, or applications we develop or procure from third parties or through open source solutions may contain defects in design or manufacture or other problems that could unexpectedly compromise our information security. Unauthorized parties, whether within or outside our company, may disrupt or gain access to our systems, or those of third parties with

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whom we do business, through human error, misfeasance, fraud, trickery, or other forms of deceit, including break-ins, use of stolen credentials, social engineering, phishing, or other cyber attacks, computer viruses, malicious codes, and similar means of unauthorized and destructive tampering.

We and our third-party providers experience information security incidents from time to time. There is no assurance that our security systems and measures will be able to prevent, mitigate, or remediate future incidents. A successful penetration or circumvention of the security of our information technology systems, or those of third parties with whom we do business, could cause serious negative consequences for us, including significant disruption of our operations, unauthorized disclosure or loss of confidential information, harm to our brand or reputation, loss of customers and revenues, violations of privacy and other laws, and exposure to litigation, monetary damages, regulatory enforcement proceedings, fines, and potentially criminal proceedings and penalties. If we are unaware of the incident for some time after it occurs, our exposure could increase. In addition, the costs to address or remediate systems disruptions or security threats or vulnerabilities, whether before or after an incident, could be significant. As we continue to build our digital capabilities and focus on enhancing the customer experience, the amount of information that we retain and share with third parties is likely to grow, increasing the cost to prevent data security breaches and the cost and potential consequences of such breaches. An information technology systems failure could also interfere with our ability to comply with financial reporting and other regulatory requirements, exposing us to potential disciplinary action by regulators.

Although we have insurance against some cyber risks and attacks, we may be subject to litigation and financial losses that exceed our policy limits, are subject to deductibles or are not covered under any of our current insurance policies.

The failure of our business recovery and incident management processes to resume our business operations in the event of a catastrophe, an epidemic, a cyber attack, or other event could adversely affect our profitability, results of operations, or financial condition.

In the event of a disaster such as a catastrophe, an epidemic, a cyber attack, cyber security breach or other information technology systems failure, a terrorist attack, or war, unanticipated problems with our disaster recovery systems could have a material adverse impact on our ability to conduct business and on our results of operations and financial condition, particularly if those problems affect our information technology systems and destroy valuable data or result in a significant failure of our internal control environment. In addition, in the event that a significant number of our employees were unavailable in the event of a disaster, our ability to effectively conduct business could be severely compromised.

The failure of our information technology and/or disaster recovery systems for any reason could cause significant interruptions or malfunctions in our or our customers’ operations and result in the loss, theft, or failure to maintain the security, confidentiality or privacy of sensitive data, including personal information relating to our customers. Such a failure could harm our reputation, subject us to regulatory sanctions, legal claims, and increased expenses, and lead to a loss of customers and revenues.

RISKS RELATED TO HOLDING OUR SECURITIES

The number and location of our shareholders may make it difficult to obtain approval of certain corporate actions.

Because we allow our policyholders to use their policy dividends to purchase our Class A common stock through our SIP, we have over 84,000 shareholders and approximately 40% of our shareholders hold less than 100 shares each. Many of these shareholders are located in Latin America and the Pacific Rim, where most of our policies are sold, and English may not be their native language. We believe that because of this, we typically have low voter turn-out at our annual meetings and therefore any proposal, such as one related to a merger or an acquisition of our Company, or an amendment to our articles of incorporation, that may require the affirmative vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of our Class A common stock, may be difficult to approve.

Our Class A common stock is not registered in any foreign country.

As mentioned above, a significant portion of our Class A common stock has been purchased under the SIP by foreign holders of life insurance policies. The Class A common stock sold under the SIP is registered with the SEC

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pursuant to a Form S-3 registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933 but is not registered under the laws of any foreign jurisdiction. If a foreign securities regulatory authority were to determine the offer and sale of our Class A common stock under the SIP was not allowed under applicable laws and regulations of its jurisdiction, such authority may issue or assert a fine, penalty or cease and desist order against our offer and sale of Class A common stock in that foreign jurisdiction. There is a risk our Class A common stock price could be negatively impacted by a decrease in participation in the SIP.

Applicable insurance laws in the jurisdictions where our insurance subsidiaries are domiciled may discourage takeovers and business combinations that our shareholders might consider to be in their best interests.

Insurance laws in the jurisdictions in which our insurance subsidiaries are domiciled require regulatory actions for certain transactions, such as a merger or acquisition of our Company, that our shareholders might consider in their best interests. To the extent the interests of our policyholders and stockholders conflict, the insurance regulators consider the best interests of policyholders over the best interests of our shareholders. As a result, our shareholders may be prevented from receiving the benefit from any premium to the market price of our Class A common stock that may be offered by a bidder in a takeover context or such regulatory approval requirement may delay, deter, render more difficult or prevent a takeover attempt or a change in control.

Item 1B.UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

Item 1C.CYBERSECURITY

Like other firms in the financial services sector, insurers like us are particularly vulnerable to cybercrime due to our large amounts of customer data. Insurance-related data is particularly interesting to cybercriminals because of its inherent confidentiality. Often linked to policyholders, sensitive data helps insurers customize their policies, products, and prices for each client. The scope of personally identifiable information and sensitive data processed by insurers puts the industry at increased risk of cybercrime. Cyber attacks can lead to the loss of confidential data, business, and reputation. Additionally, business disruption through cyber incidents is also a major problem for insurance companies, which need to react quickly to fulfill their contracts and maintain the trust of their clients. Because of the risks posed to our business and customers, we have developed robust processes for assessing, identifying and managing our cybersecurity threats.

We recognize the importance of assessing, identifying, and managing material risks associated with cybersecurity threats. Cybersecurity risks related to our business, technical operations, privacy and compliance issues are identified and addressed through a multi-faceted approach including third party assessments, IT security, and external audits. Cybersecurity risks are integrated into our overall enterprise risk management process. To defend, detect and respond to cybersecurity incidents, we, among other things: perform penetration testing using external third-party tools and techniques to test security controls and conduct employee training.

We have implemented incident response and breach management processes which have four overarching and interconnected stages: 1) preparation for a cybersecurity incident, 2) detection and analysis of a security incident, 3) containment, eradication and recovery, and 4) post-incident analysis. Such cybersecurity incident responses are overseen by leaders from our Information Security, IT, Finance, Compliance and Legal teams.

Security events and data incidents are evaluated, ranked by severity and prioritized for response and remediation. Incidents are evaluated to determine materiality as well as operational and business impact, and reviewed for privacy impact. We also conduct tabletop exercises to simulate responses to cybersecurity incidents.

Our risk management program also assesses third party risks, and we perform third-party risk management assessments to identify and mitigate risks from third parties such as vendors, suppliers, and other business partners associated with our use of third-party service providers. Cybersecurity risks are evaluated when determining the selection and oversight of applicable third-party service providers when handling and/or processing our employee, business or customer data. In addition to new vendor onboarding, we perform periodic ongoing security reviews of our critical vendors.


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We describe whether and how risks from identified cybersecurity threats, including as a result of any previous cybersecurity incidents, have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect us, including our business strategy, results of operations, or financial condition, under the heading “Cybersecurity and Technology Risks” included as part of our risk factor disclosures at Item 1A - Risk Factors - of this 10-K.

While we have devoted significant financial and personnel resources to implement and maintain the security measures described above, and in order to meet regulatory requirements and customer expectations, there can be no guarantee that our policies and procedures will be properly followed in every instance or that those policies and procedures will be effective. Although our Risk Factors include further detail about the material cybersecurity risks we face, cybersecurity incidents have not materially affected our business to date. We can provide no assurance that there will not be incidents in the future or that they will not materially affect us, including our business strategy, results of operations, or financial condition.

Cyber Governance.

Cybersecurity is a key element of the Company's enterprise risk management (ERM). Identification and management of the Company's key risks, including cybersecurity, starts with the executive management team, who is responsible for identifying key strategic, insurance, financial, regulatory and operational risks to the Company and managing them on a day-to-day basis. Because of the importance of cybersecurity, the Company has a Chief Information Security Officer ("CISO") who is primarily responsible for managing our cybersecurity risk in conjunction with our Vice President of Information Technology. Our CISO is informed about and monitors prevention, detection, mitigation, and remediation efforts through regular communication and reporting from employees in the information technology team and through the use of technological tools and software and results from third party audits. We have an escalation process in place to inform senior management and the Board of Directors of material issues.

Our CISO has served in that position since 2018 and is an experienced security leader with over 20 years’ experience. In addition to his current role, our CISO has led security and IT audit functions at healthcare technology and population health organizations. His experience includes work in the fields of security, application development, and internal audit at a Fortune 100 company. Our CISO is a Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA), and a member of the ISACA and ISSA organizations. He received his bachelors’ degree from Middle Tennessee State University and served in the United States Marine Corps. Additionally, Gerald W. Shields, our CEO and a member of the Board, has experience in assessing and managing cybersecurity risk and, in addition to his former roles as Chief Information Officer at several companies, he has a Cyber Security Oversight Certificate from Carnegie Mellon Institute.

Our Audit Committee Charter tasks this committee with oversight of the Company's major enterprise risk exposure, including risks related to cybersecurity, and the steps management takes to monitor and control such exposures. The Audit Committee holds its regular meetings on a quarterly basis and at each of those meetings receives a information security update report from the Company's CISO, which report includes cybersecurity events that may have impacted the Company as well as an overview of the Company's security program and efforts to prevent, detect, mitigate, and remediate issues. The CISO also attends the regularly scheduled Board meetings to give his information security report to all members of the Board.

Item 2.PROPERTIES

We lease our principal office at the Domain in Austin, Texas to service all business entities and operations. We lease space in Puerto Rico for CICA International and in Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi related to our Home Service Insurance operations. We also own properties in Louisiana related to our Home Service Insurance operations.

Item 3.LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

None.

Item 4.MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
Not applicable.

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PART II

Item 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Item 5(a)

Market Information.Our Class A common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") under the symbol CIA. Our Class B common stock is not registered with the SEC nor traded on any exchange. We hold 100% of our Class B common stock in treasury and thus there are no Class B shares outstanding.

Holders.The number of stockholders of record as of March 6, 2024 was as follows:
Class A Common Stock -84,212 
Class B Common Stock -— 

Dividend Policy.We have never paid cash dividends on our Class A or B common stock and do not expect to pay cash dividends in the foreseeable future, as it is our policy to retain earnings for use in the operation and expansion of our business.  

Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans.See Item 15, Note 13 Stock Compensation for equity compensation plan information.

Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities; Use of Proceeds. None.

Item 5(c)

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities. In May 2022, the Board of Directors authorized an equity repurchase plan for up to $8.0 million. The timing of any share repurchases under the repurchase authorization is dependent upon several factors, including market price of the Company's securities, the Company’s cash on hand, cash flows from operations, general market conditions, the Company's blackout periods, and other considerations. This program has no set termination date and may be suspended or discontinued by the Company’s Board of Directors at any time. The Company purchased the following shares of its Class A common stock during the three months ended December 31, 2023.
PeriodTotal Number of Shares PurchasedAverage Price Paid Per ShareTotal Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced Plans or ProgramsApproximate Dollar Value of Shares that May Yet be Purchased Under the Plans or Programs [2]
October 202366,805 $2.99 66,805 
November 2023   
December 2023   
Total66,805 66,805 $4,380,000 
[1]    The stock repurchase program was publicly announced on May 10, 2022.
[2]    The Company was authorized to repurchase up to $8.0 million of its outstanding shares of Class A common stock.
[3]    The stock repurchase program does not have an expiration date.
[4]    No stock repurchase program has expired during the three months ended December 31, 2023.
[5]    There is no stock repurchase program that the Company has determined to terminate prior to expiration, or under which the Company does not intend to make further purchases.
Item 6.   [RESERVED]

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Item 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

This section of this Annual Report on Form 10-K generally discusses 2023 and 2022 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2023 and 2022. This discussion should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included elsewhere in this report.

OVERVIEW

For over 4555 years, we have been fulfilling the needs of our policyholders and their families by providing insurance products that offer both living and death benefits. Citizens conducts insurance related operations through its insurance subsidiaries, which provide benefits to residentspolicyholders throughout the United States and in 31 U.S. states and more than 70over 75 different countries. We specialize in offering primarily ordinary whole life insurance, endowment products and final expense insurance in niche markets where we believe we can optimize our competitive position.

As an insurance provider, we collect premiums on an ongoing basis from our policyholders and invest the majority of the premiums to pay future benefits, including claims, and surrenders and policyholder dividends. Accordingly, the Company derives its revenues principally from: (1) life insurance premiums earned for insurance coverages provided to insureds in our two operating segments – Life Insurance and Home ServicesService Insurance; and (2) net investment income. In addition to paying and reserving for insurance benefits that we pay to our policyholders, our expenses consist primarily of the costs of selling our insurance products (e.g., commissions, underwriting, marketing expenses), operating expenses and income taxes.

Objective of our Management's Discussion and Analysis

We refer to our Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations as our “MD&A”. The objective of our MD&A is to provide investors with a succinct analysis of the Company's financial performance from management's perspective. We start by discussing the factors that we believe drive our operating results and then we discuss how industry developments and economic circumstances in general (e.g.(e.g., low interest rates, the COVID-19 pandemic)rate environment) affected or could affect our financial performance. After telling you about our industry, we discuss our 2021 financial highlights, the impacts of COVID-19 on our business during 2021, and then we break-downin detail our results of operations in detailfor the year ended December 31, 2023 so an investor or potential investor understands the various line items of our profit &and loss statements from management’s perspective. Since our investments are one of the two principal sources of our revenues, we describe them in detail. Finally, we discuss our capital resources and liquidity so investors will have a better understandingunderstand how those resources are utilized and how we are able to meet our cash needs.

Throughout the MD&A, we describe how we view the Company and which matters we believe are reasonably likely to affect future operations. We describe our priorities for the business in Item 1. Business - “Strategic Initiatives” and in the MD&A, we describe how we performed on those initiatives and any known trends or uncertainties that might impact our ability to achieve our goals.

Impact of LDTI on Prior Financial Statements

In 2018, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2018-12, Financial Services – Insurance (Topic 944): Targeted Improvements to the Accounting for Long-Duration Contracts, also known as long-duration targeted improvements, or "LDTI", which impacts all insurers that issue long-duration contracts, such as life insurance. The goal of LDTI is to improve, simplify and enhance aspects of accounting for long-duration contracts generally issued by life insurance companies. The changes are intended to result in improvements to our accounting records in the following ways.

In the new model, cash flow assumptions utilized in determining the liability for future policyholder benefits for certain insurance contracts are required to be updated on at least an annual basis. This varies from the prior model which only required us to update the assumptions if a triggering event occurred, like if a premium deficiency is recognized.
The discount rate used in determining the liability for future policyholder benefits has been standardized and is based on upper medium grade (low credit risk) fixed income instruments. The effect of discount rate changes is recorded immediately through other comprehensive income.

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Deferred acquisition costs ("DAC") are now amortized on a constant basis over the expected life of the contract, therefore eliminating the prior amortization methods such as proportion to premium (for traditional life), estimated gross profit (for nontraditional life) or estimated gross margin (for participating life). Additionally, amortization rates are now updated prospectively with DAC being reduced when actual terminations and lapses are greater than expected. By conducting this change, the interest accretion and impairment assessment have been eliminated.

LDTI became effective on January 1, 2023 and required us to make certain changes to our financial statements requiring retrospective application back to January 1, 2021, which is known as the transition date. This Form 10-K includes financial statements that reflect the impact of LDTI. See Part II. Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data and Part IV, Item 15, Note 1 "Significant Accounting Policies" and "Accounting Pronouncements" in the notes to our consolidated financial statements. As a result of implementing LDTI,

we have included results for the year ended December 31, 2021 in our consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss) ("Operating Statement") rather than just the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, as required for a smaller reporting company; and
the discussion of financial results included in this MD&A for the periods ending December 31, 2022 and 2021 may differ, possibly materially, from the discussions included in the MD&A of our previously filed Annual Report on Form 10-K for each respective year.

The implementation of LDTI did not impact our key operating metrics, which are described below in "The Factors that Drive our Operating Results." Accordingly, while we present operating results for the year ended December 31, 2021, we will only discuss the 2021 results or year-to-year comparisons between 2022 and 2021 where they were impacted by the implementation of LDTI. Discussions of 2021 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2022 and 2021 that are not included in this Form 10-K can be found in “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Part II, Item 7 of the Company’s Annual Reports on Form 10-K for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2022 (the "2022 10-K") and December 31, 2021 (the "2021 10-K").

The Factors that Drive our Operating Results

We see the following as the primary factors that drive our operating results:

Sales(i.e., premium revenues)
Our investmentsInvestments
Death claimsClaims and surrenders
Operating expenses

As premiumPremium revenues and investment income are our two primary sources of income both new sales and "resells" (i.e. retaining the policy) as well as our investments and the interest we receive on such investments, arethus key to our profitability.

Premium revenues consist of all money deposited by customers into new and existing insurance policies. We believe sales statistics are meaningful to gaining an understanding of, among other things, the attractiveness of our new products, how expansion of our distribution channels affects our revenue, customer retention and the performance of our business from period-to-period. Throughout the MD&A and inItem 1 - BusinessBusiness, we describe the actions and initiatives that we are takentaking to increase sales and improve retention, how we performedsales performance in 2021,each period and as compared to prior periods, and how we view trends with respect to sales and retention. Because we ceased

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to salesoperations in our property insurance business effective June 30, 2023, the premiums charts below only reflect life insurance and retention. We also discuss our investment performanceaccident and what we are doing to improve performance in this extended low-interest rate environment.health insurance ("A&H") premium results.

Our first-year premiums in 2021 increased by 11.2% compared to 2020. We believe this increase was driven by our focused marketing campaigns, including a campaign intended to recruit new agents, the introduction of new products, and higher sales in 2021 compared to 2020 due to COVID-19 impacts in 2020.
cia-20211231_g10.jpgcia-20211231_g11.jpg549755898837

RenewalFirst year premiums (i.e, new sales) increased 12% from 2022 to 2023. In our Life Insurance segment first year premiums increased by 13% from 2022 to 2023 due to the introduction of critical illness and whole life products in 2022 in our international markets, as well as expansion of our white label distribution network in our domestic market. In our Home Service Insurance segment, first year premiums increased from 2022 to 2023 by 8% due to focused marketing campaigns and higher critical illness premiums, but were lower in 20212022 as compared to 2020 due2021, which we believe is attributed to aninflationary pressures beginning in 2022, which impacted this market more than our international market, as well as COVID-19 government aid programs in 2021 that we believe led to increased focus on collection efforts. sales that year.

549755898832

Renewal premiums indeclined primarily from our Life Insurance segment declined due to the decrease in our in-force business overimpact from a higher level of surrenders during the last several years. The prior-year surrenders negatively impacted the current yearfew years (and thus a lower amount of policies paying renewal premiums even though total surrenderpremiums) and from matured endowment benefits, paid declined in 2021 comparedwhich we expected due to 2020 (see below). As we describe in Item 1. Business - Strategic Initiatives, we believe that our retention efforts began to stem the decline of renewal premiums in 2021.
cia-20211231_g12.jpgcia-20211231_g13.jpgcontractual expiration dates.

While interest rates continue to remain low, our yield stayed flat, at 4.24% in both 2021 and 2020. 4249
Our net investment income increased by $1.3$3.8 million from 20202022 to 20212023 due primarily to investment income from our limited partnership investments, a greatergrowing diversified invested asset base.
cia-20211231_g14.jpg
As part of the ongoing process of managing our portfoliobase and optimizing performance we have been diversifying our investment portfolio in order to help mitigate the effects of the sustained lowreinvesting matured or called fixed income maturity securities into a higher interest rate environment, and investment related gains on our investments contributed significantly to our profitability in 2021.environment.


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Payment of policyholder benefits for death claims and surrenders is our largest expense. In 2021,expense and thus also key to our profitability. The three largest components of this expense are death claims, increasedsurrenders and matured endowments.

Our death claim benefits paid have decreased over the 3-year period ending December 31, 2023 due to a lower number of reported death claims. We believe death claims in large part2021, and to a lesser extent in 2022, were negatively impacted by COVID-19-related deaths.

Our surrenders decreased by $3.2 million in 2021increased from 2020,2022 to 2023, which we believe was in large partis due to the number of our retention efforts.international life policies that are nearing maturity as well as policies that have passed their surrender charge period.
cia-20211231_g15.jpg
Matured endowments have increased as expected due to many of our endowment policies reaching their contractual maturity dates.

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Operating Expensesexpenses are our second largest expense and thus also drive our operating results. Operating expenses are meaningful to gaining an understanding of how we manage our business, including among other things, salaries, benefits, and spending on growth initiatives. Our general operating expenses decreasedincreased by $10.3$2.0 million in 20212023 as compared to 2020. General operating expenses in 2020 included $10.0 million of severance payments to our former CEO2022, driven by costs related to the change in controlstrategic growth initiatives, our search for a new CEO, and costs related to moving our international business from Bermuda to Puerto Rico. The transfer of the Company.
cia-20211231_g16.jpginternational business was completed on August 31, 2023.

ECONOMIC AND INSURANCE INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS

The followingOver the last decade, life insurers have faced numerous disruptions as an industry, including profitability challenges driven by low interest rates, a global pandemic, high inflation followed by a rapid rise in interest rates, volatility in equity markets, and geopolitical uncertainty. These significant trends and developments have and are currently impacting our business and industry:industry as follows:

Increase in Interest Rates; Volatility in Equity and Credit Markets; Inflation. The material uptick in interest rates over the past year has benefited the life insurance sector with respect to increased yields, net investment income and spreads. However, this benefit was offset by inflation and macroeconomic volatility in 2022. The volatility was substantial and the industry moved into material unrealized loss positions on fixed-income portfolios.
Inflation has also impacted our industry over the past year. As the price of energy and food rises, customers will have less discretionary income to spend on insurance products. As the inflationary

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environment continues, the industry may see policy lapses rise, especially among lower and middle-income customers.
Sustained Low Interest Rate Environment.Environment Prior to 2022. Market interest rates are a key driver of our results. Persistent low interest rates are identified as a major threat for life insurance companies, given their rate-sensitive products and investments. The multi-year sustained low interest rate environment continuessignificantly reduced the overall yield on investments, as regulations require that the vast majority of a life insurance company's portfolio consist of fixed income securities, which are primarily callable. As interest rates declined, these fixed income securities were called and had to limit increasesbe re-invested in lower rate investments. This has reduced and may continue to reduce profit margins for life insurers by:
Reducing the spread between guaranteed interest rates credited to policyholders and interest earned on supporting assets;assets. As older endowment and annuity products are maturing, the guaranteed interest rates may be higher than current yields;
Causing usProducts sold during the last several years with lower interest rate guarantees may be surrendered or lapsed, as customers look to reinvest proceedsinvest in lower yielding assets as portions of our fixed maturity investment portfolio, which is primarily invested in callable securities, are called and must be reinvested;higher interest rate products; or
Potentially requiring usBecause products may have been priced with assumptions of higher interest rates (and higher interest earned on supporting assets), life insurance companies may have to increase our reserves or trigger loss recognition events related to policy liabilities,that could accelerate amortization of DAC and COIA, and potentially impair intangible assets;
Making our products less attractive (due to lower credited interest rates), resulting in lower sales; and
Changing policyholder behavior, including increasing surrender or withdrawal activity.COIA.

We have attempted to mitigate the risk of the low interest rate environment by making new investments in securities of states, municipalities, essential services and corporate issuers as well as identifying investment opportunities in other asset classes, such as limited partnerships, to increase our yields while maintaining a prudent risk profile for our overall portfolio.
Impact of COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic has had and continues toits related economic conditions have acaused significant impact on the life insurance industry. Initially there were hopes for a gradual decline in COVID-19 mortality as the vaccination roll out increased significantly and the pandemic ebbed after more than a year during the summer months of 2021. However, the emergence of the Delta variant resulted in a significant increase in the number of pandemic-related deaths in 2021, and the emergence of the

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Omicron variant has resulted in additional economic distress in early 2022. The global life insurance industry has experienced significantly higher reported claims due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The long-term nature of life insurance products means premiums are not yet capturing the risk that deaths or long-term illness from COVID-19 will likely remain higher than previously estimated. Additionally, life insurers will need to decide how to underwrite COVID-19 survivors, as the long-term effects of COVID-19 are still unclear.
Aging population. Many countriesuncertainty in the world are experiencing growth in the numberpast four years. Initially, COVID-19 caused global lockdowns. In response to the pandemic, the U.S. Federal Reserve lowered interest rates to near zero in order to stimulate the economy. COVID-19 has since created significant issues, from supply chain disruptions and proportionstaffing issues to surging production costs and high demand of older persons in their population. As an increasing percentage of the world population reaches retirement age, we believe there will be a greater need for age-related products and we will benefitservices due to financial help from increased demand for living benefit products rather than death benefit products, as customers will require cash accumulationthe government. All of these have a role to pay expenses to meet their lifetime income needs.  Our ordinary life products are designed to accumulate cash values to provide for living expensesplay in a policy owner's later years, while continuously providing a death benefit. However, as the population reaches retirement age, policyholders may decide to use their accumulated cash value for cash needed in retirement, thus increasing surrendersdramatic rise of long-term products.inflation.
Availability of Reinsurance. Reinsurance market dynamics including increased pricing, years of accumulating catastrophiccybersecurity concerns, significant weather-related losses, investment marketpandemic losses, and similar to the significantlife insurance industry, economic-related market losses, expected from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic have led to a decline in the availability of reinsurance, tighter terms (such as, for example, pandemic exclusions) and/or increased reinsurance prices. While we currently cede a limited amount of our primary insurance business to reinsurers, we may encounter difficulty in obtaining reinsurance in the future, forcing us to resort to a more expensive reinsurance market.  If we are unable to obtain affordable reinsurance coverage, this may impact our net exposures and the number of underwriting commitments.
Technology Adoption. Innovation and digital development strategies continue to evolve and impact all industries, including the insurance industry. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 caused companies to adapt to a more digital operations platform, almost overnight. The insurance industry is focused on digitizing distribution channels and empowering agents with advanced digital capabilities. Access to real-time data has streamlined the way we underwrite our products. The rapid development of artificial intelligence and the demand for fee-based, value-added services are challenging our industry. Therefore, it is critical that we embrace these changes for the benefit of our policyholders, agents, employees and stockholders.

Climate Change. Rising climate related losses stemming from the frequency and severity of extreme weather-related events have shone a regulatory spotlight on insurance risk and climate change. While the majority of our business is related to life insurance products, which may be less impacted by climate change than our property insurance products, we must understand and access accurate climate data in order to make informed decisions with regard to climate risk.
EVENTS THAT IMPACTED OUR BUSINESS

2021 HIGHLIGHTS

COVID-19 PANDEMIC

The overall impact of COVID-19 and its related economic conditions on the Company's financial results continue to be highly uncertain and unpredictable. While the Company has implemented new strategies and processes to mitigate this impact, the scope, duration and magnitude of the direct and indirect effects of COVID-19 are difficult or impossible to anticipate. As a result, it is not possible to predict its impact on the Company's results in 2022 or beyond. Currently, some of the most significant factors affectingFrom time-to-time, certain events may affect our business in ways that could cause ourcurrent or future results to differ significantly from past results. In addition to factors described in Part I, Item 1A, "Risk Factors", the following events may impact our prior results of operations or forward-looking statements include:financial condition:

Inflation and Market Volatility

a higher level
As discussed above, the impact of claims due to COVID-19 deaths;
decreased premium revenue due to disruption to our workforce or distribution channel resulting from required isolation, travel limitations and business restrictions;
higher surrenders and lapses due to cash needs our policyholders may have due to concerns over COVID-19 economic impacts, particularly in our international business; and
volatility in our investment portfolio dueinflation, which has led to market disruptions caused by COVID-19 related concerns such as inflation.volatility and rising interest rates, had a material impact on both our results of operations and balance sheet in both 2022 and 2023.


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Market volatility has significantly affected the fair value of our equity securities over the past 3 years and led to large swings in our earnings. Our investment related gains and losses were a gain of $0.8 million in 2023, a loss of $10.3 million in 2022 and a gain of $11.0 million in 2021. Investment related gains and losses derive principally from our investments in equity securities and include unrealized gains and losses from market price changes in these equities during the period. As evidenced, investment related gains and losses can cause significant fluctuations from period to period and while they are included in our operating revenue, are not indicative of our operating results. We believe that investment related gains and losses, whether realized from dispositions or unrealized from changes in both 2020market prices of equity securities, have no bearing in understanding our reported results or in evaluating the economic performance of our business. These gains and 2021 we experienced higher than usual death claims duelosses have caused and will continue to the impact of COVID-19.cause significant volatility in our periodic earnings.

We continuecould experience higher surrenders and lapses and fewer sales as our policyholders conserve cash due to monitorconcerns over inflation and rising costs, particularly in our Home Service Insurance segment, whose customer base is primarily middle- and lower-income individuals.

Rising Interest Rates

To combat the impactinflation that began as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, interest rates rose significantly starting in 2022 after being ultra-low for almost a decade. In just a 16-month span starting in March 2022, the Federal Open Market Committee of the Federal Reserve lifted their key benchmark rate from near-zero percent to a 22-year high of 5.25% - 5.5%. Higher interest rates typically reduce the market values of fixed income assets, as the interest payments from existing fixed income assets become less competitive relative to newer higher rate fixed income instruments. Long duration fixed maturity securities, which constitute the vast majority of our investment portfolio as a life insurer because we strive to match our asset duration to our liability duration, were particularly impacted by the rising rates. Higher interest rates resulted in a pre-tax net unrealized loss of $150.1 million on our operations.available-for-sale securities at December 31, 2023 compared to pre-tax net unrealized loss of $201.7 million at December 31, 2022. While the 10 year Treasury yield was the same at both periods, the pre-tax unrealized loss was lower at December 31, 2023, as the investment balance includes recent investment purchases with higher interest rates whose fair market values are closer to amortized cost. The credit ratings and default risk of our fixed maturity securities were not significantly impacted by the rise in interest rates in 2023 and because we intend to hold the long-term investments to maturity, we do not believe that the current unrealized loss is indicative of our long-term financial strength, as we expect the market values to recover prior to the maturity date of most of these investments.

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTSWe also believe that the inflationary environment has led to higher surrenders and lapses in 2023 as well as lower sales, as our policyholders conserve cash due to concerns over inflation and rising costs, particularly in our Home Service Insurance segment, where our customer base is primarily middle- and lower-income individuals.

Federal Income Tax BenefitCeasing Operations of our Property Insurance Business

The results of operations forCompany made a strategic decision to exit the fiscalproperty insurance business on June 30, 2023. This business focused on selling limited liability property insurance policies in Louisiana and Arkansas. This decision negatively impacted our current year ended December 31, 2021 included a significant income tax benefit forpremium revenues and financial results. We were contractually obligated to pay the release of mostmajority of the uncertain tax positionremaining premiums for our catastrophic reinsurance through the end of $43.8 million. The uncertain tax position from previous years is related to the tax treatment of tax reserves pursuant to Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") Section 807, specifically due to ramifications on the determination of those reserves from our product qualification issues2023. Additionally, we did not collect premiums in the past. The uncertain tax position released duringsecond half of 2023, as we did in the fourth quartersecond half of 20212022. Accordingly, property premium revenue is due to the expiration of the statute of limitationsless for the year ended December 31, 2017.

Goodwill Impairment2023 compared to prior years.

The releaseproperty insurance business operates through SPFIC and represented less than 1% of the liability for the uncertain tax position referenced above, increased the carrying value of our Life Insurance segment. Due to such increase in carrying value and the continued low interest rate environment (which negatively affected the fair value of our netCompany’s total consolidated assets by decreasing expected cash flows), we determined that the carrying value of our Life Insurance segment exceeded its implied fair value, resulting in an impairment of goodwill (the excess of the amount paid by us to acquire various life insurance companies over the fair value of their net assets as of the date of acquisition). Accordingly, as of December 31, 2021, we wrote-off2023 and less than 1% of the goodwill and recognized an expenseCompany's total consolidated revenues for the year then ended. The cessation of $12.6 million for 2021.this business is not reported as a discontinued operation because it is immaterial to our total operations. Additionally, there were no material charges incurred in relation to the exit of our property insurance operations.


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HIGHLIGHTS

Summary

AtWe had income before federal income tax of $26.2 million in 2023, compared to $27.4 million in 2022. In 2023, (i) changes in the fair value of our limited partnership investments due to improved stock market conditions in 2023 increased investment related gains and losses by $11.1 million; and (ii) net investment income improved by $3.8 million due to higher yields on our investment portfolio. These increases were offset by (i) $6.7 million decrease in premiums due to lower renewal premiums in our life insurance segment and ceasing our property insurance business; (ii) $6.7 million increase in total insurance benefits paid or provided due to higher claims and surrenders and higher policyholder liability remeasurement loss; and (iii) $3.0 million of higher commission expense, driven by higher first year sales (which have higher commission payments) and accrual of expense for renewal commissions we may owe to former independent consultants in Venezuela. Our net income per diluted share of Class A common stock was $0.48 for the year ended December 31, 2021, we had $1.9 billion in total assets, an increase from $1.8 billion at December 31, 2020, and we had $27.3 million in cash. We did not have any debt at December 31, 2021.2023.

During 2021, we reported net incomeKey operating results (comparison of $36.8 million, compared to a net loss of $11.0 million in 2020. In comparison to 2020, the $47.8 million increase in net income was primarily due to:2023 v. 2022):

↑ $43.8 million tax benefit;
↑ $9.5 million increase in investment related gains; and
$10.3$6.7 million of general expenses.premium revenue

The increaseInsurance premiums declined 4% in net income was partially offset by:

↑ $4.22023 compared to 2022, totaling $167.0 million in death claim benefits;
↑ $6.5and     $173.7 million, in future policy benefit reserves; and
↑ $12.6 million goodwill impairment.


Revenue Highlights

As discussed above, insurance premiums and investment income are our primary sources of revenue.respectively due to:
Insurance premiums declined 0.3% in 2021 compared to 2020, totaling $174.7 million and $175.3 million, respectively, as13% growth in first year premiums in both segmentsour Life Insurance segment was more than offset by a decline inlower renewal premiums in our Life Insurance segment.this segment due to increases in surrenders and expiring matured endowments;
our property insurance premiums decreased by $4.1 million due to ceasing this business on June 30, 2023.

↑ $3.8 million of net investment income

Net investment income increased 2.2%6% in 20212023 compared to 2020,2022, totaling $61.5$69.3 million and $60.2$65.4 million, respectively, driven byfrom a higher average portfolio yield in 2023 as well as a growing invested asset base. The average yield on our consolidated investment portfolio was 4.24%5% in 2023, a 16 basis point increase from 2022.

↑ $6.7 million of total insurance benefits paid or provided

Total insurance benefits paid or provided increased by 5% due primarily to higher surrenders and matured endowments in our Life Insurance segment.

↑ $2.0 million of general operating expenses

Operating expenses increased due to costs related to strategic growth initiatives, our search for both 2021a new CEO, and 2020 as diversificationcosts related to moving our international business from Bermuda to Puerto Rico.

Financial Condition at December 31, 2023

Total assets of our investment portfolio into limited partnership$1.7 billion.
Total investments helped offset a challenging investment environment forof $1.4 billion; fixed maturity securities in 2021.comprised 88% of total investments.
Investment related gains increased by $9.5 million.$4.9 billion of direct insurance in force.
No debt.
Fully diluted income per share of Class A common stock of $0.48
Book value per share of Class A common stock of $3.47.


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Benefits and Expenses HighlightsCONSOLIDATED RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The primary use of our funds is payment of insurance benefits. Total insurance benefits paid or provided in 2021 increased by 3.6%, from $156.7 million in 2020, to $162.4 million in 2021. This expense consists primarily of the following:

Claims and surrender benefits decreased 1.2% in 2021 compared to 2020. This decrease was primarily due to a decrease in surrender benefits and endowments benefits in the Life Insurance segment, which more than offset the increase in death claims benefits. The increase in death claim benefits was due primarily to a higher volume of reported claims, including COVID-19 related claims, in addition to an increase in the average death claim amount; and
Future policy benefit reserves, which increased 21.8% in 2021 compared to 2020 as a result of higher sales production and improved persistency.

The other primary use of our funds are the costs of selling our insurance products and other expenses:

Commissions increased in 2021 compared to 2020, as they are directly related to premium production, and primarily first year premium production, which increased in 2021;
General expenses decreased 19.2% in 2021 compared to 2020, driven by the change in control and executive severance expenses in 2020; and
Goodwill impairment of $12.6 million in 2021.

Our Operating Segments

We manage our business in two operating segments,segments: Life Insurance and Home Service Insurance.

Life Insurance

International.For over 45 years, CICA Life Insurance Company of America ("CICA") and its predecessors have issued U.S. dollar-denominated ordinary whole life insurance and endowment policies to non-U.S. residents. In 2018, we novated of all of the international policies issued by CICA to CICA Life Ltd. ("CICA International"), our Bermuda-based insurer. We distribute our international insurance products through independent marketing organizations and their agents located in the countries in which our policyholders reside. Endowment product sales are the primary driver of sales in this segment.

Domestic.Our domestic operations in our Life Insurance segment primarily consist of the collection of renewal premiums on ordinary whole life and final expense policies issued to middle- and lower-income families and individuals in certain markets in the Mountain West, Midwest and Southern U.S. We also sell credit life and credit accident and health insurance domestically. As we discussed in See Part I. Item 1.1, Business - Strategic Initiatives, we introduced our domestic whole life products tofor a discussion about the Florida marketbusiness operated in 2021. Our efforts to recruit agents to sell our products have been slower than we expected and we are re-evaluating our sales distribution approach, initiatives and domestic life insurance offerings in the Florida market in 2022. The majority of our current domestic revenues are generated by the policies of domestic life insurance companies we have acquired since 1987.each segment.

Home Service Insurance

We operate in the Home Service Insurance market through our subsidiaries Security Plan Life Insurance Company ("SPLIC"), Magnolia Guaranty Life Insurance Company ("MGLIC") and Security Plan Fire Insurance Company ("SPFIC"). These companies provide final expense ordinary and industrial life insurance to middle- and lower-income individuals in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas. Our policies in this segment are sold and serviced through a home service marketing distribution system utilizing independent agents who work on a route system to collect premiums and service policyholders, and through networks of funeral homes that collect premiums and provide personal policyholder service. In 2021, we added a new whole life product to this market that has higher allowable face values and a new critical illness coverage product which we sell through independent agents. To a much lesser extent, our Home Service Insurance segment also sells property insurance policies covering dwellings and content.


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CONSOLIDATED RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Our insurance operations are the primary focus of the Company, as those operations generate most of our income.  See the discussion under Segment Operations below for detailed analysis. The total dollar amount of insurance, issued, number of policies, issued, and average face amounts offor ordinary life policies issued in 2021 and 2020during the periods indicated are shown below.

Years Ended December 31,Years Ended December 31,20212020
Amount of
Insurance
Issued
Number of
Policies
Issued
Average  Policy Face 
Amount Issued
Amount of
Insurance
Issued
Number of
Policies
Issued
Average  Policy Face 
Amount Issued
Life Insurance$233,574,941 3,870 $60,355 $219,902,799 3,419 $64,318 
Life Insurance:
Life Insurance:
Life Insurance:
International
International
International
Domestic
Domestic
Domestic53,356,685 4,541 11,750 1,060,000 265,000 (1)
Total Life Insurance
Home Service Insurance
Home Service Insurance
Home Service InsuranceHome Service Insurance177,754,244 22,600 7,865 134,270,147 24,920 5,388 
TotalTotal$411,329,185 26,470 $354,172,946 28,339 
Total
Total
(1) The 2022 average domestic policy face amount issued reflects one policy issued for $1.0 million of life insurance in force, driving up the average policy face amount issued.
(1) The 2022 average domestic policy face amount issued reflects one policy issued for $1.0 million of life insurance in force, driving up the average policy face amount issued.
(1) The 2022 average domestic policy face amount issued reflects one policy issued for $1.0 million of life insurance in force, driving up the average policy face amount issued.

TotalIn 2023, we issued $741.9 million in new insurance, a 10% increase from 2022. As we previously disclosed, our strategic initiatives include the introduction of new products tailored to our specific markets and expansion of our distribution channels through white-label partnerships. These new products and distribution channels helped drive the increase in total insurance issued increased $57.2 million, or 16.1%, in 2021 compared to 2020 as both the Life Insurance and Home Service Insurance segments experienced growth in amount of insurance issued.$67.2 million.

The number of policies issued almost doubled in theour Life Insurance segment increased 13.2% in 2021 compared to 2020. We believe the increase was primarily due to enhancementssegment. This growth is attributable to our business operationsnew white label partnerships and sales practices to adapt tofinal expense products introduced domestically, which accounted for 53% of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as continued sales promotions and campaigns, focused training on virtual selling, and strategically prioritizing selling lower face amount policies due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. In addressing the decreasing first year premiums we have seen in recent years in this segment, we have prioritized recruiting new independent contractors in 2021 and we believe we have seen the impact of these efforts in 2021. We believe that our policies issued and amount of insurance issued in 2020 were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The number of policies issued and continued strong sales of our international whole life product introduced in the2022, which accounted for 61% of total insurance issued in this segment in 2023.

In our Home Service Insurance segment, decreased 9.3% in 2021 compared to 2020; however, the amount of insurance issued increased by 32.4% due to higher average policy face amounts. The increase in higher average policy face amounts issued is attributable to sales campaigns that focused on increasing the face amount of insurance sold as well as the introduction of our new whole life product in this segment, which has a higher maximum face value. In addition,value than our Home Service Insurance segment was negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 as we had temporary office closures in Louisiana during the second and third quarters of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Laura, and we also temporarily curtailed the sales of certain product offerings that require extensive person-to-person sales interaction due to the COVID-19 pandemic.legacy products.


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REVENUES

RevenuesOur revenues are primarily generated from insurance renewal premiums and investment income onfrom invested assets. The implementation of LDTI did not impact our revenues; for a discussion of 2022 to 2021 comparisons, see the 2022 10-K.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Revenues:Revenues:   Revenues:  
Premiums:Premiums:   Premiums:  
Life insuranceLife insurance$169,801 170,328 178,351 
Accident and health insuranceAccident and health insurance1,250 1,019 1,383 
Property insuranceProperty insurance3,677 3,982 4,613 
Net investment incomeNet investment income61,495 60,197 59,531 
Investment related gains (losses)Investment related gains (losses)10,991 1,502 5,249 
Other incomeOther income3,332 1,828 1,418 
Total revenuesTotal revenues$250,546 238,856 250,545 
Total revenues increased in 2023, as we had investment related gains, versus losses in 2022, and higher net investment income.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Premiums:   
First year$19,341 17,529 17,766 
Renewal147,698 156,185 156,962 
Total premiums$167,039 173,714 174,728 

Premium Income. Despite higher first year premium revenues in both segments, life insurance premium revenues decreased in 2023 compared to 2022 due to lower renewal premiums. Accident and health insurance premiums increased in 2023 due to sales of our new critical illness products that were launched in late 2022. Property insurance premiums declined in 2023 as we stopped accepting renewal premiums at the end of May and ceased our operations on June 30, 2023.

Our renewal premiums comprised 88% of our total premium revenue in 2023 and 90% in 2022. Renewal premiums declined by 5% in 2023 compared to 2022; as discussed above, the decline in Life Insurance segment renewal premiums is due to the impact from a higher level of surrenders during the last few years and increasing matured endowment benefits.

Our first year premiums increased 10% in 2023 compared to 2022 due to our new product offerings and expanded domestic distribution.


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Renewal premiums consisted of 89.8% and 90.9% of our total premium revenue in 2021 and 2020, respectively.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Premiums:   
First year$17,766 15,972 17,508 
Renewal156,962 159,357 166,839 
Total premiums$174,728 175,329 184,347 

As discussed above, despite higher first year premiums in both our segments and higher renewal premiums in our Home Service Insurance segment, total premiums declined due to lower renewal premiums in our Life Insurance segment. A decrease in property insurance premiums resulting from higher catastrophic reinsurance reinstatement premiums in 2021 also contributed to the lower renewal premiums. We believe that our consolidated first year premium revenue was negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in both 2020 and 2021.

Net Investment Income. Our net investment income and investment performance isare summarized as follows:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
202320222021
Gross investment income:Gross investment income:   Gross investment income:  
Fixed maturity securitiesFixed maturity securities$55,579 54,653 53,860 
Equity securitiesEquity securities1,024 816 662 
Policy loansPolicy loans6,420 6,605 6,451 
Long-term investments809 238 13 
Other long-term investments
OtherOther54 97 374 
Total investment incomeTotal investment income63,886 62,409 61,360 
Less investment expensesLess investment expenses(2,391)(2,212)(1,829)
Net investment incomeNet investment income$61,495 60,197 59,531 
Average invested assets, at amortized costAverage invested assets, at amortized cost$1,451,701 1,445,087 1,365,036 
Average invested assets, at amortized cost
Average invested assets, at amortized cost
Yield on average invested assetsYield on average invested assets4.24 %4.24 %4.36 %Yield on average invested assets4.56 %4.40 %4.24 %

Net investment income increased 2.2%Due to $61.5 million in 2021 compared to $60.2 million in 2020 driven by a growing asset base. Investment income frominsurance regulations, fixed maturity securities accounted for aconstitute the vast majority, or 88%, of our investment portfolio based on fair value and thus provide the vast majority of our investment income. Our net investment income increased 6% in 2023 compared to in 2022, primarily due to a higher average portfolio yield on our fixed maturity securities in 2023. Long-term investment income continued to increaseincreased as our limited partnershipprivate equity investment asset base grew, in addition to some early distribution income.grew.

The annualized yield remained levelincreased by 16 basis points in 20212023 compared to 2020. The sustained low2022 as a result of the rising interest rate environmentenvironment.

Investment Related Gains (Losses).  We recorded an investment related gain of $0.8 million during 2023, compared to a loss of $10.3 million in 2022. As described above, the past several years has required usgains and losses are primarily related to reinvest a portionthe fair value change of our portfolio at lower interest rates;limited partnership and equity securities investments, mostly in our Life Insurance segment, due to the volatility in equity markets. We did not sell all of these investments; however, diversificationthe changes in fair values of our equity securities are reflected as investment portfolio into limited partnership investments helped offsetrelated gains or losses in our income statement, in addition to executed transactions that result in a challenging investment environment for fixedgain or loss.

Other Income. Other income consists primarily of supplemental contracts issued to policyholders in our Life Insurance segment upon the surrender or maturity securities. As we continue to face a challenging investment environment for fixed maturity assets, which account for the majority of our investment portfolio we have been investing in new asset classes, including limited partnerships; however, insurance regulations limit the amount we can invest in these alternative investments.their original policies.


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Investment Related Gains (Losses).  Investment gains and losses are as follows:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Investment related gains (losses):   
Realized investment gains (losses)$2,977 (94)7,392 
Change in fair value of equity securities376 1,596 962 
Change in fair value of limited partnerships7,452— — 
Change in credit loss allowance186— — 
Other-than-temporary impairments ("OTTI") — (3,105)
Investment related gains (losses), net$10,991 1,502 5,249 

Net investment related gains increased by $9.5 million in 2021 from 2020, helping drive our net income improvement in 2021. A significant portion of these gains related to fair value changes in our limited partnership investments. In addition, the Company realized a gain of $1.0 million on the sale of its former training facility near Austin, Texas during 2021 with a gross sale price of $3.8 million. The facility was owned by Citizens and was held in Other Non-Insurance Enterprises. These increases were partially offset by a decrease in fair value on our equity securities.

BENEFITS AND EXPENSES

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Benefits and expenses:Benefits and expenses:   Benefits and expenses:  
Insurance benefits paid or provided:Insurance benefits paid or provided:   Insurance benefits paid or provided:  
Claims and surrendersClaims and surrenders$119,735 121,145 106,827 
Increase in future policy benefit reserves36,444 29,923 41,712 
Increase (decrease) in future policy benefit reserves
Policyholder liability remeasurement (gain) loss
Policyholders' dividendsPolicyholders' dividends6,180 5,587 6,040 
Total insurance benefits paid or providedTotal insurance benefits paid or provided162,359 156,655 154,579 
CommissionsCommissions35,463 32,069 34,222 
Other general expensesOther general expenses43,370 53,669 48,440 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costsCapitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(22,740)(20,475)(22,255)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costsAmortization of deferred policy acquisition costs24,952 27,439 28,268 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquiredAmortization of cost of insurance acquired1,206 1,816 1,546 
Goodwill impairmentGoodwill impairment12,624 — — 
Total benefits and expensesTotal benefits and expenses$257,234 251,173 244,800 

Payments of claims and surrenders benefits constitute the majority of our expenses. Total benefits and expenses paid increased in 2023 as compared to same period in 2022 driven by higher surrenders and matured endowments, higher policyholder liability remeasurement loss due to the higher surrenders and $3.0 million of higher commissions, driven by higher first year sales (which have higher commissions) and accrual of expense for renewal commissions we may owe to former independent consultants in Venezuela.

Claims and Surrenders.  Payments of death claims, surrender benefits and matured endowment benefits are our primary uses of cash. The implementation of LDTI did not impact our reporting for Claims and Surrenders; for a discussion of 2022 to 2021 comparisons, see the 2022 10-K.
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Claims and surrenders:
Death claim benefits$22,458 25,758 31,380 
Surrender benefits56,856 48,743 51,638 
Endowment benefits8,296 8,864 9,572 
Matured endowment benefits41,855 31,478 20,304 
Property claims699 780 2,112 
Accident and health benefits458 211 332 
Other policy benefits5,371 4,101 4,397 
Total claims and surrenders$135,993 119,935 119,735 
Death claim benefits decreased 13% in 2023 compared to 2022 due primarily to a lower volume of reported death claims.

Surrender benefits increased 17% in 2023 compared to 2022 due to surrenders related to international policies that are nearing maturity as well as policies that have passed their surrender charge period. While we have implemented retention initiatives over the past few years, we believe that the high interest rates are negatively affecting these efforts, as policyholders surrender their policies to re-invest the cash values in higher interest rate products.


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ClaimsMany of our endowment policies are reaching their contractual maturity dates and Surrenders.  Paymentthus matured endowment benefits are increasing. We anticipated the $10.4 million increase in 2023 based upon the contractual maturity dates and expect continued increases in matured endowment benefits over the next few years as more of death claims and surrender benefits is our primary use of cash. Claims and surrenders decreased 1.2% from $121.1 million in 2020 to $119.7 million in 2021.

cia-20211231_g17.jpg
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Claims and surrenders:
Death claim benefits$31,380 27,195 25,100 
Surrender benefits51,638 54,827 49,293 
Endowment benefits9,572 11,026 12,247 
Matured endowment benefits20,304 21,580 15,147 
Property claims2,112 2,807 1,563 
Accident and health benefits332 219 232 
Other policy benefits4,397 3,491 3,245 
Total claims and surrenders$119,735 121,145 106,827 
Death claim benefits increased 15.4% in 2021 compared to 2020. The increases were due to both a higher volume, including COVID-19 related deaths, and a higher average amount of reported claims. Mortality experience and COVID-19 impacts will continue to be closely monitored by the Company.
Surrender benefits decreased 5.8% in 2021 compared to 2020. The decrease in surrender benefits is primarily within our Life Insurance segment. Surrender benefits have been high in recent years due to international policies that have been in force for an extended period and have little or no associated surrender charges, but we have focused our efforts on retaining policyholders and believe we have begun to see positive benefits from these efforts starting in the second half of 2021. Surrender benefits represented less than 1.1% of total direct life insurance in force of $4.6 billion as of December 31, 2021.
Property claim expenses decreased 24.8% in 2021 compared to 2020 due to fewer hurricanes impacting Louisiana in 2021.contracts expire.

Increase (Decrease) in Future Policy Benefit Reserves.  Future policy benefit reserves increased 21.8%reflect the liability established to provide for the payment of policy benefits that we expect to pay in 2021 compared to 2020the future and thus generally increase when we have a larger in force block of business due to betterhigher sales and persistency (i.e., more policies on which we expect to pay future benefits) and decrease when we have lower sales and persistency. LDTI impacted our reported reserves for 2022 and 2021, as LDTI is intended to improve the timeliness of recognizing changes in the liability for future benefits and standardize the rate used to discount future cash flows. Reserves decreased by $5.0 million from 2021 to 2022 and another $10.4 million from 2022 to 2023 despite increases in insurance issued and increases in our in force block of business due to the amount of reserves released in connection with the higher first year sales in both of our segments.matured endowments and surrenders.

Policyholder Dividends.Liability Remeasurement (Gain) Loss. Most of our Life Insurance segment's international policies contain guaranteed cash valuesproducts are long-duration contracts that provide a specified, fixed amount of insurance benefit in exchange for a fixed premium. When a policy is initially issued, we establish a "net premium ratio" ("NPR") using assumptions regarding expected premiums and are participating (i.e., provide for cash dividendspolicyholder benefit liabilities. On a quarterly basis, we review actual versus expected experience in such quarter, which is reported as apportioned by our Board of Directors)a policyholder liability remeasurement gain (if better performance than assumptions) or loss (if lower performance than assumptions). Policyholders' dividendsThe loss increased by 10.6% infrom 2021 as compared to 20202022 and again to 2023 due to increased sales in 2021 and improved policyholder retention.unfavorable surrender experience.

Commissions. Commission expenses are a cost of acquiring business, as commissions are the primary compensation paid to our independent consultants and independent agents for selling our products. First year

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commission rates are higher than renewal commission rates. Commissions fluctuate directly in relation to sales and thus the increase in commissions in 2021 as compared to 2020over the 3-year period ending December 31, 2023 was due to higher first year sales in 2021.each period as compared to the prior period. Additionally, commission expense in 2023 was higher due to a $1.3 million accrual of expense for renewal commissions we may owe to former independent consultants in Venezuela.

Other General Expenses.  Total general expenses decreased $10.3increased $2.0 million, or 19.2%4%, in 20212023 compared to 2020. Other general expenses in 2020 included $10.0 million of non-recurring expenses2022. The increase was primarily driven by costs related to change-in-control severance expenses.strategic growth initiatives, a search for a new CEO and costs related to moving our international business from Bermuda to Puerto Rico. We continue to work on improving ourmanaging controllable operating expenses andwhile investing in 2021, we had lower audit and long-term incentive compensation expenses compared to 2020.growth initiatives.

Capitalization of Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs ("DAC").  We capitalize costs related to successful sales of our insurance products, which include certain commissions, policy issuance costs, and underwriting and agency expenses. These costs vary based upon amounts or premiums received related to new and renewal business. Capitalized DAC was $22.7 million and $20.5 million in 2021 and 2020, respectively.  Increases in capitalized amounts areincreased each year during the 3-year period ended December 31, 2023, which is in line with the increases in new sales activity.  Significantly lower amounts are capitalized related to renewal business in correlation with the lower commissions paid on that business compared to first year business, which has higher commission rates.

Amortization of Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs. Amortization of DAC totaled $25.0$15.5 million and $27.4$14.4 million in 2023 and 2022, respectively. LTDI also changed the manner in which we amortize DAC and thus reported amounts for 2022 and 2021 and 2020, respectively. The decrease in amortization is a result of better persistency and sales. Amortization ofhave changed. DAC is impacted by new business, persistency andamortized on a constant level basis over the levelexpected term of surrenders.
Amortization of Cost of Insurance Acquired ("COIA"). Amortization of COIA decreased in 2021 comparedthe related contracts to 2020 due primarily to an update in our Home Service Insurance segment's expected earned rate assumptions used within annuity models that resulted in additional amortization of approximately $0.2 million in 2020.approximate straight-line amortization.

Goodwill Impairment. WeIn 2021, we recognized a goodwill impairment in our Life Insurance segment of $12.6 million in 2021.million. The impairment was triggered by increases in our carrying value of the Life Insurance segment due to the release of a $43.8 million uncertain tax position in the fourth quarter of 2021 following the expiration of the statute of limitations for the tax year ended December 31, 2017.

Federal Income Tax.  Federal income tax benefits of $43.5 million in 2021 and $1.3 million in 2020 resulted in effective tax rates of 650.0% and 10.8%, respectively. The significant tax benefit in 2021 is comprised of the release of the uncertain tax position of $43.8 million related to the expiration of the statute of limitations for the year ended December 31, 2017.  Differences between our effective tax rate and the statutory tax rate result from income and expense items that are treated differently for financial reporting and tax purposes. Refer to Note 9. Income Taxes in the notes to our consolidated financial statements for further discussion.

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CITIZENS, INC.
SEGMENT OPERATIONS

As described above, our business is comprised of two operating business segments:

Life Insurance
Home Service Insurance

These segments are reported in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The Company evaluates profit and loss performance based on net income (loss) before federal income taxes for these segments. The Company's Other Non-Insurance enterprises include non-insurance operations such as IT and corporate-support functions, which are included in the table presented below to properly reconcile the segment information with the consolidated financial statements of the Company.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Income (loss) before federal income taxes:
Segments:
Life Insurance$918 9,894 11,795 
Home Service Insurance(2,036)(3,470)1,181 
Total Segments(1,118)6,424 12,976 
Other Non-Insurance Enterprises(5,570)(18,741)(7,231)
Total income (loss) before federal income taxes$(6,688)(12,317)5,745 
The following table sets forth income (loss) before federal income taxes by segment during the periods indicated.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Income before federal income taxes:
Segments:
Life Insurance$28,621 25,423 31,902 
Home Service Insurance3,013 6,563 4,173 
Total Segments31,634 31,986 36,075 
Other Non-Insurance Enterprises(5,460)(4,609)(5,570)
Total income before federal income taxes$26,174 27,377 30,505 


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LIFE INSURANCE

Our Life Insurance segment primarily issues ordinary whole life insurance and endowment policies in U.S. dollar-denominated amounts to non-U.S. residents in more than 70over 75 countries through almostover 1,000 active independent marketing consultants as of December 31, 2021.2023. Detailed results of operations for the Life Insurance segment for the periods indicated are as follows:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Revenue:   
Premiums
Revenues:Revenues:  
Premiums:
Life insurance
Life insurance
Life insuranceLife insurance$125,558 128,900 136,941 
Accident and health insuranceAccident and health insurance500 301 725 
Net investment incomeNet investment income47,216 45,885 44,779 
Investment related gains, net9,176 1,340 6,795 
Investment related gains (losses), net
Other incomeOther income3,362 1,806 1,412 
Total revenue185,812 178,232 190,652 
Total revenues
Benefits and expenses:Benefits and expenses:   Benefits and expenses:  
Insurance benefits paid or provided:Insurance benefits paid or provided:   Insurance benefits paid or provided:  
Claims and surrendersClaims and surrenders91,390 93,813 82,964 
Increase in future policy benefit reserves29,407 25,825 39,873 
Increase (decrease) in future policy benefit reserves
Policyholder liability remeasurement (gain) loss
Policyholders' dividendsPolicyholders' dividends6,140 5,554 6,004 
Total insurance benefits paid or providedTotal insurance benefits paid or provided126,937 125,192 128,841 
CommissionsCommissions18,747 17,944 20,128 
Other general expensesOther general expenses20,846 16,323 23,012 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costsCapitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(16,174)(15,568)(17,448)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costsAmortization of deferred policy acquisition costs21,571 23,987 23,832 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquiredAmortization of cost of insurance acquired343 460 492 
Goodwill impairmentGoodwill impairment12,624 — — 
Total benefits and expensesTotal benefits and expenses184,894 168,338 178,857 
Income (loss) before federal income taxesIncome (loss) before federal income taxes$918 9,894 11,795 

IncomeIn our Life Insurance segment we reported income before federal income tax expense decreasedof $28.6 million in 20212023, as compared to 2020$25.4 million in 2022 and $31.9 million in 2021. As in our consolidated operations, investment related gains and losses caused significant fluctuations from period to period and are not indicative of our operating results. Key operating measures resulted in year-over-year revenue gains in each of the 3-year periods reflected above due to increases in net investment income in each year, and year-over-year benefit and expense increases in each of the 3-year periods due primarily to the goodwill impairment.increases in surrenders and matured endowments and higher commissions, driven by higher first year sales (which have higher commissions) and accrual of expense for renewal commissions we may owe to former independent consultants in Venezuela.

Life Insurance Segment premium breakout is detailed below.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Premiums:   
First year$11,420 10,397 11,692 
Renewal114,638 118,805 125,974 
Total premium$126,058 129,202 137,666 

Over 90% of our Life Insurance premium revenue in both 2021 and 2020 was generated by renewal premiums. While first year premiums increased by 9.8% in 2021 as compared to 2020, overall premium revenue decreased by 2.4% in 2021 compared to 2020 as renewal premiums declined by 3.5%. We believe that the increase in first year premiums is the result of actions we have taken over the past 18 months in executing on our strategic initiatives, including sales promotions and campaigns, focused training on virtual selling, and recruiting new independent contractors in 2021. Renewal premiums have been declining over the last several years, due in part to our

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withdrawal from BrazilLife Insurance segment premium breakout is detailed below. Since LDTI did not impact reported revenue results, comparisons between the 2022 and also due to one of our top distributors in Venezuela leaving our Company and as we2021 years are not discussed in Item 3 - Legal Proceedings, we believe is illegally competing with us and stealing our trade secrets and business. We began to stembelow. See the decline of renewal premiums in 2021, which we believe is due in part to our retention efforts that we also discuss in Part I. Item 1, Business - Strategic Initiatives.2022 10-K for such discussion.

Endowment
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Premiums:   
First year$13,479 11,892 11,420 
Renewal108,666 112,761 114,638 
Total premiums$122,145 124,653 126,058 

Premiums. First year premiums increased $1.6 million in 2023 compared to 2022 due to sales represent a significant portionof new products and expanded domestic distribution. Our total premiums for 2023 decreased $2.5 million compared to 2022 as renewal premiums declined. We derive most of our new business sales internationallypremium revenue in the Life Insurance segment from renewal premiums, which decreased 4% in 2023 as compared to 2022. As described above, this decline is due to high surrenders and totaled approximately $10.0 million and $8.6 million in 2021 and 2020, respectively, representing approximately 87.2% and 82.7% of total first year premiums in 2021 and 2020, respectively.matured endowments over the last several years.

International Premiums. Life insurance premiums are generated largely from our international policyholders living in over 75 different countries across the globe. The majority of our international premiums are derived from whole life and endowment products. The following table sets forth forour direct premiums collected from our top five producing countries our direct premiums fromof our international life insurance business for the periods indicated.

cia-20211231_g18.jpg
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
202320222021
Country:Country:      Country:  
ColombiaColombia$24,829 20.2 %$25,783 20.4 %$26,768 20.1 %Colombia$25,453 21.2 21.2 %$25,181 20.6 20.6 %$24,829 20.2 20.2 %
TaiwanTaiwan19,042 15.5 19,078 15.1 19,403 14.6 
VenezuelaVenezuela17,788 14.5 19,956 15.8 22,353 16.8 
EcuadorEcuador13,115 10.7 13,301 10.5 14,198 10.6 
ArgentinaArgentina9,160 7.5 9,175 7.3 10,069 7.6 
Other Non-U.S.Other Non-U.S.38,871 31.6 38,992 30.9 40,562 30.3 
TotalTotal$122,805 100.0 %$126,285 100.0 %$133,353 100.0 %Total$120,211 100.0 100.0 %$122,261 100.0 100.0 %$122,805 100.0 100.0 %
 
The five countries listed above represented the majority of the new and renewal premiums in both 2021 and 2020. All experienced slight declines in 2021 as compared to 2020, which is due to the overall decline in our renewal business. However, premiums from Venezuela continue to decrease more than the other countries and decreased by 10.9% from 2020 to 2021. One of our largest distributors, who is based in Venezuela, has left our Company and based upon discovery conducted in such lawsuit, we believe is illegally competing with us and negatively affecting our business in Venezuela.

Domestic Premiums. Our domestic in-force life insurance business consists primarily of closed blocks of business from various insurance companies we have acquired over the years. As discussed, we have recently re-launched our domestic life insurance business through CICA Domestic by expanding our licenses to new states, developing new final expense and living benefit products, entering into new white label and other distribution agreements and obtaining a B++ A.M. Best rating. Because the majority of this business still consists of closed blocks of business, premiums in our domestic Life Insurance segment were $5.0 millionlower in 2021,2023 compared to $5.1 million2022 despite growth in 2020.our newly relaunched business.

Net Investment Income.  Our net investment income increased 7% in 2023 compared to 2022 due to our higher average portfolio yield. The majority of investment income is derived from fixed maturity securities; however, long-term investment income continued to increase as our limited partnership asset base grew.

Investment Related Gains (Losses), Net.The investment related gains and losses in each period were a result of the premium recordedchange in 2020estimated fair market value for our limited partnerships, as previously discussed.

Claims and 2021 is related to renewal business as we discontinued new sales of domestic ordinary whole lifeSurrenders. The following table sets forth our primary claims and endowment life insurance productssurrender benefits within our Life Insurance segment in 2017. Insegment. LDTI did not impact claims and surrender benefit expenses; for a discussion of 2022 to 2021 we introduced new domestic whole life products and distribution to expand our Life Insurance segment tocomparison see the Hispanic market in Florida. However, our efforts to recruit agents to sell our products have been slower than we expected and we are re-evaluating our sales distribution approach, initiatives and domestic life insurance offerings in the Florida market in 2022.2022 10-K.


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Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Claims and surrenders:
Death claim benefits$4,803 6,091 8,160 
Surrender benefits53,462 45,554 49,439 
Endowment benefits8,289 8,851 9,565 
Matured endowment benefits41,252 30,897 19,709 
Accident and health benefits265 96 135 
Other policy benefits5,357 4,087 4,382 
Total claims and surrenders$113,428 95,576 91,390 

Net Investment Income.  Net investment income in our Life Insurance segment increased 2.9% in 2021 compared to 2020 due to continued growth in average invested assets. We experienced a decrease in portfolio yield of two basis points in this segment in 2021 compared to 2020 as we continue to face a challenging investment environment for fixed maturity assets, which account for theThe majority of our investment portfolio.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
202120202019
Net investment income$47,216 45,885 44,779 
Average invested assets, at amortized cost1,109,466 1,071,792 1,016,055 
Annualized yield on average invested assets4.26 %4.28 %4.41 %

Investment Related Gains, Net.The investment related gain for 2021 was primarily due to the appreciation in the value of our limited partnership investments. The investment related gain for 2020 was primarily due to the appreciation in value of a preferred stock exchange traded fund purchased during the first quarter of 2020 as we were able to take advantage of the market dislocation to identify an attractive risk-adjusted investment opportunity.

Claims and Surrenders. A breakout of the primary claims and surrender benefits for the Life Insurance segment is detailed below.
cia-20211231_g19.jpg
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Claims and surrenders:
Death claim benefits$8,160 5,990 6,710 
Surrender benefits49,439 52,218 46,062 
Endowment benefits9,565 11,016 12,233 
Matured endowment benefits19,709 20,965 14,601 
Accident and health benefits135 149 128 
Other policy benefits4,382 3,475 3,230 
Total claims and surrenders$91,390 93,813 82,964 
75.7% of our claims and surrender benefits in 2021 and 78.0% in 2020our Life Insurance segment were related to payment of surrender benefits and matured endowment benefits. Policy surrenders decreased 5.3% in 2021 as compared to 2020 and matured endowment benefits decreased by 6.0%increased in 20212023 as compared to 2020. Surrender benefits have been higher than usual the last several years. However, policy surrenders decreased as we have instituted new programs seeking to curb surrenders. Matured2022. Many of our endowment policies are reaching their contractual maturity dates and thus matured endowment benefits had been increasingare increasing. We expect this trend to continue over the last several years

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but leveled off this year, which is expected,next few years. Policy surrenders increased partially due to endowment products reachingsurrenders related to international policies that are nearing maturity as well as policies that have passed their stated maturities. These charges are within expected levels.

The other key component ofsurrender charge period. Death claims and surrender benefits is death claim benefits, which increased 36.2%decreased in 20212023 compared to 2020 due to both a higher volume, including COVID-19 related deaths, and a higher average amount of reported claims.2022. Mortality experience is closely monitored by the Company as a key performance indicator and these amounts were within expected levels.

Increase (Decrease) in future policy benefit reserves.Future Policy Benefit Reserves. The change in future policy benefit reserves increased 13.9%decreased in 2021 compared to 2020 due to better persistency. In addition,each of the change3-year periods ending December 31, 2023 as a result of reserves released from higher matured endowment and surrender benefits, which decrease was partially offset by increases in future policy reserves for 2021 was lower due to an $0.8 million adjustment for the conversion of a smallinsurance issued and increases in our in force block of policies to our new actuarial valuation system for our Life Insurance segment during the second quarter of 2021.business.

Policyholder Liability Remeasurement (Gain) Loss. The policyholder liability remeasurement loss increased from 2021 to 2022 and again to 2023 due to unfavorable surrender experience.

Other General Expenses. General expenses increased by 3% in this segment in 2023 compared to 2022 due primarily to expenses related to costs associated with the re-launch of our domestic life insurance business which is a strategic growth initiative.

HOME SERVICE INSURANCE

Our Home Service Insurance products consist primarily of small face amount ordinary whole life and pre-need policies, which are designed to fund final expenses for the insured, primarily consisting of funeral and burial costs. In June 2021, we added a new whole life product to this market that has higher allowable face values;values and in the fourth quarter of 2021, we added a new critical illness insurance product. Our Home Service Insurance segment also sellsIn June 2023, we stopped selling property insurance policies covering dwellings and contents with maximum coverage of $30,000 per dwelling.insurance.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Revenue:   
Premiums
Life insurance$44,243 41,428 41,410 
Accident and health insurance750 718 658 
Property insurance3,677 3,982 4,613 
Net investment income13,224 13,051 13,058 
Investment related gains, net618 223 1,470 
Other income7 19 
Total revenue62,519 59,421 61,213 
Benefits and expenses:   
Insurance benefits paid or provided:  
Claims and surrenders28,345 27,332 23,863 
Increase in future policy benefit reserves7,037 4,098 1,839 
Policyholders' dividends40 33 36 
Total insurance benefits paid or provided35,422 31,463 25,738 
Commissions16,716 14,125 14,094 
Other general expenses14,739 17,402 19,517 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(6,566)(4,907)(4,807)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs3,381 3,452 4,436 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquired863 1,356 1,054 
Total benefits and expenses64,555 62,891 60,032 
Income (loss) before income tax expense$(2,036)(3,470)1,181 

Our net loss before income tax expense decreased by $1.4 million in 2021 due primarily to higher first year and renewal life insurance premiums, which drove the total segment revenue increase of 5.2% in 2021 compared to 2020. The increase was partially offset by higher reinstatement premiums for reinsurance coverage from the impact of Hurricane Ida in 2021. First year life premiums increased due mainly to our sales campaigns that focused on increasing the face amount of insurance sold as well as the introduction of our new whole life product in this

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segment, which has a higher maximum face value. Renewal premiums increased during 2021 due to improvements in our collection and payment processes, strong collection efforts by our independent agents and our insureds' increased disposable income due to government stimulus and assistance programs related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sales during the 2020 period were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Our benefits and expenses in this segment increased by $1.7 million in 2021 as compared to 2020, primarily due to higher claims and surrenders, as well as an increase in future policy benefit reserves in 2021 due to better persistency and higher first year sales, partially offset by a decrease in other general expenses.

Claims and Surrenders.  A breakoutDetailed results of claims and surrender benefitsoperations for the Home Service Insurance segment is detailed below.for the periods indicated are as follows:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Revenues:   
Premiums:
Life insurance$43,185 43,430 44,243 
Accident and health insurance916 781 750 
Property insurance793 4,850 3,677 
Net investment income13,832 13,632 13,224 
Investment related gains (losses), net522 (1,277)618 
Other income17 
Total revenues59,265 61,417 62,519 
Benefits and expenses:   
Insurance benefits paid or provided:  
Claims and surrenders22,565 24,359 28,345 
Increase in future policy benefit reserves5,307 910 1,951 
Policyholder liability remeasurement (gain) loss307 1,156 605 
Policyholders' dividends30 23 40 
Total insurance benefits paid or provided28,209 26,448 30,941 
Commissions16,345 16,191 16,716 
Other general expenses16,690 16,444 14,739 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(8,050)(6,957)(6,566)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs2,565 2,230 1,909 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquired493 498 607 
Total benefits and expenses56,252 54,854 58,346 
Income (loss) before federal income taxes$3,013 6,563 4,173 

In our Home Service Insurance segment, our net income before federal income taxes decreased by $3.6 million from 2022 to 2023 due primarily to the impact of ceasing our property insurance operations as of June 30, 2023, described above, and higher future policy benefit reserves. Net income before federal income taxes increased from 2021 to 2022 due primarily to lower death claims benefits and fewer hurricane property claims partially offset by investment related losses due to the changes in the fair value of our equity securities and higher other general operating expenses in 2022.

Premiums. Total premium revenue declined in 2023 compared to 2022 due primarily to the impact of ceasing our property insurance operations as of June 30, 2023 and slightly lower life renewal premiums due to lower persistency. Our first year premiums increased 4% in 2023 compared to 2022.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Claims and surrenders:
Death claim benefits$23,220 21,205 18,390 
Surrender benefits2,199 2,609 3,231 
Endowment benefits7 10 14 
Matured endowment benefits595 615 546 
Property claims2,112 2,807 1,563 
Accident and health benefits197 70 104 
Other policy benefits15 16 15 
Total claims and surrenders$28,345 27,332 23,863 

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Claims and Surrenders.  Claims and surrender benefits, which are the largest portion of our expenses in the Home Service Insurance segment are summarized below:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Claims and surrenders:
Death claim benefits$17,655 19,667 23,220 
Surrender benefits3,394 3,189 2,199 
Endowment benefits7 13 
Matured endowment benefits603 581 595 
Property claims699 780 2,112 
Accident and health benefits193 115 197 
Other policy benefits14 14 15 
Total claims and surrenders$22,565 24,359 28,345 

The majority of claims and surrender benefits in our Home Service Insurance segment relate toare death claim benefits. Death claim benefits increased 9.5%decreased 10% in 20212023 compared to 20202022 due to both a higherlower volume including COVID-19 related deaths, and a higher average amount of reported claims. We believe death claims in 2021, and to a lesser extent in 2022 were impacted by COVID-19. Mortality experience is closely monitored by the Company and can fluctuate based on reported claims as a key performance indicator.fluctuate.

Property claims decreasedSurrender benefits increased in 20212023 compared to 2020. The Company was impacted by Hurricane Ida2022. We believe the impact of inflation and curtailment of COVID-19 relief government aid in 2021 and by Hurricanes Laura, Delta and Zeta in 2020. We have a reinsurance agreement that covers catastrophic events such as hurricanes. This agreement contains a maximum coverage of $11.0 million per event and a retention level of $0.5 million per event. The decreased hurricane activity in 2021 helped reduce our property claims in 2021 compared to 2020.2022 is negatively impacting persistency.

Increase in future policy benefit reserves.Future Policy Benefit Reserves. The change in futureFuture policy benefit reserves increased 71.7% in 20212023 compared to 20202022 due to higher sales and improved retention in 2021.lower death claims.

Other general expenses.General Expenses. Other general expenses decreasedincreased slightly in 20212023 compared to 2020 as a result of a released tax compliance best estimate liability of $1.8 million and lower expenses2022 due primarily due to changes we made to our distribution structure in 2020.higher employee health benefit costs.

OTHER NON-INSURANCE ENTERPRISES

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Income (loss) before federal income taxIncome (loss) before federal income tax$(5,570)(18,741)(7,231)


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This operating unit represents the administrative support entities to the insurance operations whose revenues are primarily intercompany and have been eliminated in consolidation under U.S. GAAP, which typically results in a segment loss. Revenue in this operating unit consists primarily of net investment income and investment related gains or losses, while expenses consist of other general expenses.expenses related to corporate functions. The loss reported for 2021 declined2023 increased as other general expenses decreased in 2021 due to the $10.0 million in severance payments paid in 2020 related to our change in control. The Company also sold its former training facility located near Austin, Texas during 2021, resulting in a gain on the sale of $1.0 million.increased for reasons discussed above.

INVESTMENTS

Our investments play a significant role in the successare an integral part of our business success, as we invest the majority of premiums collected to pay for future benefits and rely on net investment income for our ongoing operations. The administration of our investment portfolio is handled by our management and a third-party investment manager, pursuant to Board-approved investment guidelines. StateAs a primary goal of state insurance regulation is to ensure the solvency of an insurance company, state insurance statutes prescribestrictly regulate the quality and percentage of the various types of investments that may be made by insurance companies and generally permit investmentcompanies. The majority of investments are required to be in qualified state, municipal, federal and foreign government obligations and high quality corporate bonds,bonds. To a lesser extent, we may invest in preferred and common stock, limited partnerships and mortgage loansloans. In executing investing activities our management and real estate within certain specified percentages. third-party investment manager are incorporating environmental, social and governance factors into their respective

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investment processes as appropriate. These factors include investing in opportunities to help mitigate climate change by pursuing relevant investments across asset classes.

Our investment guidelines comply with the applicable statutescash and thusinvested assets at December 31, 2023 were $1.4 billion, of which 87% was invested in fixed maturity securities, comprise a majorityall of which are classified as available-for-sale. We closely monitor the duration of our fixed maturity investments, and investment portfolio. The assetspurchases and sales are intended to mature in accordanceexecuted with the average maturityobjective of the insurance products andhaving adequate funds available to provide the cash flow forsatisfy our insurance company subsidiaries to meet their respective policyholder obligations and operating expenses.obligations.

The following table shows the carrying value of our investments by investment category and cash andalong with the percentage of each to total invested assets.

As of December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
As of December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
2021%2020%
As of December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
2023%2022%
Cash and invested assets:Cash and invested assets:
Fixed maturity securities:
Fixed maturity securities:
Fixed maturity securities:Fixed maturity securities:      
U.S. Treasury and U.S. Government-sponsored enterprisesU.S. Treasury and U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises$15,070 0.9 %$16,117 1.0 %U.S. Treasury and U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises$9,715 0.7 0.7 %$13,278 1.0 1.0 %
CorporateCorporate893,008 54.0 877,208 52.8 
Municipal bonds (1)
Municipal bonds (1)
383,958 23.3 409,665 24.7 
Mortgage-backed (2)
Mortgage-backed (2)
133,795 8.1 140,184 8.5 
Asset-backedAsset-backed44,676 2.7 46,091 2.8 
Foreign governmentsForeign governments110  118 — 
Total fixed maturity securitiesTotal fixed maturity securities1,470,617 89.0 1,489,383 89.8 
Short-term investments
Cash and cash equivalentsCash and cash equivalents27,294 1.7 34,131 2.1 
Other investments:Other investments:
Policy loansPolicy loans80,307 4.9 83,318 5.0 
Policy loans
Policy loans
Equity securitiesEquity securities14,844 0.9 22,102 1.3 
Real estate and other long-term investments57,399 3.5 29,865 1.8 
Other long-term investments
Total cash and invested assetsTotal cash and invested assets$1,650,461 100.0 %$1,658,799 100.0 %Total cash and invested assets$1,429,344 100.0 100.0 %$1,363,754 100.0 100.0 %
(1) Includes $158.6$124.2 million and $164.0$133.2 million of securities guaranteed by third parties at December 31, 20212023 and 2020,2022, respectively.
(2) Includes $133.7$96.1 million and $139.8$98.8 million of U.S. Government agencies and government-sponsored enterprises at December 31, 20212023 and 2020,2022, respectively.

During 2021, we continued repositioningThe carrying value of the Company’s fixed maturity securities investment portfolio at December 31, 2023 was $1.24 billion compared to $1.18 billion at December 31, 2022. As discussed above, this increase primarily reflects the impact of interest rate sensitivity on the fair value of our fixed maturity securities. The distribution of the credit ratings of our portfolio into more diversified holdings as part of our investment management strategy. As investments matured or were called, the Company increased investments in corporatefixed maturity securities which now represent 54.0% of our cash and invested assetsby carrying value as of December 31, 2021 as compared to 52.8% at2023 did not materially change from December 31, 2020. The Company has also decreased its exposure to2022 – the municipal bond market, which represents 23.3% of the investment portfolioweighted average was “A” at both dates.

Cash and cash equivalents increased as of December 31, 20212023 compared to 24.7%December 31, 2022 and fluctuates from period-to-period primarily due to the timing of operating and investing activities.

Equity securities decreased as of December 31, 2020.2023 compared to December 31, 2022 as we reduced our mutual fund exposure to take advantage of higher fixed maturity yields.

Other long-term investments increased to $82.7 million as of December 31, 2023, as compared to $69.6 million as of December 31, 2022 due to additional funding of our limited partnership investments.


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Cash and cash equivalents decreased as of December 31, 2021 compared to December 31, 2020 due to timing of cash inflows and investments of cash into marketable securities.

Real estate and other long-term investments increased to $57.4 million as of December 31, 2021, as compared to $29.9 million as of December 31, 2020, primarily due to investments of $37.9 million in limited partnerships, partially offset by the sale of our former training facility for $2.5 million and the payment of $8.8 million of severance previously held in a Rabbi trust for the benefit of our former chief executive officer.

At December 31, 2021, investments in fixed maturity and equity securities were 90.0% of our total cash and invested assets.  All of our fixed maturity securities were classified as available-for-sale at December 31, 2021 and 2020.  We had no fixed maturity securities that were classified as trading securities at December 31, 2021 or 2020.

The following table shows annualized investment yields by segment and on a consolidated basis as of December 31 for each year presented.
YearYearLife
Insurance
Home
Service Insurance
ConsolidatedYearLife
Insurance
Home
Service Insurance
Consolidated
202320234.58 %4.53 %4.56 %
202220224.40 %4.48 %4.40 %
202120214.26 %4.37 %4.24 %20214.26 %4.37 %4.24 %
20204.28 %4.37 %4.24 %
20194.41 %4.45 %4.36 %

Yields on investmentinvested assets vary between segment operations due to different portfolio mixes and durations in the segments.each segment's portfolio. The consolidated yields include our other non-insurance enterprises. The sustained lowannualized yield increased across our segments in 2023 compared to 2022 resulting primarily from the rising interest rate environment of the past several years for fixed maturity assets, which account for the majority of our investment portfolio, has required us to reinvest a portion of our portfolio at lower interest rates; however, diversification of our investment portfolio into limited partnership investments helped offset a challenging investment environment for fixed maturity securities in 2021.environment.

Credit quality is an important feature of our investment guidelines for our fixed maturity securities. Credit ratings reported for the periods indicated are assigned by a Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization ("NRSRO") such as Moody’s Investors Service, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings.  A credit rating assigned by a NRSRO is a quality-based rating, with AAA representing the highest quality and D the lowest, with BBB and above being considered investment grade.  If there is no NRSRO rating, the Company may use credit ratings of the NAIC Securities Valuation Office ("SVO") as assigned.  Securities rated by the SVO are grouped in the equivalent NRSRO category as stated by the SVO, and securities that are not rated by a NRSRO are included in the "other" category.

The following table shows the distribution of the credit ratings of our portfolio of fixed maturity securities by carrying value.

December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
2021%2020%
December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
2023%2022%
AAAAAA$29,572 2.0 %$31,990 2.1 %AAA$36,233 2.9 2.9 %$36,254 3.1 3.1 %
AAAA425,996 29.0 449,934 30.3 
AA418,465 28.5 451,488 30.3 
BBBBBB565,923 38.5 532,993 35.8 
BB and otherBB and other30,661 2.0 22,978 1.5 
TotalsTotals$1,470,617 100.0 %$1,489,383 100.0 %Totals$1,238,981 100.0 100.0 %$1,179,619 100.0 100.0 %

The Company made new investments in investment grade bonds during 2021.2023.  Non-investment grade securities are the result of downgrades of issuers or securities acquired during acquisitions of other companies, as the Company has not purchased below investment grade securities.


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As of December 31, 2021,2023, the Company held municipal fixed maturity securities that include third-party guarantees.  Detailed below is a presentation by credit rating of our municipal holdings by funding type.
 
December 31, 2021 December 31, 2023
General ObligationSpecial RevenueOtherTotal% Based on
Amortized
Cost
General ObligationSpecial RevenueOtherTotal% Based on
Amortized
Cost
(In thousands, except for %)(In thousands, except for %)Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Municipal fixed maturity securities shown including third-party guaranteesMunicipal fixed maturity securities shown including third-party guarantees
Municipal fixed maturity securities shown including third-party guarantees
Municipal fixed maturity securities shown including third-party guarantees
AAA
AAA
AAAAAA$20,655 19,588 3,315 3,078   23,970 22,666 6.4 %$13,986 13,921 13,921 6,783 6,783 6,892 6,892     20,769 20,769 20,813 20,813 6.6 6.6 %
AAAA51,780 48,158 124,926 117,665 12,010 10,824 188,716 176,647 49.5 
AA17,497 16,116 116,115 105,646 5,008 4,412 138,620 126,174 35.4 
BBBBBB3,389 3,059 13,490 12,940 1,537 1,450 18,416 17,449 4.9 
BB and otherBB and other4,703 4,413 9,533 9,245   14,236 13,658 3.8 
TotalTotal$98,024 91,334 267,379 248,574 18,555 16,686 383,958 356,594 100.0 %Total$65,596 66,336 66,336 209,470 209,470 235,466 235,466 12,165 12,165 12,401 12,401 287,231 287,231 314,203 314,203 100.0 100.0 %
Municipal fixed maturity securities shown excluding third-party guaranteesMunicipal fixed maturity securities shown excluding third-party guarantees
AAA$2,568 2,526     2,568 2,526 0.7 %
AA
AA
AAAA35,200 33,377 49,088 45,885 7,380 6,526 91,668 85,788 24.1 
AA28,849 26,902 141,759 130,001 7,941 7,141 178,549 164,044 46.0 
BBBBBB6,727 6,047 35,720 33,863 57 55 42,504 39,965 11.2 
BB and otherBB and other24,680 22,482 40,812 38,825 3,177 2,964 68,669 64,271 18.0 
TotalTotal$98,024 91,334 267,379 248,574 18,555 16,686 383,958 356,594 100.0 %Total$65,596 66,336 66,336 209,470 209,470 235,466 235,466 12,165 12,165 12,401 12,401 287,231 287,231 314,203 314,203 100.0 100.0 %

The table below shows the categories in which the Company held investments in special revenue bonds that were greater than 10% of fair value based upon the Company's portfolio of municipal fixed maturity securities at December 31, 2021.2023.

(In thousands, except for %)(In thousands, except for %)Fair
Value
Amortized Cost% of Total Fair Value(In thousands, except for %)Fair
Value
Amortized Cost% of Total Fair Value
EducationEducation$69,130 65,040 18.0 %Education$47,659 53,244 53,244 16.6 16.6 %
UtilitiesUtilities62,545 55,958 16.3 %Utilities42,576 46,035 46,035 14.8 14.8 %
TransportationTransportation44,210 42,569 11.5 %Transportation34,068 40,724 40,724 11.9 11.9 %

The Company's municipal holdings are spread across many states. However, municipal fixed maturity securities from Texas and California comprise the most significant concentration of the total municipal holdings portfolio as of December 31, 2021.2023.

The Company holds 21.6%22% and 12.9%15% of its municipal holdings in Texas and California issuers, respectively, as of December 31, 2021.2023. There were no other states or individual issuer holdings that represented or exceeded 10% of the total municipal portfolio as of December 31, 2021.2023.
 

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The table below represents the Company's detailed exposure to municipal bond portfolio by credit rating in Texas at December 31, 2021.2023.

General ObligationSpecial RevenueOtherTotal General ObligationSpecial RevenueOtherTotal
(In thousands)(In thousands)Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
(In thousands)Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Texas securities including third-party guaranteesTexas securities including third-party guarantees  Texas securities including third-party guarantees  
AAAAAA$20,082 19,080 3,315 3,078   23,397 22,158 
AAAA21,535 20,821 13,660 12,777 57 55 35,252 33,653 
AA  21,671 21,832   21,671 21,832 
BBB  1,959 1,825   1,959 1,825 
BB and other  534 505   534 505 
Total
Total
TotalTotal$41,617 39,901 41,139 40,017 57 55 82,813 79,973 
Texas securities excluding third-party guaranteesTexas securities excluding third-party guarantees  
AAA$2,568 2,526     2,568 2,526 
Texas securities excluding third-party guarantees
Texas securities excluding third-party guarantees  
AA
AA
AAAA31,801 30,439 3,216 3,032   35,017 33,471 
AA6,034 5,788 29,369 28,993   35,403 34,781 
BBBBBB1,214 1,148 5,611 5,199 57 55 6,882 6,402 
BB and otherBB and other  2,943 2,793   2,943 2,793 
TotalTotal$41,617 39,901 41,139 40,017 57 55 82,813 79,973 

The table below represents the Company's detailed exposure to municipal bond portfolio by credit rating in California at December 31, 2021.2023.

General ObligationSpecial RevenueOtherTotal
General ObligationGeneral ObligationSpecial RevenueOtherTotal
(In thousands)(In thousands)Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
(In thousands)Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Amortized
Cost
California securities including third-party guaranteesCalifornia securities including third-party guaranteesCalifornia securities including third-party guarantees
AA
AA
AAAA$  31,942 30,407 2,933 2,729 34,875 33,136 
AA1,705 1,650 8,354 8,113   10,059 9,763 
BBBBBB  4,757 4,653   4,757 4,653 
TotalTotal$1,705 1,650 45,053 43,173 2,933 2,729 49,691 47,552 
Total
Total
California securities excluding third-party guaranteesCalifornia securities excluding third-party guaranteesCalifornia securities excluding third-party guarantees
AA
AA
AAAA$  3,708 3,639   3,708 3,639 
AA1,705 1,650 16,076 15,463 2,933 2,729 20,714 19,842 
BBBBBB  8,315 7,847   8,315 7,847 
BB and otherBB and other  16,954 16,224   16,954 16,224 
TotalTotal$1,705 1,650 45,053 43,173 2,933 2,729 49,691 47,552 

IMPAIRMENT CONSIDERATIONS RELATED TO INVESTMENTS IN FIXED MATURITY AND EQUITY SECURITIES

Beginning January 1, 2020, in connection with the adoption of a new accounting standard, theThe Company assesses available-for-sale ("AFS") fixed maturity securities in an unrealized loss position for expected credit losses. See Note 1. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies for a discussion regarding our application of this accounting standard. The Company recorded nodid not record any credit lossesvaluation allowances on fixed maturity securities in 20212023 or 2020.2022.


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Gross unrealized losses on AFS fixed maturity securities amounted to $3.0$158.7 million as of December 31, 20212023 and $1.9$205.3 million as of December 31, 2020.2022.  This increasedecrease in gross unrealized losses during 20212023 was a result of the increase in average market interest rates at the end of 2023 as compared to 2020.2022.


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Information on both unrealized and realized gains and losses by category is set forth in Note 2. Investments of the notes to our consolidated financial statements.

REINSURANCE

As is customary among insurance companies, our insurance company subsidiaries reinsure, with other companies, portions of the life insurance risks they underwrite.  A primary purpose of reinsurance agreements is to enable an insurance company to reduce the amount of risk by reinsuring the amount exceeding the maximum amount the insurance company is willing to retain.  Even though a portion of the risk may be reinsured, our insurance company subsidiaries remain liable to perform all the obligations imposed by the policies issued by them and could be liable if their reinsurers were unable to meet their obligations under the reinsurance agreements.

We believe we have established appropriate reinsurance coverage based upon our net retained insured liabilities compared to our surplus.

The effect of reinsurance on premiums is as follows.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Direct premiumsDirect premiums$178,806 178,952 187,009 
Reinsurance assumedReinsurance assumed84 91 99 
Reinsurance cededReinsurance ceded(4,162)(3,714)(2,761)
Net premiumsNet premiums$174,728 175,329 184,347 

Our insurance subsidiaries monitor the solvency of their reinsurers in seeking to minimize the risk of loss in the event of default by a reinsurer.  The primary reinsurers of our insurance subsidiaries are large, well-capitalized entities.entities who have ratings by A.M. Best Company ranging from A- (Excellent) to A+ (Superior).

The effect of reinsurance on life insurance in force is as follows.

Years ended December 31,
(In millions)
Years ended December 31,
(In millions)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In millions)
202320222021
Direct written life insurance in forceDirect written life insurance in force$4,628 4,612 4,729 
Reinsurance assumedReinsurance assumed4 
Reinsurance cededReinsurance ceded(466)(475)(487)
Net life insurance in forceNet life insurance in force$4,166 4,142 4,247 

Virtually all of the Company's non-credit accident and healthOur property insurance has been reinsured and is administered by Unified Life Insurance Company, an unaffiliated party.  

The Company monitors the credit ratings of our life and property reinsurers.  The ratings by A.M. Best Company range from B+ (Good) to A+ (Superior).

company, SPFIC, generally carriescarried first and second event catastrophe reinsurance coverage of $10.5$11.0 million per event and a retention level of $0.5$2.4 million per event.event until it ceased operations on June 30, 2023.  Thus, SPFIC was responsible for the first $0.5$1.0 million of incurred claims and any claims in excess of $11.0 million per event are SPFIC's responsibility.  The reinsurance premiumevent. In addition, SPFIC shared responsibility with our reinsurers for catastrophe reinsurance was $2.3 million in 2021,up to an additional $1.4 million in 2020 and $0.8of incurred claims should total incurred claims reach $11.0 million in 2019.per event. 


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LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

Below are our primary capital resources (based on carrying value) at each of December 31, 20212023 and 2020.2022.

(In thousands, except for %)(In thousands, except for %)20212020(In thousands, except for %)20232022
Fixed maturity securitiesFixed maturity securities$1,470,617 1,489,383 
Cash and cash equivalentsCash and cash equivalents27,294 34,131 

Liquidity refers to a company's ability to generate sufficient cash flows to meet the needs of its operations.  In the year ended December 31, 2021,2023, our operations provided $40.5$22.1 million inof net cash. We manage our insurance operations as described herein in order to ensure that we have stable and reliable sources of cash flows to meet our

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obligations. We currently anticipate meeting our short-term and long-term cash needs with cash generated by our insurance operations and from our invested assets. From time-to-time we may raise capital by selling shares in our SIP (as defined below) and we may also access our Credit Facility if needed (both(also as described below).

PARENT COMPANY LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

Citizens is a holding company and has had minimal operations of its own. Our assets consist of the capital stock of our subsidiaries, cash and investments. Our liquidity requirements are met primarily from two sources: cash generatedwe receive from our operating subsidiaries and our invested assets. Our ability toWe can obtain cash from our insurance subsidiaries depends primarily upon the availability of statutorily permissible payments, including payments Citizens receivesin two ways - (1) from dividends, and (2) from fees received for providing administrative services under our service agreements with our life insurance subsidiaries and dividends from the subsidiaries.agreements. The ability to make payments to the holding companyreceive dividends from our insurance subsidiaries is limited by applicable laws and regulations of BermudaPuerto Rico and our U.S. states of domicile (Colorado, Louisiana and Mississippi), which subject insurance operations to significant regulatory restrictions. As discussed in Part I, Item 1, Business and Part I. Item 1A. Risk Factors, these laws and regulations require, among other things, that our insurance subsidiaries maintain minimum capital and surplus requirements, which limit the amount of dividends that can be paid to the holding company.Citizens. The regulations also require prior approval of our service agreements with the applicable regulatory authority in order to prevent insurance subsidiaries from moving large amounts of cash to the unregulatedless regulated holding company.

In addition to the above-mentioned sources of cash, we offer a Stock Investment Plan ("SIP"), wherebywhere investors, policyholders, independent contractors and agents, employees and directors can directly purchase our stock. At our option, purchases of stock under the SIP can be made from newly issued or treasury stock, rather than in the open market, in which case, we can raise capital by selling our shares.

On May 5, 2021, we entered into a 3-year Credit Facility with Regions Bank. See Part IV, Item 1,15, Note 7, Commitments and Contingencies in the notes to our consolidated financial statements, herein, for a description of the Credit Facility. The Credit Facility providesmay provide additional liquidity to the Company for short-term and longer-term needs.Company. As of December 31, 2021,the date of this Form 10-K, we have not borrowed any money under the Credit Facility. We intend to renew the Credit Facility and have no immediate plans to do so.in May 2024.

INSURANCE COMPANY SUBSIDIARY LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

The liquidity requirements of our insurance operations are primarily met by premium revenues, investment income and investment maturities. Our primary uses ofmaturities or sales. Primary cash are forneeds relate to payments of policypolicyholder benefits, to policyholders, investment purchases, and operating expenses. Historically, cash flow from our operations has been sufficient to meet our cash needs and weneeds. We have not had to liquidate a material amount of investments to pay our expenses andexpenses. We believe we did not do so in 2021. Premium revenue was $174.7 million and $175.3 million inhave adequate capital resources to support the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.liquidity requirements of our insurance operations if the cash flow from our insurance operations is insufficient to meet our cash needs. See Contractual Obligations and Off-balance Sheet Arrangements below for a discussion of known and estimated cash needs related to payments of future policy benefits and policy claims.needs. Cash flow projections and cash flow tests under various market interest rate scenarios are performed annually to assist in evaluating liquidity needs and adequacy.

Cash from Operations.Operating Activities. Cash provided by (used in)or used in operating activities is an important liquidity metric because it reflects, during a given period, the amount of cash generated that is available to pay our operating expenses, invest in our business or

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make strategic acquisitions. Cash provided by operating activities was $40.5$22.1 million and $48.8$56.9 million for the years ended December 31, 20212023 and 2020,2022, respectively. Cash provided by operations was lowerhigher in 20212022 than 2023 primarily due to (i) the $8.8 million severancehigher surrender and matured endowment benefits paid in 2023 as well as higher cash used for payment to our former CEO, (ii) decreased renewal premiumsof commissions in our international business; and (iii)2023 due to increased first year premiums, which have higher costs associated with them than renewal premiums, such as commissions. During the third quarter of 2020, the Company used funds from matured securities to pay $6.0 million to the IRS for the tax compliance matter described in Note 7. Commitments and Contingencies in the notes to our consolidated financial statements. As noted in Note 7. Commitments and Contingencies, the IRS processed these withholding tax returns in 2021, and the Company considers this matter closed.sales.

Cash from/used in Investments. Investing Activities.We have traditionally also had significant cash flows from both scheduled and unscheduled investment security maturities, redemptions, and prepayments. These cash flows, for the most part, are reinvested in fixed income securities and to a lesser extent limited partnerships or other alternative investments. Net cash outflows from investing activities totaled $41.1$14.5 million and $61.8$60.7 million for the years ended December 31, 20212023 and 2020,2022, respectively. The investing activities fluctuate from period to period due to timing of securities activities such as calls and maturities and reinvestment of those funds. OurWe purchased $72.8 million of fixed maturity securities and we also used $17.3 million to purchase other long-term investments consistin 2023. 88% of 90.6%our investments consist of marketable fixed maturity securities classified as available-for-sale and 0.9% of equity securities that could be readily converted to cash for liquidity needs. Over the last several years, a large portion of our fixed maturity security investment portfolio has matured or called, which required us to reinvest in fixed maturity securities with lower interest rates. We are seeking to diversify our portfolio with limited partnership investments in order to earn higher investment income to mitigate the effect of a decrease in our spread between our policy liability crediting rates and our investment earned rates (our gross margin), which could also negatively impact our liquidity. Our investment portfolio (and, specifically, the valuations of investment assets we hold) has also been, and may continue to be, adversely affected as a result of market developments from the COVID-19 pandemic and uncertainty regarding its outcome. Moreover, changes in interest rates, reduced liquidity or a continued slowdown in the U.S. or in global economic conditions may also adversely affect the values and cash flows of these assets.

Cash from/used in Financing Activities.
Cash used in financing activities was $6.2 million for the year ended
December 31, 2021 due primarily to the purchase2023 | 10-K 50

Table of 100% of the outstanding Class B common stock from the Harold E. Riley Foundation for $9.1 million in March 2021. This amount was partially offset by $2.3 million we received from issuing shares under our SIP and $1.1 million net in annuity deposits received higher than annuity withdrawals.Contents

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Trends, Demands and Restrictions on our Uses of Cash

Because claims and surrenders are our largest expense, aour primary liquidity concern is the risk of eitherconcerns include significantly higher than expected (i) an extraordinary level of early policyholder surrenders or (ii) higher than expected mortality experience. death claims, as well as high levels of matured endowments in a short timeframe.

In order to mitigate the risk of early policyholder surrenders, we include provisions in some of our insurance policies, such as surrender charges, that help limit and discourage early withdrawals. As previously discussed, surrender benefits have been higher than usual the last several years as many of our policies have reached the age where surrender charges have expired and due to other reasons, like the loss of one of our biggest distributors in Venezuela (see Item 3. Legal Proceedings). However, policy surrenders decreased 5.3% in 2021 when compared to 2020 as we have instituted new programs seeking to curb surrenders.2018. To the extent that early surrenders are higher than expected, our liquidity could be negatively impacted. We continue to monitor surrenders and early withdrawals.withdrawals and have implemented retention initiatives over the last few years in an effort to prevent early surrenders and preserve cash where policies are surrendered near maturity.

We experienced increased death claim benefits in 2021, primarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Because the pandemic was an unforeseen event that was not priced into our product assumptions, to the extent we continue to experience increased claims and the associated death benefit payouts as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic or any other unforeseen event, our liquidity could be negatively impacted. Some of our policies include pandemic exclusions, and we carry reinsurance to offset some of these risks. However, death claim benefits decreased by 13% in 2023 compared to 2022.

Our whole life and endowment products provide the policyholder with alternatives once the policy matures - they can choose to take a lump sum payout or leave the money on deposit at interest with the Company. As of December 31, 2021, 40%2023, 35% of the Company's total insurance in force was in endowment products. Approximately 15%18% of the endowments in force will mature in the next five years. Policyholder election behavior is unknown, but if too many policyholders elect lump sum distributions, the Company could be exposed to liquidity risk in years of high maturities. Meeting these distributions could require the Company to sell securitiesits investments at inopportune times to pay policyholder withdrawals. Alternatively, if the policyholders were to leave the money on deposit with the Company at interest, our profitability could be impacted if the product guaranteed rate is higher than the market rate we are earning on our investments. We currently anticipate that our available operating cash flow and capital resources will be adequate to meet our needsneed for funds, but we will monitor closely our policyholder behavior patterns.


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Primarily due toour insurance products, meaning we pay an agent their commission immediately upon sale of a policy, rather than "as earned", or when premiums are received by us. Because of this, another liquidity concern is the COVID-19 pandemic, werisk that rapid growth in first year sales of these products could create a significant increase in commission payments, which increases expenses and thus reduces our statutory capital until the commissions are recouped from premiums paid. CICA Domestic sales have experienced increased death claim benefits oversignificantly since the last two years. Because the pandemic was an unforeseen event that was not priced into our product assumptions, to the extent wethird quarter of 2023 and continue to experience increased claimsgrow rapidly. To mitigate this risk and strain on capital, we may seek options, such as reinsurance or loans at the associated death benefit payouts as a result ofholding company level (from the COVID-19 pandemic, ourCredit Facility or otherwise) that would allow us to reduce the liquidity risk should CICA Domestic's required commission payments exceed current resources. If we are unable to purchase reinsurance protection in amounts that we consider sufficient or unable to borrow money to contribute capital to CICA Domestic, we could be negatively impacted. Some of our policies include pandemic exclusions, and we carry reinsuranceexposed to offset some of these risks.cash flow strain.

As discussed above, we are subject to regulatory capital requirements that could affect the Company’s ability to access capital from our insurance operations or cause the Company to have to put additional cash in our wholly-owned subsidiaries. We experienced substantial increases in property claims in the 2021 and the last half of 2020 due in large part to four hurricanes that hit Louisiana. As a result, SPLIC had to contribute capital to SPFIC in both 2021 and 2020 in order to maintain statutory capital requirements.

Our domestic companies are subject to minimum capital requirements set by the NAIC in the form of risk-based capital ("RBC"). RBC considers the type of business written by an insurance company, the quality of its assets, and various other aspects of an insurance company's business to develop a minimum level of capital called "Authorized Control Level Risk-Based Capital". This level of capital is then compared to an adjusted statutory capital that includes capital and surplus as reported under statutory accounting principles, plus certain investment reserves. Should the ratio of adjusted statutory capital to control level RBC fall below 200% for our domestic companies, a series of remedial actions by the affected company would be required. Additionally, we have a parental guarantee between Citizens and CICA Domestic, Citizens' wholly-owned subsidiary domiciled in Colorado, to maintain a RBC level above 350%. At December 31, 2021,2023, our domestic insurance subsidiaries were above the required minimum RBC levels.

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For CICA Domestic, commission advances are non-admitted assets, which increases required regulatory capital and reduces the excess capital available. As discussed above, management is investigating various options in order to reduce both regulatory capital and liquidity risk should the capital required to support this growth exceed current resources. Citizens may have to contribute capital to CICA Domestic to maintain the required RBC ratio.

CICA International is a BermudaPuerto Rico domiciled company. The BMA requires Bermuda insurers to maintain available statutory economicInsurance Code does not specifically set forth minimum capital and surplus atstandards, but rather requires that an insurer submit a level equalbusiness plan for approval to or in excess of the BMA's Enhanced Capital Requirement, which requires a certain Target Capital Level ("TCL"). As of December 31, 2021,OIC that includes proposed minimum capital and surplus. CICA International was aboveis required to maintain a minimum of $750,000 in capital and maintain a premium to surplus ratio of 7 to 1. CICA International began issuing new business as of January 1, 2023 and received the TCL threshold. At the requesttransfer of the BMA, on April 15, 2021,all of CICA Bermuda's in force insurance business as of August 31, 2023. On that date, Citizens and CICA International entered into a Keep Well Agreement.Agreement with CICA International to replace the Keep Well Agreement that had been in place between Citizens and CICA Bermuda. The Keep Well Agreement requires Citizens to contribute up to $10 million in capital to CICA International as necessary to ensure that CICA International has amaintains at least either (i) 112% of its required ratio of premiums to capital and surplus, or (ii) 200% of the minimum capital leveland surplus requirement, whichever is higher. The initial term of 120%.the Keep Well Agreement is 12 months. Since CICA International's capital level currently exceeds 120%,both of the metrics, Citizens is not currently required to make a capital contribution. Any capital injection that Citizens is required to make under the parental guarantee with CICA or under the Keep Well Agreement with CICA Internationalcontribute could negatively impact the Company's capital resources and liquidity.

CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS AND OFF-BALANCE SHEET ARRANGEMENTS

Our material cash requirements from known contractual and other obligations primarily relate to our policy liabilities. Expected timing of those payments are as follows:

As of December 31, 2021
(In thousands)
TotalLess than 1
Year
1 to 3 Years3 to 5 YearsMore than 5
Years
Year ended December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
Year ended December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
TotalLess than 1
Year
1 to 3 Years3 to 5 YearsMore than 5
Years
Contractual Obligations:Contractual Obligations:
Investment commitmentsInvestment commitments$39,824 21,459 18,365   
Real estate and equipment leases10,827 1,015 2,134 2,377 5,301 
Investment commitments
Investment commitments
Real estate leases
Future policy benefit reserves
Future policy benefit reserves
Future policy benefit reservesFuture policy benefit reserves1,472,829 36,906 104,454 136,757 1,194,712 
Policy claims payablePolicy claims payable14,590 14,590    
Policy claims payable
Policy claims payable
Total contractual obligationsTotal contractual obligations$1,538,070 73,970 124,953 139,134 1,200,013 
Total contractual obligations
Total contractual obligations

Future Policy Benefit Reserves and Policy Claims Payable. As a life insurance company, the vast majority of our known cash requirements are for payments related to future policy benefits and policy claims payable, which we estimated in the table above. These amounts have been projected utilizing assumptions based upon our historical experience and anticipated future experience. Because the exact timing and amount of the future policy benefit reserves are subject to significant uncertainty, weWe have reflected the majority of the obligation in the more than five-years category.


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Real Estate Lease. The Company entered into a long-term lease agreementthe insured, years to policy maturity and our past experience with an unrelated party for its home office in Austin, Texasclaims and moved into its new home office in 2020. Payments under this long-term lease agreement average approximately $112,340 per month.surrenders.

The Company does not have off-balance sheet arrangements at December 31, 2021.2023. We do not utilize special purpose entities as investment vehicles, nor do we invest in any such entities that engage in speculative activities of any nature. In addition, we do not hedge our investment positions.

We have no known material cash requirements other than those described above.

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The preparation of consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect reported amounts and related disclosures.  Management considers an accounting estimate to be critical if: (1) it requires assumptions to be made that were uncertain at the time the estimate was made; and (2) changes in the estimate, or different estimates that could have been selected, could have a material effect on our consolidated results of operations or financial condition.  While we believe that our estimates, assumptions and judgments are reasonable, they are based on information presently

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available.  Changes in our assumptions, estimates or assessments as a result of unforeseen events or otherwise could have a material impact on our financial position or results of operations.

Management has discussed the development and selection of its critical accounting estimates with the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors, and the Audit Committee has reviewed the disclosure presented.  See Note 1. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the notes to our consolidated financial statements for further information on our critical accounting policies.

VALUATION OF INVESTMENTS IN FIXED MATURITY SECURITIES

Based upon current accounting guidance, investment securities must be classified as held-to-maturity, available-for-sale ("AFS") or trading.  Management determines the appropriate classification at the time of purchase.  The classification of securities is significant since it directly impacts the accounting for unrealized gains and losses on securities.  Fixed maturity securities are classified as held-to-maturity and carried at amortized cost when management has the positive intent and the Company has the ability to hold the securities to maturity. SecuritiesThe Company currently does not hold any fixed maturity securities classified as held-to-maturity areheld-to-maturity.  Fixed maturity securities classified as AFS and are carried at fair value, with the unrealized holding gains and losses, net of tax, reported in other comprehensive income (loss) and doare not affectreported in earnings until realized. The Company currently does not hold anyOur fixed maturity securities consist primarily of bonds classified as held-to-maturity.AFS.

The Company monitors all fixed maturity securities on an on-going basis relative to changes in credit ratings, market prices, earnings trends and financial performance, in addition to specific region or industry reviews.  The Company evaluates whether a credit impairment exists for fixed maturity securities by considering primarily the following factors: (a) changes in the financial condition of the security's underlying collateral; (b) whether the issuer is current on contractually obligated interest and principal payments; (c) changes in the financial condition, credit rating and near-term prospects of the issuer; and (d) the payment structure of the security.  The Company's best estimate of expected future cash flows used to determine the credit loss amount is a quantitative and qualitative process.  Quantitative review includes information received from third-party sources such as financial statements, pricing and rating changes, liquidity and other statistical information.  Qualitative factors include judgments related to business strategies, economic impacts on the issuer, overall judgment related to estimates and industry factors as well as the Company's intent to sell the security, or if it is more likely than not that the Company would be required to sell a security before recovery of its amortized cost.

The Company's best estimate of future cash flows involves assumptions including, but not limited to, various performance indicators, such as historical and projected default and recovery rates, credit ratings, and current delinquency rates.  These assumptions require the use of significant management judgment and include the probability of issuer default and estimates regarding timing and amount of expected recoveries, which may include estimating the underlying collateral value.  In addition, projections of expected future fixed maturity security cash

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flows may change based upon new information regarding the performance of the issuer. Any credit losses are presented as an allowance rather than as a write-down of AFS fixed maturity securities.

DEFERRED POLICY ACQUISITION COSTS

Acquisition costs, consisting of commissions and policy issuance, underwriting and agent convention expenses that are directly related to and vary with the successful production of new business are deferred.  These deferred amounts, referred to as deferredDeferred policy acquisition costs ("DAC"), are recordedcosts that are incremental and directly related to the successful acquisition of new or renewal insurance contracts. Such costs include the incremental direct costs of contract acquisition, such as an asset onsales commissions; the consolidated balance sheetsportion of employees’ total compensation and amortizedpayroll-related fringe benefits related directly to income in a systematic manner, based on related contract revenues or gross profitstime spent performing acquisition activities, such as appropriate.

Traditional life insuranceunderwriting, issuing, and accident and health insurance acquisition costs are amortized over the premium-paying period of the relatedprocessing policies using assumptions consistent with those used in computing future policy benefit liabilities.  For universal life type contracts and investmentfor contracts that include significant surrender charges or that yield significant revenues from sourceshave actually been acquired; and other than the investment contract holders' funds, the deferred contractcosts related directly to acquisition cost amortization is matched to the recognition of gross profit.  The effect on the DAC assetactivities that would result from realization of unrealized gains or losses is recognized with an offset to accumulated other comprehensive income in consolidated stockholders' equity.  If an internal replacement of insurance or investment contract modification substantially changes a contract as defined in current accounting guidance, then the DAC is written off immediately through income and any new deferrable costs associated with the new replacement are deferred.  If a contract modification does not substantially changehave been incurred if the contract the DAC amortization on the original contract will continue and any acquisition costs associated with the related modification are immediately expensed.

The ending DAC asset balance is calculated at a seriatim level for policies in force at the end of each reporting period based on the remaining unamortized asset. The assumptions used to calculate DAC are set when a policy is issued and dohad not change with changes in actual experience, unless a loss recognition event occurs. The seriatim method ensures that policies lapsed or surrendered during the reporting period are no longer included in the DAC calculation. This method limits the amount of deferred costs to its estimated realizable value, provided actual experience is comparable to that contemplated in the locked-in assumptions.been acquired. 

Inherent in the capitalization and amortization of DAC are certain management judgments about what acquisition costs are deferred, the ending asset balance and the annual amortization.  Approximately 94.6%93% of our capitalized DAC are attributed to first year and renewal excess commissions.  The remaining 5.4%7% are attributed to other costs that vary with and are directly related to the successful acquisition of new insurance business.  Those costs generally include costs related to the production, underwriting and issuance of new business.

DAC is subjectamortized on a constant level basis over the expected term of the related contracts to recoverability testing atapproximate straight-line amortization. For the time ofLife Insurance segment, the constant level basis used is policy issuance and loss recognition testing on an annual basis, or when an event occurs that might require loss recognition testing. If loss recognition or impairment is necessary, DAC would be written off tocount in force. For the extent that anticipated future premiums and investment income is insufficient to cover expected future policy benefits and expenses. Loss recognition testing considers, among other things, actual experience and projected future experience and calculates the available premium (gross premium less the benefit and expense portion of premium) for the next 50 years.  DAC is evaluated for recoverability using best estimate assumptions related to interest rates, mortality and lapses. Based on the results of DAC recoverability and loss recognition testing, management believes that our DAC for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 is recorded at its estimated realizable value. However, if mortality increases by more than 125% from our underlying assumptions a loss recognition event could occur in our Home Service Insurance segment. Likewise, if interest rates decline significantly, a loss recognition event could occursegment, the constant level basis used is face amount in both of our operating segments.

For DAC related to long-duration traditional insurance contracts, ifforce. The constant level bases used for amortization are projected using mortality and lapse assumptions that are based on the assets supporting the liabilities are in a net unrealized gain position at the balance sheet date, loss recognition testing assumptions are updated to exclude such gains from future cash flows by reflecting the impact of reinvestment rates on future yields. If a future loss is anticipated under this basis, any additional shortfall indicated by loss recognition tests is recognized as a reduction in accumulated other comprehensive income (shadow loss recognition). Similar to other loss recognition on long-duration insurance contracts, such shortfall is first reflected as a reduction in DAC and secondly as an increase inCompany’s

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liabilitiesexperience, industry data, and other factors at the end of each reporting period and are consistent with those used for the liability for future policy benefits. The change in these adjustments, net of tax,benefit life reserves. Annually, the Company completes experience studies to evaluate mortality and lapse assumptions.If those assumptions are updated, the DAC amortization basis is included withrecalculated and the change in net unrealized appreciation of investments that is credited or charged directly to other comprehensive income.

COST OF INSURANCE ACQUIRED

Cost of Insurance Acquired ("COIA") is established when we purchase a block of insurance.  COIA is amortized over the emerging profitimpact of the related policies using the same assumptions as were used in computing liabilities for future policy benefits.  Inherentassumption change will be reflected in the cohort level amortization of COIA are certain management judgments about the ending asset balance and the annual amortization.  The key assumptions used are based upon interest, mortality and lapses at the time of purchase.

A recoverability test that considers, among other things, actual experience and projectedin future experience is performed at least annually. These annual recoverability tests are based initially on an estimate of the available premium (gross premium less the benefit and expense portion of premium) for the next 50 years using best estimate assumptions related to interest rates, mortality and lapses.  Management believes that our COIA is recoverable for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020.  This belief is based upon the analysis performed on estimated future results of the block and our annual recoverability testing.

GOODWILL

Current accounting guidance requires that goodwill balances be reviewed for impairment at least annually or more frequently if events occur or circumstances change that would indicate a triggering event has occurred.  A reporting unit is defined as an operating segment or one level below an operating segment.  The Company's reporting units, for which goodwill has been allocated, are equivalent to the Company's operating segment, as there is no discrete financial information reviewed and analyzed by management for the separate components of the segment or all of the components of the segment have similar economic characteristics.

Goodwill is tested for impairment on an annual basis or more frequently if indicators of potential impairment exist.  The goodwill testing requires us to compare the estimated fair value of a reporting unit to its carrying value.  If the carrying value of the reporting unit is lower than its estimated fair value, no further evaluation is required.  If the carrying value of the reporting unit exceeds its estimated fair value, an impairment charge is recorded for that excess, limited to the total amount of goodwill allocated to that reporting unit. We have the option of performing an assessment of certain qualitative factors to determine if it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value or proceeding directly to a quantitative impairment test.  Management’s determination of the fair value of each reporting unit under the accounting guidance incorporates multiple inputs including discounted cash flow calculations based on assumptions that market participants would make in valuing the reporting unit. Other assumptions can include levels of economic capital, future business growth, discount rates and earnings projections. Spread compression and related effects to profitability caused by lower interest rates affect the valuation of in force business more significantly than the valuation of new business, as new business pricing assumptions reflect the current and anticipated future interest rate environment. Estimates of fair value are inherently uncertain and represent management's reasonable expectations regarding future developments.

The Company completes its annual goodwill assessment for the individual reporting units within the Life Insurance segment as of December 31 each year. We apply significant judgement when determining the estimated fair value of our reporting unit. These judgments incorporate multiple inputs, including discounted cash flow calculations based on assumptions that market participants would make in valuing the reporting unit, levels of economic capital, production levels and profitability of new business, pricing changes, spread compression, value of in force, discount rate and earnings projections. Estimates of fair value are inherently uncertain and represent management’s reasonable expectations regarding future developments. We recorded an impairment of $12.6 million in 2021 in our Life Insurance segment caused by increases in our carrying value of the segment due to the release of a $43.8 million uncertain tax position in the fourth quarter of 2021 following the expiration of the statute of limitations on the tax year ended December 31, 2017. This impairment is recorded on the Consolidated Statement of Operations. There was no impairment of goodwill in the years ended December 31, 2020 or 2019.


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POLICY LIABILITIES

Future policy benefit reserves have been computed using the net levelAs premium method with assumptions as to investment yields, dividends on participating business, mortality, lapses and withdrawals based upon our experience.  The preparation of consolidated financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amount of policy liabilities and the increase in future policy benefit reserves.  Management's judgments and estimates for future policy benefit reserves provide for possible adverse deviation.

We continue to use the original assumptions (includingrevenue is recognized, a provision for the risk of adverse deviation) in subsequent periods to determine the changes in the liability for future policy benefits (the "lock-in concept”) unlessis accrued. The liability for a premium deficiency exists.  Management monitors these assumptions and has determined that a premium deficiency did not exist as of December 31, 2021.  Management believes that our policy liabilities and increase in future policy benefit reserves asis the present value of estimated future policy benefits to be paid to or on behalf of policyholders less the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020present value of estimated future net premiums to be collected from policyholders. The liability is estimated using current assumptions that include investment yields, discount rate, mortality, lapses and 2019withdrawals. These current assumptions are based upon assumptions, including a provision foron judgements that consider the risk of adverse deviation, that do not warrant revision.Company’s historical experience, industry data, and other factors. Annually, the Company completes experience studies with respect to evaluate mortality and lapse interest and expenses.assumptions. The results of these studies are used forto update current year reserve adequacy testing, which includes loss recognition, goodwill, andbest estimate assumptions used in establishing benefit liabilities and DAC for the following year's new issues.DAC.

CONTINGENCIESThe current discount rate assumption is a yield curve that equals the yield of an upper-medium grade fixed income instrument, based on A-quality corporate bonds. The current discount rate assumption is updated quarterly and used to remeasure the liability at the reporting date, with the resulting change reflected in other comprehensive income. For liability cash flows that are projected beyond the duration of market-observable A credit-rated fixed-income instruments, the Company uses the last market-observable yield level and uses linear interpolation to determine yield assumptions for durations that do not have market observable yields. The locked-in discount rate for policies issued prior to the LDTI transition date equals the rate set at contract issuance. For current year issues, the locked-in discount rate is the average of the current year quarterly discount rates and will change throughout the year as new discount rates are calculated, with the change reflected in net income.

An estimated loss from a contingency is accrued and charged to results of operations only if both of the following conditions are met:

1.Information available prior to the issuance of the financial statements indicates that it is probable(virtual certainty is not required) that an asset has been impaired or a liability incurred as of the date of the financial statements; and
2.The amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated.

Reasonable estimation of a possible loss does not require estimating a single amount of the loss. It requires that a loss be accrued if it can be estimated within a range. If an amount within the range is a better estimate than any other amount within the range, that amount is accrued. If no amount within the range is a better estimate than any other amount, the minimum amount in the range is accrued.

A gain contingency is an uncertain situation that will be resolved in the future, possibly resulting in a gain. We do not allow the recognition of a gain contingency prior to settlement of the underlying event.

TAX ACCOUNTING

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in net income in the period in which the change is enacted.  CICA International aand CICA Bermuda, wholly-owned subsidiarysubsidiaries of Citizens, isare considered a controlled foreign corporationcorporations for U.S. federal tax purposes. As a result, the insurance activity of CICA International isand CICA Bermuda are subject to Subpart F of the IRCInternal Revenue Code and isare included in Citizens taxable income on its U.S. federal income tax return. Due to the 0% enacted tax rate in Bermuda there are no deferred taxes recorded for CICA International'sBermuda's temporary differences. CICA International has applied for a tax exemption decree from the Government of Puerto Rico which will freeze the income tax rate at 4% on any taxable earnings in excess of $1.2 million.

As required by U.S. GAAP, we evaluated the recoverability of deferred tax assets and the establishment of a valuation allowance, if necessary, to reduce the deferred tax asset to an amount that is more likely than not to be realized. For the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, changes in market conditions including rising interest rates, resulted in deferred tax assets related to the net unrealized capital losses in our investment portfolio. When assessing the need for a valuation allowance on the unrealized capital loss deferred tax assets, we asserted a tax planning strategy to hold a majority of the underlying securities to recovery or maturity. Our ability to assert such a tax planning strategy is dependent upon factors such as our asset/liability matching process, overall investment strategy, projected future product sales and expected liquidity needs. In the event these estimates differ from our prior estimates due to the receipt of new information, we may be required to significantly change the income tax expense recorded in the consolidated financial statements. This includes a further significant decline in the value of assets incorporated into our tax planning strategies which could lead to an increase in our valuation allowance on deferred tax assets having an adverse effect on current and future results.

RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

See Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data and "Accounting Pronouncements" in Note 1. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the notes to our consolidated financial statements.


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Item 7A.QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

GENERAL

The nature of our business exposes us to market risk relative to our invested assets and policy liabilities.  Market risk is the risk of loss that may occur when changes in interest rates and public equity prices adversely affect the value of our invested assets.  Interest rate risk is our primary market risk exposure.  Substantial and sustained increases or decreases in market interest rates can affect the fair value of our investments.  The fair value of our fixed maturity portfolio generally increases when interest rates decrease and decreases when interest rates increase.

The following table summarizes net unrealized gains and losses as of the dates indicated.
 December 31, 2021December 31, 2020
(In thousands)Amortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Net Unrealized GainsAmortized
Cost
Fair
Value
Net Unrealized Gains
Total fixed maturity securities$1,343,755 1,470,617 126,862 1,321,487 1,489,383 167,896 
Total equity securities$11,894 14,844 2,950 19,529 22,102 2,573 

MARKET RISK RELATED TO INTEREST RATES

Our exposure to interest rate changes results from our significant holdings of fixed maturity investments and policy loans, both of which comprised over 94.0% of our cash and investment portfolio as of December 31, 2021.  These investments are mainly exposed to changes in U.S. Treasury rates.  Our fixed maturity security investments include bonds issued by U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises, U.S. treasury bonds, securities issued by government agencies, state and municipal bonds, corporate bonds and other asset-backed securities.  26.1% of the fixed maturity securities at market value at December 31, 2021 were classified as state and political subdivisions, which are primarily municipal holdings. These holdings are diversified over several states with 34.5% of our state and municipal securities concentrated in Texas and California.

Changes in interest rates typically have a sizable effect on the fair value of our debt and equities securities. The interest rate of the ten-year U.S. Treasury bond increased to 1.52% at December 31, 2021, from 0.93% at December 31, 2020. Net unrealized gains on fixed maturity securities totaled $126.9 million at December 31, 2021, compared to $167.9 million at December 31, 2020, based upon bond interest rates in relation to the U.S. ten-year Treasury yield.

To manage interest risk, we perform periodic projections of asset and liability cash flows to evaluate the potential sensitivity of our investments and liabilities.  We assess interest rate sensitivity on an annual basis with respect to our fixed maturity security investments using hypothetical test scenarios that assume either upward or downward shifts in the prevailing interest rates.  The Company performed an analysis of fair value changes using assumed 100 basis point shifts in interest rates, noting that the fair value of our fixed maturity investment portfolio of $1.5 billion would decrease by approximately $0.1 billion to a fair value of $1.4 billion upon a 100 basis point increase.  The following table shows the effects on the fair values of our fixed maturity investments based upon these scenarios.

 Fair Values of Fixed Maturity Investments
(In thousands)-1000+100+200+300
Assumed fair value$1,642,973 1,470,617 1,351,490 1,234,374 1,132,442 

While the test scenarios are for illustrative purposes only and do not reflect our expectations regarding future interest rates or the performance of fixed-income markets, it is a near-term change that illustrates the potential

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impact of such events.  Due to the composition of our book of insurance business, we believe it is unlikely we would encounter large surrender activity due to an interest rate increase that would force us to dispose of our fixed maturity securities at a loss.

Our fixed maturity portfolio is exposed to call risk as a significant portion of the current holdings are callable.  A decreasing interest rate environment can result in increased call activity as experienced over the past several years, and an increasing rate environment will likely result in securities being paid at their stated maturity.

There are no fixed maturity securities or other investments that we classify as trading instruments.  All fixed maturity securities were classified as available-for-sale based upon fair value at December 31, 2021.  At December 31, 2021 and 2020, we had no investments in derivative instruments or subprime loans.

MARKET RISKS RELATED TO EQUITY PRICES

Changes in the level or volatility of equity prices affect the value of equity securities we hold as investments.  Our equity investments portfolio represented 0.9% of our total investments at December 31, 2021, with 58.1% invested in diversified equity and bond mutual funds.

Item 8.Item 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISKFINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

As a smaller reporting company, we have elected to comply with certain scaled disclosure reporting obligations and therefore are not required to provide the information required by this Item.


Item 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

Reference is made to the consolidated financial statements, the notes thereto, and the report of our independent registered public accounting firm, as listed on the table of contents.contents.

All other schedules have been omitted as the required information is inapplicable or the information required is presented in the financial statements or the notes thereto filed elsewhere herein.


Item 9.
CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

None.


Item 9A.Item 9A.CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

(a) EVALUATION OF DISCLOSURE CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

We maintain disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act")) that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosures.

Our management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures pursuant to Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act as of December 31, 2021,2023, the end of the period covered by this Annual Report on Form 10-K.  Based on such evaluation, our principal executive officer and principal financial officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of December 31, 20212023 to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the rules and forms of the SEC and such information is accumulated and reported to management, including our principal executive and financial officers, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding disclosure.


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(b) MANAGEMENT REPORT ON INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING

Management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) of the Exchange Act. The Company’s internal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with U.S. GAAP.  

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

Management evaluated the design and operating effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission ("COSO").  Based on this evaluation, management concluded that our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 20212023 was effective.


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Grant Thornton LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, audited the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2021.2023. Their attestation report is included in Item 9A(c) of this Annual Report.

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(c) ATTESTATION REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

Board of Directors and Stockholders
Citizens, Inc.

Opinion on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

We have audited the internal control over financial reporting of Citizens, Inc. (a Colorado corporation) and subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2021,2023, based on criteria established in the 2013 Internal Control — Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission ("COSO"). In our opinion, the Company maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2020,2023, based on criteria established in the 2013 Internal Control — Integrated Framework issued by COSO.

We have also audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) ("PCAOB"), the consolidated financial statements of the Company as of and for the year ended December 31, 2021,2023, and our report dated March 11, 2022,14, 2024, expressed an unqualified opinion on those consolidated financial statements.

Basis for Opinion

The Company’s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in the accompanying Management Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. Our audit included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk, and performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Definition and Limitations of Internal Control over Financial Reporting

A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may

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become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

/s/ GRANT THORNTON LLP

Miami, Florida
March 11, 202214, 2024


(d) CHANGES IN INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING

There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during the quarter ended December 31, 20212023 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Item 9B.   OTHER INFORMATION
 
None.During the three months ended December 31, 2023, none of the Company’s directors or executive officers adopted or terminated any contract, instruction or written plan for the purchase or sale of Citizens, Inc. securities that was intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c) or any “non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement.”

Item 9C.   DISCLOSURE REGARDING FOREIGN JURISDICTIONS THAT PREVENT INSPECTIONS
Not applicable.


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PART III

The information in this Part III indicated below is incorporated by reference from other sections of this Annual Report on Form 10-K or from our definitive proxy statement pursuant to General Instruction G(3) of Form 10-K. We plan to file our definitive proxy statement for our 20222024 annual meeting of shareholders within 120 days after December 31, 2021.2023.

Item 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Item 10 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K incorporates by reference the information in the sections entitled "Corporate Governance," "Audit Matters," "Directors" and "Executive Officers" in our Proxy Statement.

Item 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

Item 11 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K incorporates by reference the information in the sections entitled "Directors - Director Compensation," "Executive Compensation" and "Board Matters - Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation" in our Proxy Statement.

Item 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

Item 12 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K incorporates by reference the information in the sections entitled "Security Ownership of Directors and Management" and "Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners" in our Proxy Statement.

SECURITIES AUTHORIZED FOR ISSUANCE UNDER EQUITY COMPENSATION PLANS

The following table sets forth information regarding securities authorized for issuance under our equity compensation plan, the Citizens, Inc. Omnibus Incentive Plan, as of December 31, 2021.2023. See Note 11.13. Stock Compensation in the notes to our consolidated financial statements for additional information regarding our Omnibus Incentive Plan.
Plan CategoryPlan CategoryNumber of securities to be issued upon exercise of outstanding options, warrants and rightsWeighted-average exercise price of outstanding options, warrants and rightsNumber of securities remaining for future issuance under equity compensation plansPlan CategoryNumber of securities to be issued upon exercise of outstanding options, warrants and rightsWeighted-average exercise price of outstanding options, warrants and rightsNumber of securities remaining for future issuance under equity compensation plans
Equity compensation plans approved by security holdersEquity compensation plans approved by security holders212,747 $5.75 2,450,015 
Equity compensation plans not approved by security holdersEquity compensation plans not approved by security holders— — — 
Equity compensation plans not approved by security holders
Equity compensation plans not approved by security holders
TotalTotal212,747 $5.75 2,450,015 

Item 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE

Item 13 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K incorporates by reference the information in the sections entitled "Board Matters - Director Independence" and "Board Matters - Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions" in our Proxy Statement.

Item 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

Item 14 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K incorporates by reference the information in the section entitled "Audit Matters" in our Proxy Statement.


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PART IV


Item 15.   EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
 
(a)Documents filed as part of this Report

(1) and (2) Financial Statements and Schedules

The financial statements and schedules listed on the following index to financial statements and financial statement schedules are filed under Item 8 as part of this Form 10-K.

Index to Consolidated Financial Statements and Financial Statement SchedulesPage
Reference
ReportsReport of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm - Auditor Name: Grant Thornton LLP Auditor Firm(PCAOB ID: 248 Auditor Location: Miami, FL248)
Reports of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm - Auditor Name: Deloitte & Touche LLP Audit Firm ID: 34 Auditor Location: Austin, TX
Financial Statements at December 31, 2023 and 2022 and for the Years Ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021:
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
Financial Statement Schedules at December 31, 2023 and 2022 and for the Years Ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021:

All other schedules have been omitted because the required information is inapplicable or the information required is presented in the consolidated financial statements or the notes thereto filed elsewhere herein.

(3)   Exhibits

See the Index of Exhibits.


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Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

Board of Directors and StockholdersShareholders
Citizens, Inc.

Opinion on the financial statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheetsheets of Citizens, Inc. (a Colorado corporation) and subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2021,2023 and 2022, the related consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss), stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the yearthree years in the period ended December 31, 2021,2023, and the related notes and financial statement schedules included under Item 15(a) (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2021,2023 and 2022 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the yearthree years in the period ended December 31, 2021,2023, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”), the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2021,2023, based on criteria established in the 2013 Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”), and our report dated March 11, 202214, 2024 expressed an unqualified opinion.

Change in accounting principle

As discussed in Note 1 to the financial statements, the Company has changed its method of accounting for the liability for future policy benefits, deferred policy acquisition costs, and cost of insurance acquired for all periods presented due to the adoption of Accounting Standard Update No. 2018-12, Financial Services – Insurance (Topic 944) Targeted Improvements to the Accounting for Long-Duration Contracts.

Basis for opinion

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audit.audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audit included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Critical audit matters

The critical audit matters communicated below are matters arising from the current period audit of the financial statements that were communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that: (1) relate to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial statements and (2) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of critical audit matters does not alter in any way our opinion on the financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit matters below, providing separate opinions on the critical audit matters or on the accounts or disclosures to which they relate.

Development of Assumptions for Future Policy Benefit Reserves Loss Recognition Testing and Deferred Acquisition Costs Recoverability Testing

As described further in notes 1 and 4 to the financial statements, the Company develops assumptions that are used for several key estimates. These estimates include, but are not limited to, the loss recognition testing for future policy benefit reserves for life insurance contracts and deferred policy acquisition costs and their related recoverability estimate. The most significant assumptions include mortality, persistency, expense, and investment experience. These assumptions are based upon the Company’s experience, modified as necessary to reflect

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anticipated trends and to include provisions for possible adverse deviations. Management’s estimate of future policy benefits for life insurance contracts was $1.28 billion as of December 31, 2021, while the balance of deferred policy acquisitions costs which was subject to recoverability testing was $140.4 million as of December 31, 2021. We identified the development of assumptions for future policy benefit reserves loss recognition testing and deferred acquisition costs recoverability testing as a critical audit matter.

The principal considerations for our determination that the development of assumptions for future policy benefit reserves loss recognition testing and deferred acquisition costs recoverability testing is a critical audit matter are that the development of these assumptions requires management to make significant estimates regarding mortality, persistency, expense, and investment experience based on historical experience and future expectations. As such, auditing the development of such assumptions involved subjective and complex auditor judgment and the involvement of specialists.

Our audit procedures related to the development of assumptions for future policy benefit reserves loss recognition testing and deferred acquisition costs recoverability testing included the following, among others.

We tested the design and operating effectiveness of management's review control over the mortality, persistency, expense, and investment experience assumption development process.
We utilized a specialist in evaluating management's process, methodologies and judgments in the development of the assumptions of mortality, persistency, expense, and investment experience, that were used in management's testing of future policy benefit reserves loss recognition and deferred acquisition costs recoverability testing.

/s/ GRANT THORNTON LLP

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2021.

Miami, Florida
March 11, 2022




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Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

To the Stockholders and the Board of Directors of Citizens, Inc.
Opinion on the Consolidated Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of Citizens, Inc. and consolidated subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2020, the related consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss), stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the two years in the period ended December 31, 2020, and the related notes and the schedules listed in the Index at Item 15(a) (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2020, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the two years in the period ended December 31, 2020, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Basis for Opinion

These consolidated financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s consolidated financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the consolidated financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

/s/ DELOITTE & TOUCHE LLPCritical audit matter

Austin, Texas
March 10, 2021

We began servingThe critical audit matter communicated below is a matter arising from the current period audit of the financial statements that was communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that: (1) relates to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial statements and (2) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of critical audit matters does not alter in any way our opinion on the financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the Company's auditor in 2017. In 2021, we becamecritical audit matter below, providing a separate opinion on the predecessor auditor.critical audit matter or on the accounts or disclosures to which it relates.


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CITIZENS, INC.
Assumptions used in the Estimation of the Liability For Future Policy Benefit Reserves - Life Insurance

As described further in Notes 1 and 5 to the financial statements, the Company estimates a liability for future policy benefits which is calculated as the present value of estimated future policy benefits to be paid to or on behalf of policyholders of life insurance contracts, less the present value of estimated future net premiums to be collected from policyholders on those same life insurance contracts. Management’s estimate of the liability for future policy benefit reserves for life insurance was $1.23 billion as of December 31, 2023. The liability is estimated using actuarial assumptions including mortality and lapse. Changes to the mortality and lapse assumptions impact both the timing and amount of estimated future policy payments to be paid and future net premiums to be received on life insurance contracts. These assumptions, which are updated annually, are based on judgements that consider the Company’s historical experience, industry data and other factors. We identified the updating of the mortality and lapse assumptions used in the estimation of the liability for future policy benefit reserves – life insurance as a critical audit matter.

The principal consideration for our determination that the updating of the mortality and lapse assumptions used in the estimation of the liability for future policy benefit reserves for life insurance contracts is a critical audit matter is that the updating of these assumptions requires management to make significant estimates regarding mortality and lapse based on historical experience, industry data and other factors. As such, auditing the updating of such assumptions involved subjective and complex auditor judgment and the involvement of an actuarial specialist.

Our audit procedures related to the updating of the mortality and lapse assumptions used in the estimation of the liability for future policy benefit reserves - life insurance included the following, among others.

We tested the design and operating effectiveness of management’s review controls over the mortality and lapse assumption updating and approval processes.
We utilized an actuarial specialist in evaluating management’s methodologies and reasonableness of the assumptions of mortality and lapse, that were used in management’s calculation of future policy benefit reserves on life insurance contracts.


/s/ GRANT THORNTON LLP

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2021.

Miami, Florida
March 14, 2024


December 31, 2023 | 10-K 61

Table of Contents

CITIZENS, INC.
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Balance Sheets
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Balance Sheets
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Balance Sheets
December 31,
(In thousands)
December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Assets
Assets:
Investments:Investments: 
Fixed maturity securities available-for-sale, at fair value (amortized cost: $1,343,755 and $1,321,487 in 2021 and 2020, respectively)$1,470,617 1,489,383 
Investments:
Investments:
Fixed maturity securities available-for-sale, at fair value (amortized cost: $1,389,038 and $1,381,318 in 2023 and 2022, respectively)
Fixed maturity securities available-for-sale, at fair value (amortized cost: $1,389,038 and $1,381,318 in 2023 and 2022, respectively)
Fixed maturity securities available-for-sale, at fair value (amortized cost: $1,389,038 and $1,381,318 in 2023 and 2022, respectively)
Equity securities, at fair value
Equity securities, at fair value
Equity securities, at fair valueEquity securities, at fair value14,844 22,102 
Policy loansPolicy loans80,307 83,318 
Policy loans
Policy loans
Real estate held-for-sale 2,571 
Other long-term investments (portion measured at fair value $56,038 and $11,923 in 2021 and 2020, respectively; less allowance for losses of $— and $11 in 2021 and 2020, respectively)57,399 27,294 
Other long-term investments (portion measured at fair value $82,460 and $66,846 in 2023 and 2022, respectively)
Other long-term investments (portion measured at fair value $82,460 and $66,846 in 2023 and 2022, respectively)
Other long-term investments (portion measured at fair value $82,460 and $66,846 in 2023 and 2022, respectively)
Short-term investments
Total investmentsTotal investments1,623,167 1,624,668 
Cash and cash equivalentsCash and cash equivalents27,294 34,131 
Accrued investment incomeAccrued investment income16,197 16,137 
Reinsurance recoverableReinsurance recoverable5,539 5,753 
Reinsurance recoverable
Reinsurance recoverable
Deferred policy acquisition costsDeferred policy acquisition costs140,380 104,913 
Cost of insurance acquiredCost of insurance acquired10,611 11,541 
Goodwill and other intangible assets941 13,570 
Federal income tax receivable
Federal income tax receivable
Federal income tax receivableFederal income tax receivable762 — 
Property and equipment, netProperty and equipment, net14,074 16,312 
Property and equipment, net
Property and equipment, net
Due premiumsDue premiums10,748 11,309 
Other assets (less allowance for losses of $111 and $297 in 2021 and 2020, respectively)4,798 5,086 
Other assets (less allowance for losses of $408 and $347 in 2023 and 2022, respectively)
Other assets (less allowance for losses of $408 and $347 in 2023 and 2022, respectively)
Other assets (less allowance for losses of $408 and $347 in 2023 and 2022, respectively)
Total assetsTotal assets$1,854,511 1,843,420 
 
See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.   


December 31, 20212023 | 10-K 7062

Table of Contents

CITIZENS, INC.
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Balance Sheets
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Balance Sheets
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Balance Sheets
December 31, continued
(In thousands, except share amounts)
December 31, continued
(In thousands, except share amounts)
20212020
December 31, continued
(In thousands, except share amounts)
20232022
Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity
Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity:
Liabilities:Liabilities: 
Liabilities:
Liabilities:
Policy liabilities:
Policy liabilities:
Policy liabilities:Policy liabilities:    
Future policy benefit reserves:Future policy benefit reserves:  Future policy benefit reserves:  
Life insuranceLife insurance$1,278,987 1,246,423 
Accident and health insurance
Total future policy benefit reserves
Policyholders' funds:
AnnuitiesAnnuities83,918 78,304 
Accident and health784 761 
Annuities
Annuities
Dividend accumulationsDividend accumulations37,760 33,336 
Premiums paid in advancePremiums paid in advance40,690 40,605 
Policy claims payablePolicy claims payable14,590 13,206 
Other policyholders' fundsOther policyholders' funds30,690 22,447 
Total policyholders' funds
Total policy liabilitiesTotal policy liabilities1,487,419 1,435,082 
Commissions payableCommissions payable2,285 2,572 
Deferred federal income tax liability, netDeferred federal income tax liability, net15,456 9,564 
Current federal income tax payable 43,916 
Payable for securities in process of settlement 5,265 
Other liabilities
Other liabilities
Other liabilitiesOther liabilities28,780 46,076 
Total liabilitiesTotal liabilities1,533,940 1,542,475 
Commitments and contingencies (Notes 5 and 7)
Commitments and contingencies (Notes 7 and 8)
Commitments and contingencies (Notes 7 and 8)
Stockholders' Equity:Stockholders' Equity:  Stockholders' Equity:  
Common stock:Common stock:  Common stock:  
Class A, no par value, 100,000,000 shares authorized, 53,170,413 and 52,654,016 shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively, including shares in treasury of 3,135,738 as of December 31, 2021 and 2020265,561 262,869 
Class B, no par value, 2,000,000 shares authorized, 1,001,714 shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, including shares in treasury of 1,001,714 as of December 31, 20213,184 3,184 
Accumulated deficit(45,565)(82,352)
Accumulated other comprehensive income:
Net unrealized gains on fixed maturity securities, net of tax117,492 128,255 
Class A, no par value, 100,000,000 shares authorized, 53,882,661 and 53,758,176 shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, including shares in treasury of 4,327,810 and 3,935,581 as of December 31, 2023 and 2022
Class B, no par value, 2,000,000 shares authorized, 1,001,714 shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, including shares in treasury of 1,001,714 as of December 31, 2023 and 2022
Retained earnings
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)
Treasury stock, at costTreasury stock, at cost(20,101)(11,011)
Total stockholders' equityTotal stockholders' equity320,571 300,945 
Total liabilities and stockholders' equityTotal liabilities and stockholders' equity$1,854,511 1,843,420 
 
See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.   



December 31, 20212023 | 10-K 7163

Table of Contents

CITIZENS, INC.
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands, except share amounts)
202120202019
Revenues:
Premiums
Life insurance$169,801 170,328 178,351 
Accident and health insurance1,250 1,019 1,383 
Property insurance3,677 3,982 4,613 
Net investment income61,495 60,197 59,531 
Investment related gains (losses), net10,991 1,502 5,249 
Other income3,332 1,828 1,418 
Total revenues250,546 238,856 250,545 
Benefits and Expenses:  
Insurance benefits paid or provided:  
Claims and surrenders119,735 121,145 106,827 
Increase in future policy benefit reserves36,444 29,923 41,712 
Policyholders' dividends6,180 5,587 6,040 
Total insurance benefits paid or provided162,359 156,655 154,579 
Commissions35,463 32,069 34,222 
Other general expenses43,370 53,669 48,440 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(22,740)(20,475)(22,255)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs24,952 27,439 28,268 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquired1,206 1,816 1,546 
Goodwill impairment12,624 — — 
Total benefits and expenses257,234 251,173 244,800 
Income (loss) before federal income tax(6,688)(12,317)5,745 
Federal income tax expense (benefit)(43,475)(1,329)7,115 
Net income (loss)36,787 (10,988)(1,370)
Basic Earnings Per Share:  
Class A common stock$0.74 (0.22)(0.03)
Class B common stock0.37 (0.11)(0.01)
Diluted Earnings Per Share:
Class A common stock0.73 (0.22)(0.03)
Class B common stock0.36 (0.11)(0.01)
Other Comprehensive Income (Loss):
Unrealized gains (losses) on fixed maturity securities:
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during period(5,055)48,642 78,825 
Reclassification adjustment for losses (gains) included in net income (loss)(243)111 (1,927)
Unrealized gains (losses) on fixed maturity securities, net(5,298)48,753 76,898 
Income tax expense (benefit) on unrealized gains (losses) on fixed maturity securities5,465 (2,385)5,147 
Other comprehensive income (loss)(10,763)51,138 71,751 
Total comprehensive income (loss)$26,024 40,150 70,381 

CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands, except share amounts)
202320222021
Revenues:
Premiums:
Life insurance$164,609 167,586 169,801 
Accident and health insurance1,637 1,278 1,250 
Property insurance793 4,850 3,677 
Net investment income69,254 65,426 61,495 
Investment related gains (losses), net760 (10,291)10,991 
Other income3,627 3,675 3,332 
Total revenues240,680 232,524 250,546 
Benefits and Expenses:  
Insurance benefits paid or provided:  
Claims and surrenders135,993 119,935 119,735 
Increase (decrease) in future policy benefit reserves(5,624)4,804 9,773 
Policyholder liability remeasurement (gain) loss4,460 2,884 1,434 
Policyholders' dividends5,542 6,013 6,180 
Total insurance benefits paid or provided140,371 133,636 137,122 
Commissions39,241 36,222 35,463 
Other general expenses47,131 45,177 43,370 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(28,301)(24,899)(22,740)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs15,460 14,390 13,445 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquired604 621 757 
Goodwill impairment — 12,624 
Total benefits and expenses214,506 205,147 220,041 
Income (loss) before federal income tax26,174 27,377 30,505 
Federal income tax expense (benefit)1,737 1,370 (42,201)
Net income (loss)24,437 26,007 72,706 
Basic Earnings Per Share:  
Class A common stock$0.49 0.52 1.46 
Class B common stock — 0.73 
Diluted Earnings Per Share:
Class A common stock0.48 0.51 1.44 
Class B common stock — 0.72 
Other Comprehensive Income (Loss):
Unrealized gains (losses) on fixed maturity securities:
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during period50,894 (328,673)(41,123)
Reclassification adjustment for losses (gains) included in net income (loss)756 104 (243)
Unrealized gains (losses) on fixed maturity securities, net51,650 (328,569)(41,366)
Change in current discount rate for liability for future policy benefits(34,790)337,776 92,396 
Income tax expense (benefit) on other comprehensive income items(2,029)7,262 1,449 
Other comprehensive income (loss)18,889 1,945 49,581 
Total comprehensive income (loss)$43,326 27,952 122,287 
See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.   

December 31, 20212023 | 10-K 7264

Table of Contents

CITIZENS, INC.
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity
 Common StockAccumulated
deficit
Accumulated
other
comprehensive
income (loss)
Treasury
stock
Total
Stock-holders'
equity
(In thousands)Class AClass B
Balance at December 31, 2018$259,793 3,184 (69,599)5,366 (11,011)187,733 
Comprehensive income (loss):      
Net income (loss)— — (1,370)— — (1,370)
Unrealized investment gains (losses), net— — — 71,751 — 71,751 
Total comprehensive income (loss)— — (1,370)71,751 — 70,381 
Stock-based compensation1,722 — — — — 1,722 
Balance at December 31, 2019261,515 3,184 (70,969)77,117 (11,011)259,836 
Accounting standards adopted January 1, 2020(1)
— — (395)— — (395)
Comprehensive income (loss):      
Net income (loss)— — (10,988)— — (10,988)
Unrealized investment gains (losses), net— — — 51,138 — 51,138 
Total comprehensive income (loss)— — (10,988)51,138 — 40,150 
Stock-based compensation1,354 — — — — 1,354 
Balance at December 31, 2020262,869 3,184 (82,352)128,255 (11,011)300,945 
Comprehensive income (loss):      
Net income (loss)  36,787   36,787 
Unrealized investment gains (losses), net   (10,763) (10,763)
Total comprehensive income (loss)  36,787 (10,763) 26,024 
Acquisition of treasury stock    (9,090)(9,090)
Stock-based compensation2,692     2,692 
Balance at December 31, 2021$265,561 3,184 (45,565)117,492 (20,101)320,571 
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity
Common StockRetained Earnings
(Accumulated
Deficit)
Accumulated
Other
Comprehensive
Income (Loss)
Treasury
Stock
Total
Stockholders'
Equity
(In thousands)Class AClass B
Balance at December 31, 2020$262,869 3,184 (82,352)128,255 (11,011)300,945 
Accounting Standards adopted January 1, 2021 (1)
— — (52)(316,825)— (316,877)
Comprehensive income (loss):      
Net income (loss)— — 72,706 — — 72,706 
Other comprehensive income (loss)— — — 49,581 — 49,581 
Total comprehensive income (loss)— — 72,706 49,581 — 122,287 
Acquisition of treasury stock— — — — (9,090)(9,090)
Stock-based compensation2,692 — — — — 2,692 
Balance at December 31, 2021265,561 3,184 (9,698)(138,989)(20,101)99,957 
Comprehensive income (loss):      
Net income (loss)— — 26,007 — — 26,007 
Other comprehensive income (loss)— — — 1,945 — 1,945 
Total comprehensive income (loss)— — 26,007 1,945 — 27,952 
Acquisition of treasury stock— — — — (2,705)(2,705)
Issuance of common stock2,244 — — — — 2,244 
Stock-based compensation342 — — — — 342 
Balance at December 31, 2022268,147 3,184 16,309 (137,044)(22,806)127,790 
Comprehensive income (loss):      
Net income (loss)  24,437   24,437 
Other comprehensive income (loss)   18,889  18,889 
Total comprehensive income (loss)  24,437 18,889  43,326 
Acquisition of treasury stock    (919)(919)
Stock-based compensation528     528 
Other (2)
  1,404   1,404 
Balance at December 31, 2023$268,675 3,184 42,150 (118,155)(23,725)172,129 

(1)See Note 1 and (2) see Note 11 in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for more details.


See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.   

December 31, 20212023 | 10-K 7365

Table of Contents

CITIZENS, INC.
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Cash Flows from Operating Activities:Cash Flows from Operating Activities: 
Net income (loss)Net income (loss)$36,787 (10,988)(1,370)
Net income (loss)
Net income (loss)
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:   Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:  
Investment related gains (losses), net on sales of investments and other assets(10,991)(1,502)(5,249)
Investment related (gains) losses, net on sales of investments and other assets
Net deferred policy acquisition costsNet deferred policy acquisition costs2,212 6,964 6,013 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquiredAmortization of cost of insurance acquired1,206 1,816 1,546 
DepreciationDepreciation1,140 1,423 1,677 
Amortization of premiums and discounts on investmentsAmortization of premiums and discounts on investments5,568 8,061 12,859 
Stock-based compensationStock-based compensation646 2,223 2,099 
Deferred federal income tax expense (benefit)Deferred federal income tax expense (benefit)427 (402)1,573 
Goodwill impairment12,624 — — 
Goodwill Impairment
Change in:Change in:   Change in:  
Accrued investment incomeAccrued investment income(60)1,316 1,014 
Reinsurance recoverableReinsurance recoverable214 (2,057)(32)
Due premiumsDue premiums561 1,347 669 
Future policy benefit reservesFuture policy benefit reserves35,239 29,650 41,479 
Other policyholders' liabilitiesOther policyholders' liabilities14,136 11,030 5,387 
Federal income tax payableFederal income tax payable(44,678)(706)3,341 
Commissions payable and other liabilitiesCommissions payable and other liabilities(15,450)3,702 2,924 
Other, netOther, net874 (3,043)(1,707)
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activitiesNet cash provided by (used in) operating activities40,455 48,834 72,223 
Cash Flows from Investing Activities:Cash Flows from Investing Activities:   Cash Flows from Investing Activities:  
Sales of fixed maturity securities, available-for-saleSales of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale8,238 20,537 66,900 
Maturities and calls of fixed maturity securities, available-for-saleMaturities and calls of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale53,089 220,397 181,618 
Purchases of fixed maturity securities, available-for-salePurchases of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale(94,265)(271,474)(329,627)
Purchases of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale
Purchases of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale
Purchases of equity securities (4,473)— 
Sales of equity securities
Sales of equity securities
Sales of equity securitiesSales of equity securities7,383 — — 
Principal payments on mortgage loansPrincipal payments on mortgage loans10 
Funding of mortgage loansFunding of mortgage loans(1,000)— — 
Change in policy loans, netChange in policy loans, net3,011 (1,313)(1,180)
Sales of other long-term investments and real estateSales of other long-term investments and real estate24,238 3,671 6,983 
Purchases of other long-term investmentsPurchases of other long-term investments(40,788)(30,256)(187)
Purchases of property and equipmentPurchases of property and equipment(1,007)(221)(511)
Sales of property and equipmentSales of property and equipment14 11 16 
Maturities of short-term investmentsMaturities of short-term investments 1,300 9,090 
Sales of short-term investments
Purchases of short-term investmentsPurchases of short-term investments — (2,456)
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activitiesNet cash provided by (used in) investing activities(41,077)(61,812)(69,345)
See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

December 31, 20212023 | 10-K 7466

Table of Contents

CITIZENS, INC.
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
CITIZENS, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Cash Flows from Financing Activities:Cash Flows from Financing Activities: 
Annuity deposits
Annuity deposits
Annuity depositsAnnuity deposits$8,839 7,532 6,717 
Annuity withdrawalsAnnuity withdrawals(7,763)(5,759)(8,505)
Issuance of common stockIssuance of common stock2,255 — — 
Acquisition of treasury stockAcquisition of treasury stock(9,090)— — 
OtherOther(456)(869)(377)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities(6,215)904 (2,165)
Net cash used in financing activities
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalentsNet increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents(6,837)(12,074)713 
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of yearCash and cash equivalents at beginning of year34,131 46,205 45,492 
Cash and cash equivalents at end of yearCash and cash equivalents at end of year$27,294 34,131 46,205 
Supplemental Disclosure of Operating Activities:   
Cash paid during the year for income taxes$1,198 — 2,200 

SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURE OF OPERATING ACTIVITIES:

Cash paid for income taxes during 2023, 2022 and 2021 was $1.8 million, $0.3 million and $1.2 million, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURES OF NONCASH INVESTING AND FINANCING ACTIVITIES:

During 2021, 20202023, 2022 and 2019,2021, various fixed maturity issuers exchanged securities with book values of $12.1$5.4 million, $9.1$6.9 million and $16.8$12.1 million, respectively, for securities of equal value.

The Company recognized right-of-use assets of $12.0$0.1 million and $0.4 million in exchange for new operating lease liabilities during 20202023 and 2022, respectively, and none during 2021 and 2019. The Company accrued purchases of property and equipment of $0.8 million as of December 31, 2020, which is reflected in other liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheets and recorded none as of December 31, 2021 and 2019.

The Company also had $5.3 million of unsettled security trades as of December 31, 2020 and none as of December 31, 2021 and 2019.2021.


See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.   


December 31, 20212023 | 10-K 7567

Table of Contents

CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS


(1) SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND CONSOLIDATION

The accompanying consolidated financial statements of Citizens, Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("U.S. GAAP").

The consolidated financial statements include the accounts and operations of Citizens, Inc. ("Citizens" or the "Company"), a Colorado corporation, and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, CICA Life Insurance Company of America ("CICA"CICA Domestic"), CICA Life Ltd. ("CICA Bermuda"), CICA Life, A.I., a Puerto Rico company ("CICA International"), Citizens National Life Insurance Company ("CNLIC"), Security Plan Life Insurance Company ("SPLIC"), Security Plan Fire Insurance Company ("SPFIC"), Magnolia Guaranty Life Insurance Company ("MGLIC"), and Computing Technology, Inc. ("CTI"), Nexo Global Services LLC, a Puerto Rico holding company ("Nexo") and Nexo Enrollment Services LLC, a Puerto Rico service company ("NES").  All significant inter-company accounts and transactions have been eliminated. Citizens and its wholly-owned subsidiaries are collectively referred to as the "Company," "we," "it," "us," or "our".

Our Life Insurance segment operates through CICA International and CICA and CNLIC. OurDomestic. Until December 31, 2022, our international life insurance business which operatesoperated through CICA International, issuesBermuda. Beginning January 1, 2023, all new international policies are issued by CICA International. These companies provide U.S. dollar-denominated endowment contracts internationally, which are principally accumulation contracts that incorporate an element of life insurance protection and ordinary whole life insurance in U.S. dollar-denominated amounts sold to non-U.S. residents. These contracts are designed to provide a fixed amount of insurance coverage over the life of the insured and may utilize rider benefits to provide additional increasing or decreasing coverage and annuity benefits to enhance accumulations. OurOn August 31, 2023, CICA Bermuda transferred all of its insurance in force business to CICA International. Prior to July 1, 2023, our domestic life insurance business operatesoperated through CICA Domestic and CNLIC. CICA Domestic issues ordinary whole life, final expense, life products with living benefits, critical illness and credit life and disability policies throughout the U.S. and CNLIC issuesissued ordinary whole life and critical illness policies mainly in Texas and Florida and services whole life and accident and health policies primarily in the Southern U.S., Midwest and Mountain West.through June 30, 2023. CNLIC merged into CICA Domestic on July 1, 2023.

Our Home Service Insurance segment operates through our subsidiaries SPLIC, MGLIC and SPFIC, and focuses on the life insurance needs of the middle- and lower-income markets, primarily in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas.  Our products in this segment consist primarily of small face amount ordinary whole life, industrial life and pre-need policies, which are designed to fund final expenses for the insured, primarily consisting of funeral and burial costs as well as critical illness and property insurance policies, which cover dwelling and contents. As of June 30, 2023, the Company ceased all operations for SPFIC.

CTI provides data processing systems and services to the Company.

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
 
INVESTMENTS

Investment securities are classified as held-to-maturity ("HTM"), available-for-sale ("AFS") or trading.  Management determines the appropriate classification at the time of purchase.  The classification of securities is significant since it directly impacts the accounting for unrealized gains and losses on securities.  Fixed maturity securities are classified as HTM and carried at amortized cost when management has the positive intent and the Company has the ability to hold the securities to maturity.  Securities not classified as HTM are classified as AFS and are carried at fair value, with the unrealized holding gains and losses, net of tax, reported in other comprehensive income (loss) and are not reported in earnings until realized.  Our fixed maturity securities consist primarily of bonds classified as AFS.  The Company does not classify any fixed maturity securities as trading or as HTM.  Equity securities are measured at fair value with the change in fair value recorded through net income.income (loss).

Unrealized gains (losses) of fixed maturity securities held as AFS are shown as a separate component of stockholders' equity, net of tax, and is a separate component of other comprehensive income.income (loss).

Beginning January 1, 2020 in connection with the adoption of a new accounting standard, theThe Company assesses AFS fixed maturity securities in an unrealized loss position for expected credit losses. First, we assess whether we intend to sell, or it is more likely than not that we will be required to sell, the security

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
before recovery of its amortized cost. If either of the criteria is met, the security's amortized cost is written down to its fair value. For AFS fixed maturity securities that do not meet either criteria, we evaluate whether the decline in fair value has resulted from credit losses or other factors. In making this assessment, management considers the extent to which fair value is less than amortized cost, any changes to the rating of the security by a rating agency, and adverse conditions

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
specifically related to the security, among other factors. If management deems a credit loss has occurred, the impairment is recorded through an allowance for credit losses rather than as a write-down. Changes in the allowance for credit losses are recorded through investment related gains and losses. Any impairment that has not been recorded through an allowance for credit losses is recognized in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) on our consolidated balance sheets. Prior to 2020, the Company evaluated all fixed maturity securities on a quarterly basis, and more frequently when economic conditions warranted additional evaluations, to determine if a write-down should be recorded due to an other-than-temporary impairment ("OTTI"). If an OTTI was required, the write-down was recorded directly to operations and any subsequent recoveries were recorded through net investment income over the remaining life of the security.

The Company made a policy election to exclude accrued interest from the amortized cost of AFS fixed maturity securities and report accrued interest separately in accrued investment income inon the consolidated balance sheets. AFS fixed maturity securities are placed on non-accrual status when we no longer expect to receive all contractual amounts due. Accrued interest receivable is reversed against interest income when a security is placed on non-accrual status. Accordingly, we do not recognize an allowance for credit loss against accrued interest receivable.

Premiums and discounts are amortized or accreted over the life of the related security as an adjustment to yield using the effective interest method.  Dividend and interest income are recognized when earned.  Realized gains and losses are included in earnings and are derived using the specific identification method for determining the cost of securities sold.

The Company from time to time may dispose of an impaired security in response to asset/liability management decisions, future market movements, business plan changes, or if the net proceeds can be reinvested at a rate of return that is expected to recover the loss within a reasonable period of time.

Policy loans are reported at unpaid principal balances.

Other long-term investments at December 31, 2021, consistedconsist primarily of investments in limited partnerships, Federal Home Loan Bank ("FHLB") common stock and mortgage loans. At December 31, 2020, this balance also included a Rabbi Trust established for the benefit of the former Chief Executive Officer for the severance payment that was made to him on February 8, 2021. We initially estimate the fair value of investments in limited partnerships by reference to the transaction price. Subsequently, we obtain the fair value of these investments from net asset value information provided by the general partner or manager of the investments, the financial statements of which are audited annually. Recognition of investment income on these funds is delayed due to the availability of the related financial statements, which are generally obtained from the partnerships' general partners. As a result, our limited partnerships are generally reported on a three-month delay.

We are a member of the FHLB of Dallas and such membership requires members to own stock in the FHLB. Our FHLB stock is carried at amortized cost, which approximates fair value.

Mortgage loans on real estate are reported at unpaid principal balances.

The Company had cash equivalents and fixed maturity securities with an aggregate fair value of $10.1$8.6 million and $10.8$9.8 million at December 31, 20212023 and 2020,2022, respectively, on deposit with various state regulatory authorities to fulfill statutory requirements.

SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS

The Company considers investments maturing within one year at acquisition as short-term. These securities are carried at fair value.

CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

Cash consists of balances on hand and on deposit in banks and financial institutions. Cash equivalents consists of securities whose duration does not exceed 90 days at the date of acquisition.

SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS

The Company considers investments maturing within one year at acquisition as short-term. These securities are carried at fair value.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
REINSURANCE RECOVERABLE

Reinsurance recoverable includes expected reimbursements for policyholder claim amounts in excess of the Company's retention, as well as profit sharing and experience refund accruals.  Reinsurance recoverable is reduced for estimated uncollectible amounts, if any.

Reinsurance premiums, benefits and expenses are accounted for on a basis consistent with those used in accounting for the original policies issued and the terms of the reinsurance contracts.  The cost of reinsurance related to long duration contracts is accounted for over the life of the underlying reinsured policies using assumptions consistent with those used to account for the underlying policies.  The cost of reinsurance related to short duration contracts is accounted for over the coverage period.  Profit-sharing and similar adjustable provisions are accrued based on the experience of the underlying policies.

DEFERRED POLICY ACQUISITION COSTS

PolicyDeferred policy acquisition costs consist of commissions and policy issuance, underwriting and agent convention expenses(“DAC”) are costs that are incremental and directly related to and vary with the successful productionacquisition of new businessor renewal insurance contracts. Such costs include the incremental direct costs of contract acquisition, such as sales commissions; the portion of employees’ total compensation and are deferred.  These deferred amounts, referredpayroll-related fringe benefits related directly to time spent performing acquisition activities, such as deferred policyunderwriting, issuing and processing policies for contracts that have actually been acquired; and other costs related directly to acquisition costs ("DAC"), are recorded as an asset onactivities that would not have been incurred if the consolidated balance sheets and amortized to income in a systematic manner, based on related contract revenues or gross profits as appropriate.had not been acquired.

Traditional life insuranceContracts are grouped by contract type and accident and health insurance acquisition costs areissue year into cohorts consistent with the grouping used in estimating the associated liability. DAC is amortized on a constant level basis for the grouped contracts over the premium-paying periodexpected term of the related policiescontracts to approximate straight-line amortization. For the Life Insurance segment, the constant level basis used is policy count in force. For the Home Service Insurance segment, the constant level basis used is face amount in force. The constant level bases used for amortization are projected using mortality and lapse assumptions consistent with those used in computing future policy benefit liabilities.  For universal life type contracts and investment contracts that include significant surrender charges or that yield significant revenues from sources other than the investment contract holders' funds, the deferred contract acquisition cost amortization is matched to the recognition of gross profit.  The effectare based on the DAC asset that would result from realization of unrealized gains or losses is recognized with an offset to accumulatedCompany’s experience, industry data, and other comprehensive income in consolidated stockholders' equity.  If an internal replacement of insurance or investment contract modification substantially changes a contract as defined in current accounting guidance, then the DAC is written off immediately through income and any new deferrable costs associated with the new replacement are deferred.  If a contract modification does not substantially change the contract, the DAC amortization on the original contract will continue and any acquisition costs associated with the related modification are immediately expensed.

The ending DAC asset balance is calculated at a seriatim level for policies in forcefactors at the end of each reporting period based onand are consistent with those used for the remaining unamortized asset. Theliability for future policy benefit life reserves. Annually, the Company completes experience studies with respect to mortality and lapse assumptions. If those assumptions used to calculateare updated, the DAC are set when a policyamortization basis is issuedrecalculated and do notthe effect of the assumption change with changes in actual experience, unless a loss recognition event occurs. The seriatim method ensures that policies lapsed or surrendered during the reporting period are no longer includedwill be reflected in the DAC calculation. This method limits the amount of deferred costs to its estimated realizable value, provided actual experience is comparable to that contemplatedcohort level amortization in the locked-in assumptions.future periods.

Inherent in the capitalization and amortization of DAC are certain management judgments about what acquisition costs are deferred, the ending asset balance and the annual amortization.  Approximately 94.6%93% of our capitalized DAC isare attributed to first year and renewal excess commissions.  The remaining 5.4% is7% are attributed to other costs that vary with and are directly related to the successful acquisition of new insurance business.  Those costs generally include costs related to the production, underwriting and issuance of new business.

Amortization of DAC is subject to recoverability testing atincluded in the timeconsolidated statements of policy issuanceoperations and loss recognition testingcomprehensive income (loss). The DAC balance on an annual basis, or when an event occurs that might require loss recognition testing. If loss recognition or impairmentthe consolidated balance sheets is necessary, DAC would be written off to the extent that anticipated future premiums and investment income is insufficient to cover expected future policy benefits and expenses. Loss recognition testing that considers, among other things,reduced for actual experience and projectedin excess of expected experience. Changes in future experience calculatesestimates are recognized prospectively over the available premium (gross premium less the benefit and expense portion of premium) for the next 50 years.  DAC is evaluated for recoverability using best estimate assumptions.  Based on the results of DAC recoverability testing and loss recognition testing, management believes that our DAC as of the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 limits the amount of deferred costs to its estimated recoverable value.  remaining expected contract term.

DAC related to investment-oriented products is also adjusted to reflect the effect of unrealized gains or losses on AFS fixed maturity securities with related changes recognized through other comprehensive income (shadow DAC).

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The adjustment is made at each balance sheet date, as if the securities had been sold at their stated aggregate fair value and the proceeds reinvested at current yields. Similarly, for long-duration traditional insurance contracts, if the assets supporting the liabilities are in a net unrealized gain position at the balance sheet date, loss recognition testing assumptions are updated to exclude such gains from future cash flows by reflecting the impact of reinvestment rates on future yields. If a future loss is anticipated under this basis, any additional shortfall indicated by loss recognition tests is recognized as a reduction in accumulated other comprehensive income (shadow loss recognition). Similar to other loss recognition on long-duration insurance contracts, such shortfall is first reflected as a reduction in DAC and secondly as an increase in liabilities for future policy benefits. The change in these adjustments, net of tax, is included with the change in net gains (losses) on available-for-sale fixed maturity securities that is credited or charged directly to other comprehensive income.

The components of DAC from year to year are summarized as follows:
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Balance at beginning of period$104,913 149,249 155,747 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs22,740 20,475 22,255 
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs(24,952)(27,439)(28,268)
Effects of unrealized (gains) losses37,679 (37,372)(485)
Balance at end of period$140,380 104,913 149,249 

We converted to a new actuarial valuation software solution that provided enhanced modeling capabilities for the ordinary whole life policies of CNLIC as of April 1, 2021 and of SPLIC as of July 1, 2019. The total impact of these system conversions, which impacted both the Home Service Insurance and Life Insurance segments, reflect changes in actuarial valuation estimates associated with the conversion. The impact is reflected in the accompanying consolidated financial statements and summarized in the table below.
(In thousands)20212019
Increase (Decrease)
Consolidated Balance Sheets
DAC$(122)(1,396)
Future policy benefit reserves:
Life insurance(827)(2,299)
Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Decrease in future policy benefit reserves(827)(2,299)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs122 1,396 
Income before federal income tax705 903 
Federal income tax expense148 190 
Net income$557 713 

COST OF INSURANCE ACQUIRED

The Company recognizes an intangible asset that arises in the application of U.S. GAAP purchase accounting as the difference between the reported value and the fair value of insurance contract liabilities, or comparable amounts determined in purchased insurance business combinations. This intangible asset is referred to as the Cost of insurance acquired ("COIA"Insurance Acquired (“COIA”) is established when we purchase a block of insurance.  COIA, which is amortized overon a basis consistent with DAC, such that it is amortized in proportion to policies in force for the emerging profit ofLife Insurance segment and face amount in force for the related policies using the same assumptions as were used in computing liabilities for future policy benefits.  Inherent in the amortization of COIA are certain management judgments used in the estimation of the ending asset balance and the annualHome Service Insurance segment to approximate straight-line amortization. The key assumptions used in management's estimates are based upon interest, mortality and lapses at the time of purchase.

A recoverability test that considers, among other things, actual experience and projected future experience is performed at least annually.  These annual recoverability tests are based initially on an estimate of the available premium (gross premium less the benefit and expense portion of premium) for the next 50 years.  Management

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
believes that our COIA is recoverable for the years ended December 31, 20212023 and 2020.2022.  This belief is based upon the analysis performed on estimated future results of the block and our annual recoverability testing.

COIA relative to purchased blocks

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Table of insurance is summarized as follows:
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Balance at beginning of period$11,541 13,455 15,225 
Amortization(1,206)(1,816)(1,546)
Change in effects of unrealized (gains) losses on COIA276 (98)(224)
Balance at end of period$10,611 11,541 13,455 
Contents

Estimated amortization of COIA in each of the next five years and thereafter is as follows.  Actual future amortization will differ from these estimates due to variances from estimated future withdrawal assumptions.
CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In thousands)Amount
Cost of insurance acquired:
Year:
2022$846 
2023762 
2024693 
2025633 
2026577 
Thereafter7,308 
10,819 
Effects of unrealized (gains) losses on COIA(208)
Total cost of insurance acquired$10,611 

The value of COIA resulting from our various acquisitions was determined based on the present value of future profits discounted at annual rates ranging from 3.7% to 8.5%.

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS

Goodwill is the difference between the purchase price in a business combination and the fair value of assets and liabilities acquired and is not amortized.  Other intangible assets include various state insurance licenses, which have been determined to have indefinite useful lives and, therefore, are not amortized. Both goodwill and other intangible assets with indefinite useful lives are subject to annual impairment analysis.

Goodwill is tested for impairment on an annual basis or more frequently if indicators of potential impairment exist. The goodwill testing requires us to compare the estimated fair value of a reporting unit to its carrying value. If the carrying value of the reporting unit is lower than its estimated fair value, no further evaluation is required. If the carrying value of the reporting unit exceeds its estimated fair value, an impairment charge is recorded for that excess, limited to the total amount of goodwill allocated to that reporting unit. We have the option of performing an assessment of certain qualitative factors to determine if it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value or proceeding directly to a quantitative impairment test. We elected to apply the quantitative assessment for the goodwill in our reporting units within the Life Insurance segment as of December 31, 2021 and 2020.

The Company completes its annual goodwill assessment for the individual reporting units within the Life Insurance segment as of December 31 each year. We apply significant judgement when determining the estimated fair value of our reporting unit. These judgments incorporate multiple inputs including discounted cash flow calculations based on assumptions that market participants would make in valuing the reporting unit, levels of economic capital,

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
production levels and profitability of new business, pricing changes, spread compression, value of in force, discount rate and earnings projections. Estimates of fair value are inherently uncertain and represent management’s reasonable expectations regarding future developments.

The following is a summary of changes in goodwill in our Life Insurance segment:
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Balance at beginning of period$12,624 12,624 12,624 
Impairment12,624 — — 
Balance at end of period$ 12,624 12,624 
2021.

We recorded an impairment of $12.6 million in 2021 in our Life Insurance segment caused by increases in our carrying value of the segment due to recognition of ana $43.8 million uncertain tax position in the fourth quarter of 2021, following the expiration of the statute of limitations on the tax year ended December 31, 2017. This impairment is recorded on the Consolidated Statementconsolidated statements of Operations. There wasoperations and comprehensive income (loss). The Company has no impairmentremaining goodwill as of goodwill in the years ended 2020 or 2019.December 31, 2021.

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT

Property and equipment are carried at cost less accumulated depreciation.  Depreciation of property and equipment is computed using the straight-line method over the useful lives of the assets, ranging from three years to thirty years. 

The following is a summary of property and equipment.
December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
Property and equipment:  
Home office, land and buildings$3,980 4,136 
Furniture and equipment1,236 1,618 
Electronic data processing equipment and computer software7,418 7,179 
Automobiles 50 
Real estate and equipment leases (See Note 7)
10,827 11,973 
Total property and equipment23,461 24,956 
Accumulated depreciation(9,387)(8,644)
Total property and equipment$14,074 16,312 

December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Property and equipment:  
Home office, land and buildings$3,980 3,980 
Furniture and equipment1,389 1,267 
Electronic data processing equipment and computer software7,800 7,485 
Real estate and equipment leases (See Note 8)
9,073 10,116 
Total property and equipment22,242 22,848 
Accumulated depreciation(10,433)(9,922)
Property and equipment, net$11,809 12,926 

The Company has several lease agreements for real estate and equipment, such as its corporate home office, Puerto Rico service center and several district office locations related to our Home Service Insurance segment. The Company recognizes these lease agreements on the consolidated balance sheets as a right-of-use asset and a corresponding lease liability. The Company uses its estimated incremental borrowing rate, which is derived from information available at lease commencement date, in determining the present value of lease payments.

FUTURE POLICY BENEFITS AND EXPENSES

FutureAs premium revenue is recognized, a liability for future policy benefit reserves for traditional life insurancebenefits, which is the present value of estimated future policy benefits to be paid to or on behalf of policyholders less the present value of estimated future net premiums to be collected from policyholders, is accrued. The liability is estimated using current assumptions that include

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
discount rate, mortality and lapses. These current assumptions are established based on methodsjudgements that consider the Company’s historical experience, industry data, and underlyingother factors.

Our traditional and limited-payment contracts are grouped into cohorts by contract type and issue year. Our reporting cohorts are (i) Permanent, which summarizes insurance policies with premiums payable over the lifetime of the policy, and (ii) Permanent Limited Pay, which summarizes insurance policies with premiums payable for a limited time after which the policy is fully paid up. Both reporting cohorts include whole life and endowment policies. The liability is adjusted for differences between actual and expected experience. The Company reviews its historical cash flow assumptions quarterly and in accordancethe third quarter of the year, the Company reviews its future cash flow assumptions. The net premium ratio used to calculate the liability is updated each quarter based on the current period's actual experience relative to expected experience. The revised net premium ratio is used to derive an updated liability for future policy benefits as of the beginning of the current reporting period, discounted at the locked-in discount rate. This amount is then compared to the carrying amount of the liability as of that same date, before the updating of cash flow assumptions, to determine the current period change in liability estimate. The current period change in the liability is the policyholder liability remeasurement gain or loss and is presented as a separate component of total insurance benefits paid or provided in the consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss). In subsequent periods, the revised net premiums are used to measure the liability for future policy benefits, subject to future revisions.

For traditional and limited-payment contracts, the current discount rate assumption is a yield curve that equals the yield of an upper-medium grade fixed income instrument, based on A-quality corporate bonds. The Company selects fixed-income instruments that have been A rated by one of the major credit rating agencies, such as Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, or Fitch. The current discount rate assumption is updated quarterly and used to remeasure the liability at the reporting date, with U.S. GAAPthe resulting change reflected in other comprehensive income. For liability cash flows that are projected beyond the duration of market-observable A credit-rated fixed-income instruments, the Company uses the last market-observable yield level and applicable actuarial standards.  Assumptionslinear interpolation to determine yield assumptions for durations that do not have market observable yields. The locked-in discount rate for policies issued prior to transition equals the rate set at contract issuance. For current year issues, the locked-in discount rate is the average of the current year quarterly discount rates and will change throughout the year as to investment yields, expenses, mortality and lapsesnew discount rates are based upon our experience, modified as necessary to reflect anticipated trends and to include provisions for possible adverse deviations.calculated, with the change reflected in net income.

The accrued account balance for non-traditional life insurance and investment contracts is computed as deposits net of withdrawals made by the contract holder, plus amounts credited based on contract specifications, less contract fees and charges assessed, plus any additional interest.  Annuity interest crediting rates range from 2.5%

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
to 5.5% annually.  Benefits and expenses are charged against the account balance to recognize costs as incurred over the estimated lives of the contracts.  Expenses include interest credited to contract account balances and benefits paid in excess of contract account balances.

Unpaid claims on accident and health and specialty property insurance policies represent the estimated liability for benefit expenses, both reported but not paid and incurred but not reported to the Company.  The liability for incurred but not reported claims includes estimates for additional claim amounts due related to reported claims. Liabilities for unpaid claims are estimated using individual case basis valuations and statistical analysis.  Those estimates are subject to the effects of trends in claim severity and frequency.
 
Anticipated investment income is not considered in determining whether a premium deficiency exists with respect to short-duration contracts.  Premium deposits accrue interest at rates ranging from 2.5%1.5% to 6.0% per annum.  The cost of insurance is included in the premium when collected and interest is credited annually to deposit accounts.
 
DEFERRED PROFIT LIABILITY
The development
For limited-payment products, gross premiums received in excess of liabilitiesnet premiums are deferred at initial recognition as a deferred profit liability (“DPL”). Gross premiums are measured using assumptions consistent with those used in the measurement of the liability for future policy benefits requires management to makebenefit life reserves, including discount rate, mortality and lapses.

The DPL is amortized and recognized in net income within the increase (decrease) in future policy benefit reserves.The amortization basis for the DPL is the present value of insurance in force for life insurance contracts. Interest is accreted on the balance of the DPL using the locked-in discount rate. The Company reviews and updates its estimates and assumptions regarding mortality, persistency, expense, and investment experienceof cash flows for the DPL at the same time as the estimates of cash flows for the liability for future policy benefit life reserves. The DPL is updated each quarter based on historicalthe current period's actual experience relative to

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
expected experience with the changes recorded within the increase (decrease) in future policy benefit reserves in the consolidated statements of operations and future expectations of those assumptions.  Actual results could differ materially from estimates.  An additional provision is made on most products to allow for possible adverse deviation from the assumptions assumed.comprehensive income (loss). We monitor actual experience and revise assumptionsOn the consolidated balance sheets, DPL is recorded as necessary.a component of the liability for future policy benefit life reserves.

PARTICIPATING POLICIES

At December 31, 20212023 and 2020,2022, participating business approximated 59.3%51% and 60.8%55%, respectively, of direct life insurance in force, respectively.

Future policy benefits on participating policies are estimated based on net level premium reserves for death and endowment policy benefits with interest rates ranging from 2.5% to 9.0%, and the cash surrender values described in such contracts.  The scaling rate used for the 2021 portfolio ranged between 2.51% for 1 year and then going up to 3.02% over 20 years and remaining there for the duration.  Earnings and dividends on participating policies are allocated based on policies in force.

Policyholder dividends are determined based on the discretion of the board of directors of the policy issuing subsidiary.  Policyholder dividends are accrued over the premium paying periods of the insurance contract.

CONTINGENCIES

An estimated loss from a contingency is accrued and charged to results of operations only if both of the following conditions are met:

1.Information available prior to the issuance of the consolidated financial statements indicates that it is probable (virtual certainty is not required) that an asset has been impaired or a liability incurred as of the date of the consolidated financial statements; and
2.The amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated.

Reasonable estimation of a possible loss does not require estimating a single amount of the loss. It requires that a loss be accrued if it can be estimated within a range. If an amount within the range is a better estimate than any other amount within the range, that amount is accrued. If no amount within the range is a better estimate than any other amount, the minimum amount in the range is accrued.

A gain contingency is an uncertain situation that will be resolved in the future, possibly resulting in a gain. We do not allow the recognition of a gain contingency prior to settlement of the underlying event. There were none for the years endedas of December 31, 2021, 20202023 and 2019.

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
2022.

PREMIUM REVENUE AND RELATED EXPENSES

Premiums on life policies are recognized as earned when due.  Premiums paid in advance on the consolidated balance sheets are held on deposit and accrue interest at rates ranging from 2.5%1.5% to 6.0% until such time as the premiums become due. Premiums on accident and health policies are recognized as revenue over the contract period on a pro rata basis.  Benefits and expenses are associated with earned premiums resulting in the recognition of profits over the estimated lives of the contracts.  This matching is accomplished by means of a provision for future policy benefits and the capitalization and amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs.costs and amortization of deferred profit liability for limited pay plans.

Annuity policies, primarily flexible premium fixed annuity products, are accounted for in a manner consistent with accounting for interest bearing financial instruments.  Premium receipts are not reported as revenue, rather as deposit liabilities to annuity contracts.  The annuity products issued do not include fees or other such charges. There is also a block of annuity products accounted for as FAS97 insurance products. Reserves are set up for surrenders and death benefits. Acquisition costs and premium loads are capitalized and amortized.

INCOME TAXES

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases.  Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered.

A deferred tax asset is recorded only if a determination is made that it is more-likely-than-not that the tax treatment on which the deferred tax asset depends will be sustained in the event of an audit.  These determinations inherently involve management's judgment.  In addition, the Company must record a tax valuation allowance with respect to deferred tax assets if it is more-likely-than-not that the tax benefit will not be realized.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The Company releases stranded tax effects in accumulated other comprehensive income on an aggregate portfolio basis.

EARNINGS PER SHARE

Basic earnings per share are computed by dividing net income available to common stockholders by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during each period. Diluted earnings per share are computed under the if-converted method for convertible securities and the treasury stock method for warrants, giving effect to all potential dilutive common stock, including options, warrants and convertible/redeemable preferred stock.  The basic and diluted earnings per share of Class B common stock are one half the earnings per share of the Class A common stock. We hold 100% of our Class B common stock in treasury.

USE OF ESTIMATES

The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period.  Actual results could differ materially from these estimates.

Significant estimates include those used in the evaluation of credit losses on fixed maturity securities, actuarially determined assets and liabilities and assumptions, tests of goodwill impairment, valuation allowance on deferred tax assets, valuation of uncertain tax positions and contingencies relating to litigation and regulatory matters. Certain of these estimates are particularly sensitive to market conditions, and deterioration and/or volatility in the worldwide debt or equity markets could have a material impact on the consolidated financial statements.

RECLASSIFICATIONS

Certain amounts presented in prior years have been reclassified to conform to the current presentation.  No individual amounts were material.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

ACCOUNTING STANDARDS RECENTLY ADOPTED

Impacts at Transition Date

In June 2016,August 2018, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Accounting StandardsStandard Update ("ASU") No. 2016-13,2018-12, Financial Instruments-Credit LossesServices-Insurance (Topic 944): Targeted Improvements to the Accounting for Long-Duration Contracts. (Topic 326), with the main objective to provide financial statement users with more decision-useful information about the expected credit losses on financial instruments and other commitments to extend credit held by a reporting entity at each reporting date. The ASU requires a financial asset (or a group of financial assets) measured at amortized cost to be presented at the net amount expected to be collected. The allowance for credit losses is a valuation account that is deducted from the amortized cost of the financial asset(s) to present the net carrying value at the amount expected to be collected on the financial asset. The income statement reflects the measurement of credit losses for newly recognized financial assets, as well as the increases or decreases of expected credit losses that have taken place during the period. Credit losses on AFS fixed maturity securities should be measured in a manner similar to current U.S. GAAP; however, the credit losses are recorded through an allowance for credit losses rather than as a write-down. This approach is an improvement to prior U.S. GAAP because an entity will be able to record reversals of credit losses (in situations in which the estimate of credit losses declines) in current period net income, which in turn should align the income statement recognition of credit losses with the reporting period in which changes occur. Prior U.S. GAAP prohibited reflecting those improvements in current-period earnings. The Company adopted this standardASU 2018-12 for the liability for future policy benefits, DAC and COIA on a modified retrospective basis such that those balances were adjusted to conform to ASU 2018-12 effective January 1, 2020 using the modified retrospective approach. The adoption resulted in an increase in accumulated deficit of $0.4 million related to agents' debit balance collectability.2021.

In September 2018,
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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The following table summarizes the balance of and changes in the liability for future policy benefits, annuity reserves, DAC and COIA due to the adoption of ASU 2018-12.

(In thousands)Life InsuranceHome Service InsuranceConsolidated
Liability for Future Policy Benefits
Pre-adoption liability as of 12/31/2020$987,373 255,513 1,242,886 
Change in discount rate assumptions261,823 108,468 370,291 
Effect of reserve changes6 96 102 
Post-adoption liability as of 1/1/2021$1,249,202 364,077 1,613,279 
Fixed Annuity Liability
Pre-adoption liability as of 12/31/2020$60,027 18,277 78,304 
Adjustments for the removal of shadow adjustments 3,426 3,426 
Post-adoption liability as of 1/1/2021$60,027 21,703 81,730 
Deferred Acquisition Costs
Pre-adoption balance as of 12/31/2020$94,771 10,142 104,913 
Adjustments for the removal of shadow adjustments8,270 29,905 38,175 
Impact of flooring cohorts at zero23 12 35 
Post adoption balance as of 1/1/2021$103,064 40,059 143,123 
Cost of Insurance Acquired
Pre-adoption balance as of 12/31/2020$1,734 9,807 11,541 
Adjustments for the removal of shadow adjustments 484 484 
Post adoption balance as of 1/1/2021$1,734 10,291 12,025 
At transition, the Company recorded a charge of $0.1 million to retained earnings, net of tax, primarily from capping net premium ratios for certain policyholder benefit cohorts at 100%, increasing reserves for certain non-premium paying cohorts and flooring certain DAC cohorts at zero. Other comprehensive income (loss) ("OCI") was reduced by $316.8 million primarily due to the difference in the discount rate used prior to transition and the discount rate at January 1, 2021. The Company also removed shadow adjustments previously recorded in OCI for the impact of unrealized gains and losses on annuity products that previously amortized unearned revenue, DAC and COIA over expected future gross profits.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Impacts to Previously Reported Results

Adoption of the standard impacted our previously reported consolidated financial results as follows:

As of December 31, 2022
(In thousands)
 As Previously Reported Adoption of New StandardPost Adoption
Consolidated Balance Sheet
Deferred policy acquisition costs$140,167 22,760 162,927 
Cost of insurance acquired10,260 387 10,647 
Deferred tax asset, net2,414 (2,414)— 
Total assets1,569,970 20,733 1,590,703 
Future policy benefit reserves:
   Life insurance1,305,506 (106,859)1,198,647 
   Annuities91,234 (91,234)— 
Policyholders' funds:
   Annuities— 121,422 121,422 
   Other policyholders' funds40,497 (32,996)7,501 
Deferred federal income tax liability, net— 3,653 3,653 
Total liabilities1,568,927 (106,014)1,462,913 
Retained earnings (accumulated deficit)(52,203)68,512 16,309 
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)(195,279)58,235 (137,044)
Total stockholders' equity1,043 126,747 127,790 
Year Ended
December 31, 2022
Year Ended
December 31, 2021

(In thousands, except per share amounts)
 As Previously Reported Adoption of New StandardPost AdoptionAs Previously ReportedAdoption of New StandardPost Adoption
Consolidated Statements of Operations
Increase (decrease) in future policy benefit reserves$29,640 (24,836)4,804 36,444 (26,671)9,773 
Policyholder liability remeasurement (gain) loss— 2,884 2,884 — 1,434 1,434 
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs26,529 (12,139)14,390 24,952 (11,507)13,445 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquired974 (353)621 1,206 (449)757 
Federal income tax expense (benefit)(429)1,799 1,370 (43,475)1,274 (42,201)
Net income (loss)(6,638)32,645 26,007 36,787 35,919 72,706 
Basic earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock(0.13)0.65 0.52 0.74 0.72 1.46 
Basic earnings (losses) per share of Class B common stock— — — 0.37 0.36 0.73 
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock(0.13)0.64 0.51 0.73 0.71 1.44 
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class B common stock— — — 0.36 0.36 0.72 

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Year Ended
December 31, 2022
Year Ended
December 31, 2021

(In thousands)
 As Previously Reported Adoption of New StandardPost AdoptionAs Previously ReportedAdoption of New StandardPost Adoption
Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during period$(330,765)2,196 (328,569)(5,298)(36,068)(41,366)
Change in current discount rate for liability for future policy benefits— 337,776 337,776 — 92,396 92,396 
Income tax expense (benefit) on other comprehensive income items(17,994)25,256 7,262 5,465 (4,016)1,449 
Other comprehensive income (loss)(312,771)314,716 1,945 (10,763)60,344 49,581 
Total comprehensive income (loss)(319,409)347,361 27,952 26,024 96,263 122,287 

On June 30, 2022, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-15,2022-03, Customer’s Accounting for Implementation Costs IncurredFair Value Measurement (Topic 820: Fair Value Measurement of Equity Securities Subject to Contractual Sale Restrictions. This standard clarifies that contractual restrictions on equity security sales are not considered part of the security unit of account and, therefore, are not considered in a Cloud Computing Arrangement That is a Service Contract. This ASU requiresmeasuring fair value. In addition, the amendments clarify that an entity cannot, as a separate unit of account, recognize and measure a contractual sale restriction. Disclosures on such restrictions are also required. The amendments are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, including interim periods within those fiscal years, and are required to be applied prospectively, with any adjustments from the adoption recognized in a cloud computing arrangement (i.e., hosting arrangement) thatearnings and disclosed. Early adoption is a service contractavailable. Citizens' elected to follow the internal-use software guidance in Accounting Standards Codification 350-40 to determine which implementation costs to capitalize as assets or expense as incurred. Capitalized implementation costs should be presented in the same line item on the balance sheet as amounts prepaid for the hosted service, if any (generally as an "other asset"). The capitalized costs will be amortized over the term of the hosting arrangement, with the amortization expense being presented in the same income statement line item as the fees paid for the hosted service. We adoptedadopt this standard effective January 1, 2020. Theas of December 31, 2023 as adoption hadof this standard has no impact on our consolidated financial statements.

ACCOUNTING STANDARDS NOT YET ADOPTED

In August 2018,On November 27, 2023, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-12,2023-07, Financial Services-InsuranceSegment Reporting (Topic 944)280): Targeted Improvements to the Accounting for Long-Duration Contracts. Reportable Segment Disclosures. This amendment expands a public entity's segment disclosures by requiring disclosure of significant segment expenses that are regularly provided to the chief operating decision maker, clarifying when an entity may report one or more additional measures to assess segment performance, requiring enhanced interim disclosures, providing new disclosure requirements for entities with a single reportable segment, and requiring other new disclosures. The amendments are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023 and interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024. Early adoption is available. Although the ASU amends four key areasonly requires additional disclosures about the Company's operating segments, the Company is currently evaluating the effects of adopting this guidance on the accounting and impacts disclosures for long-duration insurance and investment contracts:consolidated financial statements.

On December 14, 2023, the FASB issued ASU No. 2023-09, Requires updated assumptions for liability measurement.Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures,  Assumptions usedwhich is intended to measureenhance the liability for traditional insurance contracts, which are typically determined at contract inception, will now be reviewed at least annually,transparency, decision usefulness and if there is a change, updated, with the effect recorded in net income;
effectiveness of income tax disclosures.Standardizes the liability discount rate. The liability discountamendments in this ASU require a public entity to disclose a tabular tax rate will bereconciliation, using both percentages and currency, with specific categories. A public entity is also required to provide a market-observable discount rate (upper-medium grade fixed-income instrument yield), withqualitative description of the state and local jurisdictions that make up the majority of the effect of rate changes recorded in other comprehensive income;
Provides greater consistency in measurement of market risk benefits. The two previous measurement models have been reduced to one measurement model (fair value), resulting in greater uniformity across similar market-based benefitsthe state and better alignment with the fair value measurement of derivatives used to hedge capital market risk;
Simplifies amortization of DAC. Previous earnings-based amortization methods have been replaced with a more level amortization basis; and
Requires enhanced disclosures. The new disclosures include rollforwards and information about significant assumptionslocal income tax category and the effectsnet amount of changes in those assumptions.

For calendar-year public companies, the changes will beincome taxes paid, disaggregated by federal, state and foreign taxes and also disaggregated by individual jurisdictions. The amendments also remove certain disclosures that are no longer considered cost beneficial. The amendments are effective on January 1, 2023, however,prospectively for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2024 and early adoption isand retrospective application are permitted. We will adopt this ASU effective January 1, 2023, with a transition date of January 1, 2021, using a

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
modified retrospective approach. We continue to make progress in our implementation process that includes, butThe Company is not limited to, making significant accounting policy decisions, employing appropriate internal controls, building and updating actuarial models and systems, revising reporting processes and developing informative qualitative and quantitative disclosures. In 2022, we will begin the process of recording our transition adjustments and restating applicable periods. We are currently evaluating the impact of adopting this ASUpronouncement on ourthe consolidated financial condition and results of operations and will be able to better assess the effects as we progress with our implementation efforts. While it is not possible to estimate the expected impact of adoption at this time, the Company believes there is a reasonable possibility that implementation of this ASU may result in a material impact to accumulated other comprehensive income and future earnings patterns.statements.

No other new accounting pronouncement issued or effective during 20212023 had, or is expected to have, a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(2) INVESTMENTS

The Company invests primarily in fixed maturity securities, which totaled 89.0%86.7% of total cash and invested assets at December 31, 2021.2023. 

Carrying Value as of December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
Carrying Value as of December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
2021%2020%
Carrying Value as of December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
2023%2022%
Cash and invested assets
Cash and invested assets:
Fixed maturity securities
Fixed maturity securities
Fixed maturity securitiesFixed maturity securities$1,470,617 89.0 %$1,489,383 89.8 %$1,238,981 86.7 86.7 %$1,179,619 86.5 86.5 %
Equity securitiesEquity securities14,844 0.9 22,102 1.3 
Policy loansPolicy loans80,307 4.9 83,318 5.0 
Real estate and other long-term investments57,399 3.5 29,865 1.8 
Other long-term investments
Short-term investments
Cash and cash equivalentsCash and cash equivalents27,294 1.7 34,131 2.1 
Total cash and invested assetsTotal cash and invested assets$1,650,461 100.0 %$1,658,799 100.0 %Total cash and invested assets$1,429,344 100.0 100.0 %$1,363,754 100.0 100.0 %

The following table represents the amortized cost, gross unrealized gains and losses and fair value of fixed maturity securities as of December 31, 20212023 and 2020.2022.
December 31, 2021
(In thousands)
Amortized
Cost
Gross
Unrealized
Gains
Gross
Unrealized
Losses
Fair
Value
December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
Amortized
Cost
Gross
Unrealized
Gains
Gross
Unrealized
Losses
Fair
Value
Fixed maturity securities:Fixed maturity securities:    Fixed maturity securities:  
Available-for-sale:Available-for-sale:    Available-for-sale:  
U.S. Treasury securitiesU.S. Treasury securities$9,515 1,097 1 10,611 
U.S. Government-sponsored enterprisesU.S. Government-sponsored enterprises3,463 996  4,459 
States and political subdivisionsStates and political subdivisions356,594 28,056 692 383,958 
Corporate
Corporate:
Financial
Financial
FinancialFinancial213,652 22,477 172 235,957 
ConsumerConsumer219,223 23,658 900 241,981 
Utilities
EnergyEnergy76,989 7,334 68 84,255 
All Other302,141 29,855 1,181 330,815 
All other
Commercial mortgage-backed
Residential mortgage-backedResidential mortgage-backed117,755 16,046 6 133,795 
Asset-backedAsset-backed44,322 368 14 44,676 
Foreign governments101 9  110 
Total fixed maturity securitiesTotal fixed maturity securities$1,343,755 129,896 3,034 1,470,617 
Total fixed maturity securities
Total fixed maturity securities


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
December 31, 2020
(In thousands)
Amortized
Cost
Gross
Unrealized
Gains
Gross
Unrealized
Losses
Fair
Value
December 31, 2022
(In thousands)
December 31, 2022
(In thousands)
Amortized
Cost
Gross
Unrealized
Gains
Gross
Unrealized
Losses
Fair
Value
Fixed maturity securities:Fixed maturity securities:    Fixed maturity securities:  
Available-for-sale:Available-for-sale:    Available-for-sale:  
U.S. Treasury securitiesU.S. Treasury securities$9,529 1,797 — 11,326 
U.S. Government-sponsored enterprisesU.S. Government-sponsored enterprises3,490 1,301 — 4,791 
States and political subdivisionsStates and political subdivisions377,462 32,751 548 409,665 
Corporate
Corporate:
Financial
Financial
FinancialFinancial204,160 31,000 13 235,147 
ConsumerConsumer196,648 30,116 245 226,519 
Utilities
EnergyEnergy81,223 8,174 536 88,861 
All Other284,209 42,554 82 326,681 
All other
Commercial mortgage-backedCommercial mortgage-backed225 — 221 
Residential mortgage-backedResidential mortgage-backed118,144 21,819 — 139,963 
Asset-backedAsset-backed46,295 278 482 46,091 
Foreign governmentsForeign governments102 16 — 118 
Total fixed maturity securitiesTotal fixed maturity securities$1,321,487 169,806 1,910 1,489,383 

Most of the Company's equity securities are diversifiedinvested in a non-redeemable preferred stock and bond mutual funds.fund at December 31, 2023.

Fair Value as of December 31,
(In thousands)
Fair Value as of December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
Fair Value as of December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Equity securities:Equity securities: 
Stock mutual funds
Stock mutual funds
Stock mutual fundsStock mutual funds$3,571 3,174 
Bond mutual fundsBond mutual funds5,060 12,354 
Common stockCommon stock990 1,143 
Non-redeemable preferred stockNon-redeemable preferred stock161 281 
Non-redeemable preferred stock fundNon-redeemable preferred stock fund5,062 5,150 
Total equity securitiesTotal equity securities$14,844 22,102 

VALUATION OF INVESTMENTS

AFS fixed maturity securities are reported in the consolidated financial statements at fair value. Equity securities are measured at fair value with the change in fair value recorded through net income.income (loss). The Company recognized net realized gainsinvestment related losses of $0.4$0.2 million and $1.6$2.7 million on equity securities held for the years ended December 31, 20212023 and 2020.2022, respectively and net investment related gains of $0.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2021.

The Company monitors all AFS fixed maturity securities on an on-going basis relative to changes in credit ratings, market prices, earnings trends and financial performance, in addition to specific region or industry reviews.  The Company evaluates whether a credit impairment exists for fixed maturity securities by considering primarily the following factors: (a) changes in the financial condition of the security's underlying collateral; (b) whether the issuer is current on contractually obligated interest and principal payments; (c) changes in the financial condition, credit rating and near-term prospects of the issuer; and (d) the payment structure of the security.��  The Company's best estimate of expected future cash flows used to determine the credit loss amount is a quantitative and qualitative process.  Quantitative review includes information received from third-party sources such as financial statements,

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
pricing and rating changes, liquidity and other statistical information.  Qualitative factors include judgments related to business strategies, economic impacts on the issuer, overall judgment related to estimates and industry factors

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
as well as the Company's intent to sell the security, or if it is more likely than not that the Company would be required to sell a security before recovery of its amortized cost.

The Company's best estimate of future cash flows involves assumptions including, but not limited to, various performance indicators, such as historical and projected default and recovery rates, credit ratings, and current delinquency rates.  These assumptions require the use of significant management judgmentjudgement and include the probability of issuer default and estimates regarding timing and amount of expected recoveries, which may include estimating the underlying collateral value.  In addition, projections of expected future fixed maturity security cash flows may change based upon new information regarding the performance of the issuer. Any credit losses are presented as an allowance rather than as a write-down on AFS fixed maturity securities management does not intend to sell or believes that it is more likely than not we will be required to sell.

We adopted ASU 2016-13 using the prospective transition approach for fixed maturity securities for which other-than-temporary impairment had been recognized prior to January 1, 2020. As a result, the amortized cost remains the same before and after adoption. The effective interest rate on these fixed maturity securities was not changed. Amounts previously recognized in accumulated other comprehensive income as of January 1, 2020 relating to improvements in cash flow expected to be collected will be accreted into income over the remaining life of the asset. Recoveries of amounts previously written off relating to improvements in cash flows after January 1, 2020 will be recorded in earnings when received.

The Company recorded no credit valuation losses on fixed maturity securities for the years ended December 31, 20212023 and 2020.2022.

For fixed maturity security investments that have unrealized losses as of December 31, 20212023 and 2020,2022, the gross unrealized losses and related fair values that have been in a continuous unrealized loss position for less than 12 months, gross unrealized losses that have been in a continuous unrealized loss position for 12 months or longer and fair valueby timeframe are as follows.

December 31, 2021Less than 12 monthsGreater than 12 monthsTotal
December 31, 2023December 31, 2023Less than 12 monthsGreater than 12 monthsTotal
(In thousands, except for # of securities)(In thousands, except for # of securities)Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
(In thousands, except for # of securities)Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fixed maturity securities:Fixed maturity securities:        Fixed maturity securities: 
Available-for-sale:   
Available-for-sale securities:Available-for-sale securities:  
U.S. Treasury securitiesU.S. Treasury securities$72 1 2    72 1 2 
U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises
States and political subdivisionsStates and political subdivisions21,715 692 15    21,715 692 15 
Corporate
Corporate:
Financial
Financial
FinancialFinancial8,059 86 15 1,227 86 1 9,286 172 16 
ConsumerConsumer29,494 777 28 2,419 123 1 31,913 900 29 
Utilities
EnergyEnergy7,381 68 8    7,381 68 8 
All OtherAll Other33,384 781 30 4,523 400 4 37,907 1,181 34 
Residential mortgage-backedResidential mortgage-backed1,084 6 6    1,084 6 6 
Residential mortgage-backed
Residential mortgage-backed
Asset-backedAsset-backed9,078 12 11 663 2 1 9,741 14 12 
Total fixed maturity securitiesTotal fixed maturity securities$110,267 2,423 115 8,832 611 7 119,099 3,034 122 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
December 31, 2020Less than 12 monthsGreater than 12 monthsTotal
December 31, 2022December 31, 2022Less than 12 monthsGreater than 12 monthsTotal
(In thousands, except for # of securities)(In thousands, except for # of securities)Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
(In thousands, except for # of securities)Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fair
Value
Unrealized
Losses
# of
Securities
Fixed maturity securities:Fixed maturity securities:        Fixed maturity securities: 
Available-for-sale:   
Available-for-sale securities:Available-for-sale securities:  
U.S. Treasury securities
U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises
States and political subdivisionsStates and political subdivisions$32,487 548 27 — — — 32,487 548 27 
Corporate
Corporate:
Financial
Financial
FinancialFinancial1,308 13 — — — 1,308 13 
ConsumerConsumer10,740 230 1,667 15 12,407 245 
Utilities
EnergyEnergy6,350 536 — — — 6,350 536 
All OtherAll Other9,418 82 11 — — — 9,418 82 11 
Commercial mortgage-backedCommercial mortgage-backed221 — — — 221 
Residential mortgage-backedResidential mortgage-backed83 — — — — 83 — 
Asset-backedAsset-backed26,353 481 26 994 27,347 482 27 
Total fixed maturity securitiesTotal fixed maturity securities$86,960 1,894 80 2,661 16 89,621 1,910 82 

In each category of our fixed maturity securities described below,above, we do not intend to sell our investments and it is not more likely than not that the Company will be required to sell the investments before recovery of their amortized cost bases. At December 31, 2023 and 2022, 99.4% and 98.7%, respectively, of the fair value of our fixed maturity securities portfolio was rated investment grade. While the losses are currently unrealized, we continue to monitor all fixed maturity securities on an on-going basis as future information may become available which could result in an allowance being recorded.

The unrealized losses on fixed maturity securities detailed in the previous tables are due to noncredit-related factors, including widening credit spreads and rising interest rate sensitivity and other market conditions,rates since purchase, which have little bearing on the recoverability of our investments, hence they are not recognized as credit losses. The fair value is expected to recover as the securities approach maturity or if market yields for such investments decline.

The amortized cost and fair value of fixed maturity securities at December 31, 20212023 by contractual maturity are shown in the table below.  Actual maturities may differ from contractual maturities because borrowers may have the right to call or prepay obligations with or without call or prepayment penalties. Securities not due at a single maturity date have been reflected based upon final stated maturity.

(In thousands)(In thousands)Amortized CostFair Value(In thousands)Amortized CostFair Value
Fixed maturity securities:Fixed maturity securities:  Fixed maturity securities:  
Due in one year or lessDue in one year or less$40,017 40,752 
Due after one year through five yearsDue after one year through five years119,116 128,507 
Due after five years through ten yearsDue after five years through ten years200,823 218,200 
Due after ten yearsDue after ten years983,799 1,083,158 
Total fixed maturity securitiesTotal fixed maturity securities$1,343,755 1,470,617 

The Company had no investments in any one entity which exceeded 10% of stockholders' equity at December 31, 2021 or 2020.  In addition, thereThere were no investments that were non-income producing for the years ended December 31, 20212023 or 2020.2022.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Major categories of net investment income are summarized as follows:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Gross investment income:Gross investment income:   Gross investment income:  
Fixed maturity securitiesFixed maturity securities$55,579 54,653 53,860 
Equity securitiesEquity securities1,024 816 662 
Policy loansPolicy loans6,420 6,605 6,451 
Other long-term investmentsOther long-term investments809 238 13 
OtherOther54 97 374 
Total investment incomeTotal investment income63,886 62,409 61,360 
Investment expensesInvestment expenses(2,391)(2,212)(1,829)
Net investment incomeNet investment income$61,495 60,197 59,531 

The Company uses the specific identification method of the individual security to determine the cost basis used in the calculation of realized gains and losses related to security sales.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Fixed maturity securities:
Fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale:
Proceeds
Proceeds
ProceedsProceeds$8,238 20,537 66,900 
Gross realized gainsGross realized gains189 239 2,538 
Gross realized lossesGross realized losses1 351 973 
Equity securities:Equity securities:
Equity securities:
Equity securities:
Proceeds
Proceeds
ProceedsProceeds$7,383 — — 
Gross realized gainsGross realized gains — — 
Gross realized lossesGross realized losses149 — — 

We sold 28, 29 and 68 fixed maturity securities from our available-for-sale portfolio in 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively,Investment related gains (losses) are as part of a repositioning strategy recommended by our asset manager.follows:

There was 1 sale of equity securities in 2021 and none in 2020 or 2019.
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Investment related gains (losses):   
Sales, calls and maturities:   
Fixed maturity securities$(756)(104)243 
Equity securities513 62 (152)
Real estate — 981 
Property and equipment — 13 
Other long-term investments342 2,320 1,892 
Investment related gains (losses)99 2,278 2,977 
Change in fair value of equity securities(190)(2,665)376 
Change in fair value of limited partnerships912 (9,667)7,452 
Change in credit loss allowance(61)(237)186 
Net investment related gains (losses)$760 (10,291)10,991 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Investment related gains (losses) are as follows:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Investment related gains (losses):   
Sales, calls and maturities:   
Fixed maturity securities$243 (112)1,927 
Equity securities(152)— — 
Real estate981 — 5,513 
Property and equipment13 (48)
Other long-term investments1,892 — 
Realized investment gains (losses)2,977 (94)7,392 
Change in fair value of equity securities376 1,596 962 
Change in fair value of limited partnerships7,452 — — 
Change in credit loss allowance186 — — 
Realized loss on OTTI - real estate held for sale — (3,105)
Net investment related gains (losses)$10,991 1,502 5,249 

The Company sold its former training facility near Austin, Texas during 2021 for a gross sale price of $3.8 million, resulting in a gain on the sale of $1.0 million. We had recorded an impairment loss of $3.1 million in 2019 on this facility in connection with reclassifying it as real estate held for sale. The facility was owned by Citizens and was held in Other Non-Insurance Enterprises.

During 2019, the Company sold its former corporate office in Austin, Texas for a gross sale price of $7.5 million, resulting in a gain on the sale of $5.5 million. The building was owned by CICA and was included in our Life Insurance segment.

(3) FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date.  We hold AFS fixed maturity securities, which are carried at fair value.value with changes in fair value reported through other comprehensive income (loss). We also report our equity securities and certain other long-term investments at fair value with changes in fair value reported through the consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss).

Fair value measurements are generally based upon observable and unobservable inputs.  Observable inputs reflect market data obtained from independent sources, while unobservable inputs reflect our view of market assumptions in the absence of observable market information.  We utilize valuation techniques that maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs.  All assets and liabilities carried at fair value are required to be classified and disclosed in one of the following three categories:
 
Level 1 - Quoted prices for identical instruments in active markets.
Level 2 - Quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets; quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active and model-derived valuations whose inputs or whose significant value drivers are observable.
Level 3 - Instruments whose significant value drivers are unobservable.

Level 1 primarily consists of financial instruments whose value is based on quoted market prices such as U.S. Treasury securities and actively traded mutual fund and stock investments.

Level 2 includes those financial instruments that are valued by independent pricing services or broker quotes.  These pricing models are primarily industry-standard models that consider various inputs, such as interest rates, credit spreads and foreign exchange rates for the underlying financial instruments.  All significant inputs are

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
observable or derived from observable information in the marketplace or are supported by observable levels at which transactions are executed in the marketplace.  Financial instruments in this category primarily include corporate securities, U.S. Government-sponsored enterprise securities, securities issued by states and political subdivisions and certain mortgage and asset-backed securities.

Level 3 is comprised of financial instruments whose fair value is estimated based on non-binding broker prices utilizing significant inputs not based on or corroborated by readily available market information. Real estate held-for-sale isWe have no investments in this category.

We review the fair value hierarchy classifications each reporting period. Changes in the observability of the valuation attributes may result in a reclassification of certain financial assets. Such reclassifications are reported as transfers in and out of Level 3 at the beginning fair value for the reporting period in which the changes occur. There were no transfers in or out of Level 3 during the years ended

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The following tables set forth our assets that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis as of the dates indicated.basis.
 
December 31, 2021
(In thousands)
Level 1Level 2Level 3Total
Fair Value
December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
Level 1Level 2Level 3Total
Fair Value
Financial assets:Financial assets:
Fixed maturity securities available-for-sale:    
Fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale:
Fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale:
Fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale:  
U.S. Treasury and U.S. Government-sponsored enterprisesU.S. Treasury and U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises$10,611 4,459  15,070 
States and political subdivisionsStates and political subdivisions 383,958  383,958 
CorporateCorporate51 892,957  893,008 
Commercial mortgage-backed
Residential mortgage-backedResidential mortgage-backed 133,795  133,795 
Asset-backedAsset-backed 44,676  44,676 
Foreign governments 110  110 
Total fixed maturity securities available-for-sale
Total fixed maturity securities available-for-sale
Total fixed maturity securities available-for-saleTotal fixed maturity securities available-for-sale10,662 1,459,955  1,470,617 
Equity securities:Equity securities:    
Stock mutual funds3,571   3,571 
Equity securities:
Equity securities:  
Bond mutual funds
Bond mutual funds
Bond mutual fundsBond mutual funds5,060   5,060 
Common stockCommon stock990   990 
Non-redeemable preferred stockNon-redeemable preferred stock161   161 
Non-redeemable preferred stock fundNon-redeemable preferred stock fund5,062   5,062 
Total equity securitiesTotal equity securities14,844   14,844 
Other long-term investments (1)
Other long-term investments (1)
   56,038 
Total financial assetsTotal financial assets$25,506 1,459,955  1,541,499 
(1) In accordance with Subtopic 820-10, certain investments that are measured at fair value using the net asset value per share (or its equivalent) practical expedient have not been classified in the fair value hierarchy. The fair value amounts presented in this table are intended to permit reconciliation of the fair value hierarchy to the amounts presented in the consolidated balance sheet. 

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
December 31, 2020
(In thousands)
Level 1Level 2Level 3Total
Fair Value
December 31, 2022
(In thousands)
December 31, 2022
(In thousands)
Level 1Level 2Level 3Total
Fair Value
Financial assets:Financial assets:    Financial assets:  
Fixed maturity securities available-for-sale:    
Fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale:Fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale:  
U.S. Treasury and U.S. Government-sponsored enterprisesU.S. Treasury and U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises$11,326 4,791 — 16,117 
States and political subdivisionsStates and political subdivisions— 409,665 — 409,665 
CorporateCorporate52 877,156 — 877,208 
Commercial mortgage-backedCommercial mortgage-backed— 221 — 221 
Residential mortgage-backedResidential mortgage-backed— 139,963 — 139,963 
Asset-backedAsset-backed— 46,091 — 46,091 
Foreign governmentsForeign governments— 118 — 118 
Total fixed maturity securities available-for-saleTotal fixed maturity securities available-for-sale11,378 1,478,005 — 1,489,383 
Equity securities:Equity securities:    
Equity securities:
Equity securities:  
Stock mutual fundsStock mutual funds3,174 — — 3,174 
Bond mutual fundsBond mutual funds12,354 — — 12,354 
Common stockCommon stock1,143 — — 1,143 
Non-redeemable preferred stockNon-redeemable preferred stock281 — — 281 
Non-redeemable preferred stock fundNon-redeemable preferred stock fund5,150 — — 5,150 
Total equity securitiesTotal equity securities22,102 — — 22,102 
Other long-term investments (1)
Other long-term investments (1)
— — — 11,923 
Total financial assetsTotal financial assets$33,480 1,478,005 — 1,523,408 
(1) In accordance with Subtopic 820-10, certain investments that are measured at fair value using the net asset value per share (or its equivalent) practical expedient have not been classified in the fair value hierarchy. The fair value amounts presented in this table are intended to permit reconciliation of the fair value hierarchy to the amounts presented in the consolidated balance sheet. 

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS VALUATION

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS CARRIED AT FAIR VALUE
 
Fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale.  At December 31, 2021,2023, fixed maturity securities, valued using a third-party pricing source, totaled $1.5$1.2 billion for Level 2 assets and comprised 94.7%92.9% of total reported fair value of our financial assets. The Level 1 and Level 2 valuations are reviewed and updated quarterly through testing by comparisons to separate pricing models, other third-party pricing services, and back tested to recent trades. In addition, we obtain information annually relative to the third-party pricing models and review model parameters for reasonableness. There were no Level 3 assets as of December 31, 20212023 and 2020.2022. For the year ended December 31, 2021,2023, there were no material changes to the valuation methods or assumptions used to determine fair values, and no broker or third-party prices were changed from the values received.
 
Equity securities.  Our equity securities are classified as Level 1 assets as their fair values are based upon quoted market prices.

Limited partnerships. The Company considers the net asset value ("NAV") to represent the value of the investment fund and is measured by the total value of assets minus the total value of liabilities. The following table includes information related to our investments in limited partnerships that calculate NAV per share. For these investments,

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
which are measured at fair value on a recurring basis, we use the NAV per share to measure fair value. The Company recognized net investment related gains of $0.9 million and $7.5 million on limited partnerships held for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2021, respectively, and losses of $9.7 million for the year ended

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
December 31, 2022. These investments are included in other long-term investments on the consolidated balance sheets.

December 31, 2021December 31, 2020
December 31, 2023December 31, 2023December 31, 2022

(In thousands, except years)

(In thousands, except years)
Fair Value Using NAV Per ShareUnfunded Commit-
ments
Remaining life
(In years)
Fair Value Using NAV Per ShareUnfunded Commit-
ments
Remaining life
(In years)

(In thousands, except years)
Fair Value Using NAV Per ShareUnfunded Commit-
ments
Range
(In years)
Fair Value Using NAV Per ShareUnfunded Commit-
ments
Range
(In years)
Description
Limited partnerships
Limited partnerships:
Limited partnerships:
Limited partnerships:
Middle market
Middle market
Middle marketMiddle marketInvestments in privately-originated, performing senior secured debt primarily in North America-based companies$21,947 18,712 10$10,542 29,783 10Investments in privately-originated, performing senior secured debt primarily in North America-based companies$34,858 3,452 3,452 44$33,234 6,011 6,011 55
Global equity fundGlobal equity fundInvestments in common stocks of U.S., international developed and emerging markets with a focus on long-term capital growth10,607  0— — 0Global equity fundInvestments in common stocks of U.S., international developed and emerging markets with a focus on long-term capital growth10,345   009,037 — — 00
Term liquidity facilityInvestments in a facility established by the U.S. Federal Reserve that provides financing to U.S. company market participants for levered asset purchases with a focus on asset-backed, commercial mortgage and collateralized loan obligation markets  01,381 — 3
Late-stage growth
Late-stage growth
Late-stage growthLate-stage growthInvestments in private late-stage, established companies seeking capital to accelerate growth prior to an IPO or sale20,468 4,459 6— 16,291 7Investments in private late-stage, established companies seeking capital to accelerate growth prior to an IPO or sale20,524 14,271 14,271 4 to 64 to 616,892 18,444 18,444 5 to 75 to 7
InfrastructureInfrastructureInvestments in climate infrastructure assets, focusing on renewable power generation in wind and solar energy3,016 16,653 12— 17,497 12InfrastructureInvestments in environmental infrastructure and related technology, focusing on renewable power generation and distribution16,733 9,576 9,576 10107,683 4,107 4,107 1111
Total limited partnershipsTotal limited partnerships$56,038 39,824 $11,923 63,571 

The majority of our limited partnership investments are not redeemable because distributions from the funds will be received when the underlying investments of the funds are liquidated. The life spans indicated above may be shortened or extended at the fund manager's discretion, typically in one or two-year increments. The internationalglobal equity fund is redeemable monthly.

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS NOT CARRIED AT FAIR VALUE
 
Estimates of fair values are made at a specific point in time, based on relevant market prices and information about the financial instruments.  The estimated fair values of financial instruments presented below are not necessarily indicative of the amounts the Company might realize in actual market transactions.  

The carrying amount and fair value for the financial assets and liabilities on the consolidated financial statements not otherwise disclosed for the periods indicated were as follows:
 December 31, 2021December 31, 2020
(In thousands)Carrying
Value
Fair
Value
Carrying
Value
Fair
Value
Financial assets:    
Policy loans$80,307 80,307 83,318 83,318 
Commercial mortgage loan1,000 1,000 — — 
Residential mortgage loans148 169 157 195 
Cash and cash equivalents27,294 27,294 34,131 34,131 
Financial liabilities:  
Annuity - investment contracts64,384 72,352 60,861 71,547 

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
 December 31, 2023December 31, 2022
(In thousands)Carrying
Value
Fair
Value
Carrying
Value
Fair
Value
Financial assets:    
Policy loans$75,359 75,359 78,773 78,773 
Residential mortgage loans42 42 49 50 
Cash and cash equivalents26,997 26,997 22,973 22,973 
Financial liabilities:  
Annuity - investment contracts67,690 63,283 67,344 61,701 
 
Policy loans. Policy loans had a weighted average annual interest rate of 7.7% at both December 31, 20212023 and 20202022 and no specified maturity dates.  The aggregate fair value of policy loans approximates the carrying value reflected on the consolidated balance sheets.  Policy loans are an integral part of the life insurance policies we have in force, cannot be valued separately and are not marketable. Therefore, the fair value of policy loans approximates the carrying value reflected on the consolidated balance sheets and policy loans are considered Level 3 assets in the fair value hierarchy.

Commercial mortgage loan.
December 31, 2023 | 10-K 86

We financed $1.0 millionTable of the sale of our training facility at a 6.0% interest rate. The loan is due in less than 1 year. Due to the short-term nature of the loan, the carrying value approximates fair value and is considered a Level 3 asset in the fair value hierarchy.Contents

CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Residential mortgage loans.loan. Mortgage loans areThe mortgage loan is secured principally by a residential properties.  Weighted averageproperty.  The interest ratesrate for these loans were approximately 6.4%this loan was 7.0% at both December 31, 20212023 and 2020, with maturities ranging from 5 to 182022. At December 31, 2023, the remaining loan matures in five years.  Management estimated the fair value using an annual interest rate of 6.25% at both December 31, 20212023 and 2020.2022. Our mortgage loans areloan is considered a Level 3 assetsasset in the fair value hierarchy.hierarchy and is included in other long-term investments on the consolidated balance sheets.

Cash and cash equivalents. The fair value of cash and cash equivalents approximate carrying value and are characterized as Level 1 assets in the fair value hierarchy.

Annuity liabilities. The fair value of the Company's liabilities under annuity contract policies,contracts, which are considered Level 3 liabilities, was estimated at December 31, 20212023 and 20202022 using discounted cash flows based upon spot rates adjusted for various risk adjustments ranging from 0.50%3.80% to 2.63%4.50% and 0.22%4.74% to 2.34%5.09%, respectively. The fair value of liabilities under all insurance contracts are taken into consideration in the overall management of interest rate risk, which seeks to minimize exposure to changing interest rates through the matching of investment maturities with amounts due under insurance contracts.

Other long-term investments.The following table summarizes the carrying amounts of other long-term investments.

As of December 31,
(In thousands)
As of December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
As of December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Other long-term investments:Other long-term investments:
Limited partnerships
Limited partnerships
Limited partnershipsLimited partnerships$56,038 18,135 
FHLB common stockFHLB common stock192 190 
Mortgage loansMortgage loans1,148 157
All other investmentsAll other investments21 8,811 
Total other long-term investmentsTotal other long-term investments$57,399 27,293 

We carried no limited partnership investments at cost at December 31, 2023 and $2.4 million were carried at cost at December 31, 2022.

We are a member of the FHLB of Dallas and such membership requires members to own stock in the FHLB. Our FHLB stock is carried at amortized cost, which approximates fair value. Included in all other investments at December 31, 2020 was a Rabbi Trust holding $8.8 million for the benefit of our former Chief Executive Officer for the severance payment that was made to him on February 8, 2021.

(4) DEFERRED POLICY LIABILITIESACQUISITION COSTS AND SHORT DURATION CONTRACTSCOST OF INSURANCE ACQUIRED

Various assumptions used to determineThe following tables roll forward the futureDAC and COIA balances for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 by reporting cohort. Our reporting cohorts are Permanent, which summarizes insurance policies with premiums payable over the lifetime of the policy, benefit reserves ofand Permanent Limited Pay, which summarizes insurance policies with premiums payable for a limited time after which the policy is fully paid up. Both reporting cohorts include whole life insurance include valuation interest rates, mortality assumptions and withdrawals.endowment policies.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
DAC

Year Ended December 31, 2023
(In thousands)PermanentPermanent Limited PayOther BusinessTotal
Life Insurance:
Balance, beginning of year$100,926 11,542 1,016 113,484 
Capitalizations16,451 3,332 468 20,251 
Amortization expense(11,825)(799)(271)(12,895)
Balance, end of year105,552 14,075 1,213 120,840 
Home Service Insurance:
Balance, beginning of year38,793 9,729 921 49,443 
Capitalizations6,570 1,232 248 8,050 
Amortization expense(2,083)(397)(85)(2,565)
Balance, end of year43,280 10,564 1,084 54,928 
Consolidated:
Balance, beginning of year139,719 21,271 1,937 162,927 
Capitalizations23,021 4,564 716 28,301 
Amortization expense(13,908)(1,196)(356)(15,460)
Balance, end of year$148,832 24,639 2,297 175,768 

Year Ended December 31, 2022
(In thousands)PermanentPermanent Limited PayOther BusinessTotal
Life Insurance:
Balance, beginning of year$97,675 9,001 1,026 107,702 
Capitalizations14,599 3,193 150 17,942 
Amortization expense(11,348)(652)(160)(12,160)
Balance, end of year100,926 11,542 1,016 113,484 
Home Service Insurance:
Balance, beginning of year35,137 8,723 856 44,716 
Capitalizations5,501 1,372 84 6,957 
Amortization expense(1,845)(366)(19)(2,230)
Balance, end of year38,793 9,729 921 49,443 
Consolidated:
Balance, beginning of year132,812 17,724 1,882 152,418 
Capitalizations20,100 4,565 234 24,899 
Amortization expense(13,193)(1,018)(179)(14,390)
Balance, end of year$139,719 21,271 1,937 162,927 

DAC capitalization increased for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same prior year period mainly from increased commissions from higher first year sales across our business segments.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
COIA

Year Ended December 31, 2023
(In thousands)PermanentPermanent Limited PayOther BusinessTotal
Life Insurance:
Balance, beginning of year$267 750 444 1,461 
Amortization expense(18)(55)(38)(111)
Balance, end of year249 695 406 1,350 
Home Service Insurance:
Balance, beginning of year7,583 176 1,427 9,186 
Amortization expense(389)(8)(96)(493)
Balance, end of year7,194 168 1,331 8,693 
Consolidated:
Balance, beginning of year7,850 926 1,871 10,647 
Amortization expense(407)(63)(134)(604)
Balance, end of year$7,443 863 1,737 10,043 

Year Ended December 31, 2022
(In thousands)PermanentPermanent Limited PayOther BusinessTotal
Life Insurance:
Balance, beginning of year$287 812 485 1,584 
Amortization expense(20)(62)(41)(123)
Balance, end of year267 750 444 1,461 
Home Service Insurance:
Balance, beginning of year7,989 184 1,511 9,684 
Amortization expense(406)(8)(84)(498)
Balance, end of year7,583 176 1,427 9,186 
Consolidated:
Balance, beginning of year8,276 996 1,996 11,268 
Amortization expense(426)(70)(125)(621)
Balance, end of year$7,850 926 1,871 10,647 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Estimated amortization of COIA in each of the next five years and thereafter is as follows.  Actual future amortization will differ from these estimates due to variances from estimated future withdrawal assumptions.

(In thousands)Amount
Cost of insurance acquired:
Year:
2024$647 
2025599 
2026555 
2027515 
2028479 
Thereafter7,248 
Total cost of insurance acquired$10,043 

(5) POLICYHOLDERS’ LIABILITIES

LIABILITY FOR FUTURE POLICY BENEFITS

The following tables summarize balances of and changes in the liability for future policy benefits for our reporting cohorts: Permanent, which summarizes insurance policies with premiums payable over the lifetime of the policy, and Permanent Limited Pay, which summarizes insurance policies with premiums payable for a limited time after which the policy is fully paid up. Both reporting cohorts include whole life and endowment policies.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
Life InsuranceHome Service Insurance
PermanentPermanent Limited PayTotalPermanentPermanent Limited PayTotal
Present Value of Expected Net Premiums:
Balance, beginning of year$235,228 10,209 245,437 93,508 13,255 106,763 
Beginning balance at original discount rate247,601 10,682 258,283 100,225 14,394 114,619 
Effect of changes in cash flow assumptions(210)38 (172)(343)85 (258)
Effects of actual variances from expected experience4,184 1,536 5,720 (8,287)(6,402)(14,689)
Adjusted beginning of year balance251,575 12,256 263,831 91,595 8,077 99,672 
Issuances34,285 3,607 37,892 17,668 3,951 21,619 
Interest accrual9,291 355 9,646 4,045 468 4,513 
Net premiums collected(43,307)(2,955)(46,262)(11,901)2,832 (9,069)
Derecognition and other582 270 852 638 184 822 
Ending balance at original discount rate252,426 13,533 265,959 102,045 15,512 117,557 
Effect of changes in discount rates(7,509)(273)(7,782)(3,214)(586)(3,800)
Balance, end of year$244,917 13,260 258,177 98,831 14,926 113,757 
Present Value of Expected Future Policy Benefits:
Balance, beginning of year$947,415 195,612 1,143,027 200,351 116,356 316,707 
Beginning balance at original discount rate996,169 208,051 1,204,220 214,188 121,908 336,096 
Effect of changes in cash flow assumptions(389)(702)(1,091)(257)331 74 
Effects of actual variances from expected experience7,370 5,330 12,700 (8,126)(2,103)(10,229)
Adjusted beginning of year balance1,003,150 212,679 1,215,829 205,805 120,136 325,941 
Issuances34,922 3,792 38,714 17,664 3,973 21,637 
Interest accrual43,275 8,355 51,630 9,339 5,667 15,006 
Benefit payments(85,257)(22,129)(107,386)(15,891)(6,002)(21,893)
Derecognition and other(128)58 (70)607 167 774 
Ending balance at original discount rate995,962 202,755 1,198,717 217,524 123,941 341,465 
Effect of changes in discount rates(22,612)(7,633)(30,245)(5,578)(1,157)(6,735)
Balance, end of year$973,350 195,122 1,168,472 211,946 122,784 334,730 
Net liability for future policy benefits$728,433 181,862 910,295 113,115 107,858 220,973 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
December 31, 2022
(In thousands)
Life InsuranceHome Service Insurance
PermanentPermanent Limited PayTotalPermanentPermanent Limited PayTotal
Present Value of Expected Net Premiums:
Balance, beginning of year$269,528 4,939 274,467 104,556 10,196 114,752 
Beginning balance at original discount rate246,386 5,093 251,479 90,012 9,532 99,544 
Effect of changes in cash flow assumptions(3,662)237 (3,425)4,253 1,214 5,467 
Effects of actual variances from expected experience3,466 1,534 5,000 (3,744)(8,407)(12,151)
Adjusted beginning of year balance246,190 6,864 253,054 90,521 2,339 92,860 
Issuances35,826 4,086 39,912 19,030 5,288 24,318 
Interest accrual8,382 82 8,464 3,454 244 3,698 
Net premiums collected(41,560)(258)(41,818)(11,202)6,752 (4,450)
Derecognition and other(1,237)(92)(1,329)(1,578)(229)(1,807)
Ending balance at original discount rate247,601 10,682 258,283 100,225 14,394 114,619 
Effect of changes in discount rates(12,373)(473)(12,846)(6,717)(1,139)(7,856)
Balance, end of year$235,228 10,209 245,437 93,508 13,255 106,763 
Present Value of Expected Future Policy Benefits:
Balance, beginning of year$1,168,282 240,679 1,408,961 266,206 161,715 427,921 
Beginning balance at original discount rate990,921 207,105 1,198,026 205,340 117,425 322,765 
Effect of changes in cash flow assumptions(3,916)374 (3,542)4,822 1,765 6,587 
Effects of actual variances from expected experience4,528 4,910 9,438 (3,278)(992)(4,270)
Adjusted beginning of year balance991,533 212,389 1,203,922 206,884 118,198 325,082 
Issuances36,604 4,187 40,791 19,054 5,286 24,340 
Interest accrual42,547 8,474 51,021 8,754 5,452 14,206 
Benefit payments(72,383)(16,765)(89,148)(18,870)(6,770)(25,640)
Derecognition and other(2,132)(234)(2,366)(1,634)(258)(1,892)
Ending balance at original discount rate996,169 208,051 1,204,220 214,188 121,908 336,096 
Effect of changes in discount rates(48,754)(12,439)(61,193)(13,837)(5,552)(19,389)
Balance, end of year$947,415 195,612 1,143,027 200,351 116,356 316,707 
Net liability for future policy benefits$712,187 185,403 897,590 106,843 103,101 209,944 
Plus: Flooring impact— — — — 
Net liability for future policy benefits, after flooring impact$712,188 185,403 897,591 106,843 103,101 209,944 

Net premiums collected is defined as the transactional gross premiums collected in the current period times the net premium ratio. Issuances are calculated as the present value, using the locked-in discount rate, of the expected net premiums or the expected future policy benefits related to new policies issued during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022. Interest accrual is the interest earned on the beginning present value of either the expected net premiums or the expected future policy benefits using the locked-in discount rate. Benefit payments are the transactional benefits (death, lapse, surrenders and maturities) paid in the current period. Derecognition refers to a subset of the issuances or the present value of future premiums released on new issues that lapsed during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 as well as other reconciling items. The effects of actual variances from expected experience lines are primarily impacted by the actual policy cash flows during the period

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
compared to that which was expected in the reserve assumptions. If the net of the two lines is a positive number, the implication is an unfavorable result with policy cash flows less favorable than assumed while a negative number implies a favorable result compared to assumptions. Our policy experience will vary from actual experience in any one period, either favorably or unfavorably.

The following table reconciles the net liability for future policy benefits shown above to the liability for future policy benefits reported in the consolidated balance sheets.

December 31, 2023December 31, 2022
(In thousands)Life
Insurance
Home Service
Insurance
ConsolidatedLife
Insurance
Home Service
Insurance
Consolidated
Life Insurance:
Permanent$728,433 113,115 841,548 712,188 106,843 819,031 
Permanent limited pay181,862 107,858 289,720 185,403 103,101 288,504 
Deferred profit liability28,933 26,804 55,737 25,655 24,459 50,114 
Other28,319 13,929 42,248 27,370 13,628 40,998 
Total life insurance967,547 261,706 1,229,253 950,616 248,031 1,198,647 
Accident & Health:
Other588 301 889 533 234 767 
Total future policy benefit reserves$968,135 262,007 1,230,142 951,149 248,265 1,199,414 

The following table provides the amount of undiscounted and discounted expected gross premiums and expected future benefit payments for long-term duration contracts.

December 31, 2023December 31, 2022
(In thousands)Life
Insurance
Home Service
Insurance
Life
Insurance
Home Service
Insurance
Undiscounted:
Permanent:
Expected future gross premiums$621,935 455,552 612,531 461,298 
Expected future benefit payments1,495,206 484,740 1,479,562 473,039 
Permanent Limited Pay:
Expected future gross premiums47,161 77,266 47,447 74,278 
Expected future benefit payments326,821 320,810 323,559 316,225 
Discounted:
Permanent:
Expected future gross premiums$481,963 275,629 472,754 271,440 
Expected future benefit payments973,350 211,946 947,415 200,351 
Permanent Limited Pay:
Expected future gross premiums42,138 53,075 41,853 52,030 
Expected future benefit payments195,122 122,784 195,612 116,356 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The following tables summarize the amount of revenue and interest related to long-term duration contracts recognized in the consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss):

Years Ended December 31,
202320222021
(In thousands)Gross PremiumsInterest ExpenseGross PremiumsInterest ExpenseGross PremiumsInterest Expense
Life Insurance Segment:
Life Insurance:
Permanent$93,917 33,984 94,905 34,165 96,766 34,067 
Permanent Limited Pay16,396 8,923 15,023 9,214 13,678 9,331 
Other12,813  16,047 — 16,856 — 
Less:
Reinsurance1,702  1,819 — 1,742 — 
Total, net of reinsurance121,424 42,907 124,156 43,379 125,558 43,398 
Accident & Health:
Other725  502 — 505 — 
Less:
Reinsurance4  — — 
Total, net of reinsurance721  497 — 500 — 
Total$122,145 42,907 124,653 43,379 126,058 43,398 
Home Service Insurance Segment:
Life Insurance:
Permanent$33,263 5,294 33,312 5,300 33,706 5,447 
Permanent Limited Pay8,576 6,388 8,396 6,255 8,324 6,187 
Other1,371  1,749 — 2,236 — 
Less:
Reinsurance25  27 — 23 — 
Total, net of reinsurance43,185 11,682 43,430 11,555 44,243 11,634 
Accident & Health:
Other916  781 — 750 — 
Total$44,101 11,682 44,211 11,555 44,993 11,634 

The following table provides the weighted-average durations of the liability for future policy benefits.

December 31, 2023December 31, 2022
(In years)Life
Insurance
Home Service
Insurance
Life
Insurance
Home Service
Insurance
Permanent:
Duration at original discount rate8.516.48.015.4
Duration at current discount rate8.516.48.516.2
Permanent Limited Pay:
Duration at original discount rate8.214.87.614.3
Duration at current discount rate8.115.37.515.7


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The following table provides the weighted-average interest rates for the liability for future policy benefits.

December 31, 2023December 31, 2022
Life
Insurance
Home Service
Insurance
Life
Insurance
Home Service
Insurance
Permanent:
Interest rate at original discount rate4.89 %4.97 %4.93 %5.00 %
Interest rate at current discount rate4.79 %4.96 %5.10 %5.22 %
Permanent Limited Pay:
Interest rate at original discount rate4.29 %5.04 %4.30 %5.05 %
Interest rate at current discount rate4.77 %4.95 %5.07 %5.21 %

LIABILITY FOR POLICYHOLDERS’ ACCOUNT BALANCES

The following table presents the policyholders' account balances by range of guaranteed minimum crediting rates and the related range of the difference, in basis points, between rates being credited and the respective guaranteed minimums.
At Guaranteed Minimum1 Basis Point-50 Basis Points Above51 Basis Points-150 Basis Points AboveGreater Than 150 Basis Points AboveTotal
December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
Range of Guaranteed Minimum Crediting Rates:
0.00% - 1.49%$784  1,146 34,886 36,816 
1.50% - 2.99%33,073 671 49  33,793 
3.00% - 4.49%105,684 9   105,693 
Greater or equal to 4.50%31,400    31,400 
Total$170,941 680 1,195 34,886 207,702 

At Guaranteed Minimum1 Basis Point-50 Basis Points Above51 Basis Points-150 Basis Points AboveGreater Than 150 Basis Points AboveTotal
December 31, 2022
(In thousands)
Range of Guaranteed Minimum Crediting Rates:
0.00% - 1.49%$736 — 1,089 38,671 40,496 
1.50% - 2.99%24,155 631 51 — 24,837 
3.00% - 4.49%98,902 — — 98,911 
Greater or equal to 4.50%31,825 — — — 31,825 
Total$155,618 640 1,140 38,671 196,069 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The following tables summarize balances of and changes in policyholders' account balances.

December 31, 2023
(In thousands, except for %)
Supplemental Contracts Without Life ContingenciesFixed AnnuityDividend AccumulationsPremiums Paid in Advance
Balance, beginning of year$32,995 86,807 41,663 34,603 
Issuances22,387 2,741 660 3,693 
Premiums received123 4,387 5,860 793 
Interest credited1,483 2,653 1,364 1,627 
Other1    
Less:
Surrenders and withdrawals 9,454 4,587 9,677 
Benefit payments12,420    
Balance, end of year$44,569 87,134 44,960 31,039 
Weighted-average crediting rates4.00 %3.56 %3.04 %2.95 %
Cash surrender value$44,569 87,134 44,960 31,039 

December 31, 2022
(In thousands, except for %)
Supplemental Contracts Without Life ContingenciesFixed AnnuityDividend AccumulationsPremiums Paid in Advance
Balance, beginning of year$23,950 83,917 37,760 38,875 
Issuances12,071 3,044 683 2,820 
Premiums received176 4,940 5,538 779 
Interest credited1,067 2,631 1,216 964 
Other— — — 
Less:
Surrenders and withdrawals— 7,725 3,534 8,835 
Benefit payments4,271 — — — 
Balance, end of year$32,995 86,807 41,663 34,603 
Weighted-average crediting rates4.08 %3.59 %3.07 %3.04 %
Cash surrender value$32,995 86,807 41,663 34,603 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The following table reconciles policyholders' account balances shown above to the policyholders' account balances liability in the consolidated balance sheets.

As of December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Annuities:
Supplemental contracts without life contingencies$44,569 32,995 
Fixed annuity87,134 86,807 
Unearned revenue reserve1,513 1,619 
Other 
Total annuities$133,216 121,422 
Premiums Paid in Advance:
Premiums paid in advance$31,039 34,603 
Other1,407 1,781 
Total premiums paid in advance$32,446 36,384 

(6) POLICY CLAIM LIABILITY AND SHORT DURATION CONTRACTS

The following table presents information on changes in the liability for life, accident and health and property policy and contract claims for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019.claims.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Policy claims payable:Policy claims payable:
Balance at January 1
Balance at January 1
Balance at January 1Balance at January 1$13,206 8,059 7,614 
Less: reinsurance recoverableLess: reinsurance recoverable3,012 796 511 
Net balance at January 1Net balance at January 110,194 7,263 7,103 
Add claims incurred, related to:Add claims incurred, related to:   Add claims incurred, related to:  
Current yearCurrent year32,595 38,400 26,816 
Prior years(1)
Prior years(1)
1,052 195 543 
33,647 38,595 27,359 
Deduct claims paid, related to:Deduct claims paid, related to:   Deduct claims paid, related to:  
Current yearCurrent year23,369 29,767 20,629 
Prior yearsPrior years8,351 5,897 6,570 
31,720 35,664 27,199 
Net balance December 31Net balance December 3112,121 10,194 7,263 
Plus: reinsurance recoverablePlus: reinsurance recoverable2,469 3,012 796 
Balance at December 31Balance at December 31$14,590 13,206 8,059 
(1) This line is primarily impacted by the level of claim resolutions in the period compared to that which is expected by the reserve assumption. A positive number implies an unfavorable result where claim resolutions were less favorable than assumed while a negative number implies a favorable result compared to assumptions. Our claim assumptions will vary from actual experience in any one period, either favorably or unfavorably.
(1) This line is primarily impacted by the level of claim resolutions in the period compared to that which is expected by the reserve assumption. A positive number implies an unfavorable result where claim resolutions were less favorable than assumed while a negative number implies a favorable result compared to assumptions. Our claim assumptions will vary from actual experience in any one period, either favorably or unfavorably.
(1) This line is primarily impacted by the level of claim resolutions in the period compared to that which is expected by the reserve assumption. A positive number implies an unfavorable result where claim resolutions were less favorable than assumed while a negative number implies a favorable result compared to assumptions. Our claim assumptions will vary from actual experience in any one period, either favorably or unfavorably.

SHORT DURATION CONTRACTS

The Company's short duration contracts consist of credit life and credit disability in the Life Insurance segment and property insurance in the Home Service Insurance segment. The credit insurance lines are an immaterial part of

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
short duration contracts so the following disclosures cover only the property insurance line of business in the Home Service Insurance segment.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Special Property Insurance (Allied and Fire)

The following table presents incurred claims development as of December 31, 2021,2023, net of reinsurance, as well as cumulative claim frequency and the total of incurred-but-not-reported liabilities plus expected development on reported claims included within the net incurred claims amounts. This information is presented for the last five years as these claims rarely pay out over a longer period of time.
As of
December 31, 2021
Incurred Claims and Allocated Claim Adjustment Expenses, Net of ReinsuranceTotal of Incurred but Not Reported Liabilities Plus Expected Development on Reported ClaimsCumulative Number of Reported Claims
For the Years Ended December 31,
As of December 31, 2023As of December 31, 2023
Incurred Claims and Allocated Claim Adjustment Expenses, Net of ReinsuranceIncurred Claims and Allocated Claim Adjustment Expenses, Net of ReinsuranceTotal of Incurred-but-Not-Reported Liabilities Plus Expected Development on Reported ClaimsCumulative Number of Reported Claims
For the Years Ended December 31,For the Years Ended December 31,
($ In thousands)($ In thousands)20172018201920202021Total of Incurred but Not Reported Liabilities Plus Expected Development on Reported ClaimsCumulative Number of Reported Claims($ In thousands)20192020202120222023
Accident Year:Accident Year:(Unaudited)
2017$1,507 1,451 1,406 1,407 1,417 
20181,542 1,427 1,432 1,436  496 
2019
2019
201920191,549 1,150 1,161 4 588 
202020202,598 2,670 5 2,290 
202120212,087 561 1,875 
2022
2023
TotalTotal$8,771 

The following table presents paid claims development as of December 31, 2021,2023, net of reinsurance.

Cumulative Paid Claims and Allocated Claim Adjustment Expenses, Net of Reinsurance
Years ended December 31,
Cumulative Paid Claims and Allocated Claim Adjustment Expenses, Net of ReinsuranceCumulative Paid Claims and Allocated Claim Adjustment Expenses, Net of Reinsurance
Years Ended December 31,Years Ended December 31,
(In thousands)(In thousands)20172018201920202021(In thousands)20192020202120222023
Accident Year:Accident Year:(Unaudited)
2017$1,359 1,652 1,661 1,661 1,661 
20181,507 1,618 1,623 1,623 
2019
2019
201920191,328 1,254 1,274 
202020202,154 2,798 
202120211,442 
2022
2023
TotalTotal$8,798 
All outstanding liabilities before 2017, net of reinsurance$ 
All outstanding liabilities before 2019, net of reinsurance
Liabilities for claims and claim adjustment expenses, net of reinsuranceLiabilities for claims and claim adjustment expenses, net of reinsurance$796 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The reconciliation of the net incurred and paid claims development tables to the liability for claims and claim adjustment expenses in the consolidated balance sheets are as follows:

As of December 31,
(In thousands)
As of December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
As of December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Net outstanding liabilities:Net outstanding liabilities:  Net outstanding liabilities:  
Special propertySpecial property$796 743 
Other short duration insurance linesOther short duration insurance lines253 214 
Liabilities for unpaid claims and claim adjustment expenses, net of reinsuranceLiabilities for unpaid claims and claim adjustment expenses, net of reinsurance1,049 957 
Reinsurance recoverable on unpaid claims:Reinsurance recoverable on unpaid claims:  Reinsurance recoverable on unpaid claims:  
Special propertySpecial property2,083 2,955 
Other short duration insurance linesOther short duration insurance lines386 57 
Total reinsurance recoverable on unpaid claimsTotal reinsurance recoverable on unpaid claims2,469 3,012 
Insurance lines other than short durationInsurance lines other than short duration11,072 9,237 
Total gross liability for unpaid claims and claim adjustment expenseTotal gross liability for unpaid claims and claim adjustment expense$14,590 13,206 

The following is supplementary information to the consolidated financial statements about average historical claims duration as of December 31, 2021.2023.

Average Annual Percentage Payout of Incurred Claims by Age, Net of Reinsurance
(Unaudited)
Average Annual Percentage Payout of Incurred Claims by Age, Net of Reinsurance
(Unaudited)
Average Annual Percentage Payout of Incurred Claims by Age, Net of Reinsurance
(Unaudited)
YearsYears12345Years12345
Special propertySpecial property93.00 %11.54 %0.90 % % %
Special property
Special property93 %13 %(8)%3 % %


(5)(7) REINSURANCE

In the normal course of business, the Company reinsures portions of certain policies that we underwrite to limit disproportionate risks. During 20212023 and 2020,2022, we generally retained varying amounts of individual insurance up to a maximum retention of $100,000 on any life.one individual life insurance policy. The Company also reinsures 100% of our accidental death benefit rider coverage. CatastropheThe Company maintained catastrophe reinsurance with the net retention on any one loss of $30,000, which is in place for our property policies.  In both 2021 and 2020,the maximum policy limit on any single risk. During 2023, this reinsurance provided $10.5$11.0 million of coverage abovewith the Company retaining $2.4 million of the risk. In 2022, this reinsurance provided $11.0 million of coverage once the Company paid a $0.5$1.4 million deductible. In consideration for a reinstatement premium, second event coverage iswas provided in excess of a $0.5 million deductible up to $10.5 million.under the same terms for both years. The annual premium was approximately $2.3 million in 2021 and $1.4 million and $0.8 million in 2020 and 2019, respectively. Our health insurance policies are substantially all reinsured on a 100% coinsurance basis.  We remainCompany remains contingently liable toin the extentevent that any of the reinsuring companies cannotreinsurers are unable to meet their obligations under theseany reinsurance treaties.agreement.

Our amounts recoverable from reinsurers represent receivables from and reserves ceded to reinsurers.  We obtain reinsurance from multiple reinsurers, and we monitor concentration as well as financial strength ratings of our principal reinsurers. The ratings by A.M. Best Company range from AA- (Excellent) to A+ (Superior).  Assumed and ceded life reinsurance activity is summarized as follows:

December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Aggregate assumed life insurance in force$3,772 4,074 
Aggregate ceded life insurance in force$619,597 543,496 
Net life insurance in force$4,306,429 4,257,148 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Assumed and ceded life reinsurance activity as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 is summarized as follows:

December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
Aggregate assumed life insurance in force$4,366 4,615 
Aggregate ceded life insurance in force$465,954 474,792 
Net life insurance in force$4,165,921 4,141,968 

The Company's reinsurance recoverable on ceded reinsurance was $5.5$4.0 million and $5.8$4.6 million in 20212023 and 2020,2022, respectively.  Premiums and claims and surrenders assumed and ceded for all lines of business for these years are summarized as follows:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Premiums from short-duration contracts:   
Premiums from short duration contracts:Premiums from short duration contracts:  
DirectDirect$7,631 6,448 6,804 
AssumedAssumed — — 
CededCeded(2,312)(1,447)(808)
Net premiums earnedNet premiums earned5,319 5,001 5,996 
Premiums from long-duration contracts:   
Premiums from long duration contracts:Premiums from long duration contracts:  
DirectDirect171,175 172,504 180,205 
AssumedAssumed84 91 99 
CededCeded(1,850)(2,267)(1,953)
Net premiums earnedNet premiums earned169,409 170,328 178,351 
Total premiums earnedTotal premiums earned$174,728 175,329 184,347 
Claims and surrenders assumedClaims and surrenders assumed$169 174 141 
Claims and surrenders ceded
Claims and surrenders ceded
$(11,764)(1,575)(940)
 
During the third quarter of 2021, SPFIC was impacted by Hurricane Ida, the second-most damaging and intense hurricane in Louisiana on record, behind Hurricane Katrina in 2005. In addition, during the third and fourth quarters of 2020, SPFIC was impacted by Hurricanes Laura, Delta and Zeta, all of which caused varying levels of damage in Louisiana. The Company has a reinsurance agreement that covers catastrophic events such as these hurricanes. The reinsurance agreement specifies a maximum coverage per event of $10.5 million and a retention level of $0.5 million per event. In consideration for a reinstatement premium, second event coverage is provided in excess of a $0.5 million deductible up to $10.5 million.Hurricane Ida. We expect claims from Hurricane Ida to exceed our reinsurance of $11.0 million by approximately $0.3 million and thus the total claim impact to us is expected to be approximately $0.8 million in 2021. We also paid the $0.5 million retention in claim amounts for LauraIda and Delta and diddo not expect to exceed the maximum coverage for either of them. All claims related to Zeta were paid by SPFIC and totaled less than $0.5 million.reinsurance coverage.

(6)STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY AND RESTRICTIONS

STOCK

Our Restated and Amended Articles of Incorporation authorize the issuance of 127,000,000 shares, of which 100,000,000 shares shall be Class A common stock, 2,000,000 shares shall be Class B common stock, and 25,000,000 shall be preferred stock. The 2 authorized classes of common stock are equal in all respects, except (a) each share of Class A common stock is entitled to receive twice the cash dividends paid on a per share basis to the Class B common stock, if any; and (b) the holders of the Class B common stock have the exclusive right to elect a simple majority of the Board of Directors of Citizens. In April 2021, we repurchased all of the outstanding Class B

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
common stock and it is now classified as treasury stock. As a result, all of the directors are elected by the holders of the Class A common stock. Citizens has never issued any preferred stock.

A summary of the change in number of shares of Class A and Class B common stock and treasury stock issued is as follows:
(In thousands)Common StockTreasury
Class AClass BStock
Balance at December 31, 201852,216 1,002 (3,136)
Change149 — — 
Balance at December 31, 201952,365 1,002 (3,136)
Change289 — — 
Balance at December 31, 202052,654 1,002 (3,136)
Change516  (1,002)
Balance at December 31, 202153,170 1,002 (4,138)

EARNINGS PER SHARE

The following table sets forth the computation of basic and diluted earnings per share.
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except per share amounts)
202120202019
Net income (loss)$36,787 (10,988)(1,370)
Numerator for Basic Earnings Per Share:   
Net income (loss) allocated to Class A common stock$36,673 (10,878)(1,356)
Net income (loss) allocated to Class B common stock114 (110)(14)
Net income (loss)$36,787 (10,988)(1,370)
Denominator for Basic Earnings Per Share:
Weighted average shares of Class A outstanding49,664 49,400 49,214 
Weighted average shares of Class B outstanding308 1,002 1,002 
Total weighted average shares outstanding49,972 50,402 50,216 
Basic earnings (loss) per share of Class A common stock$0.74 (0.22)(0.03)
Basic earnings (loss) per share of Class B common stock0.37 (0.11)(0.01)
Numerator for Diluted Earnings Per Share:
Net income (loss) allocated to Class A common stock$36,675 (10,878)(1,356)
Net income (loss) allocated to Class B common stock112 (110)(14)
Net income (loss)$36,787 (10,988)(1,370)
Denominator for Diluted Earnings Per Share:   
Weighted average shares of Class A outstanding50,337 49,938 49,347 
Weighted average shares of Class B outstanding308 1,002 1,002 
Total weighted average shares outstanding50,645 50,940 50,349 
Diluted earnings (loss) per share of Class A common stock$0.73 (0.22)(0.03)
Diluted earnings (loss) per share of Class B common stock0.36 (0.11)(0.01)




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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
STATUTORY CAPITAL AND SURPLUS

The table below shows the combined total of all of our domestic insurance subsidiaries' statutory capital and surplus and statutory net income (loss) for life insurance operations and property insurance operations, although these amounts are not all available as dividends to Citizens because only CICA is directly owned by Citizens.  All other domestic subsidiaries are owned by CICA.

As of December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
Combined statutory capital and surplus
Life insurance operations$43,138 39,633 
Property insurance operations5,298 4,810 
Total combined statutory capital and surplus$48,436 44,443 
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Combined statutory net income (loss)
Life insurance operations$5,280 9,458 (1,200)
Property insurance operations(1,512)(1,985)(451)
Total combined statutory net income (loss)$3,768 7,473 (1,651)
Generally, the net assets of the domestic insurance subsidiaries available for transfer to their immediate parent are limited to the lesser of the subsidiary's net gain from operations during the preceding year or 10% of the subsidiary's net statutory surplus as of the end of the preceding year as determined in accordance with accounting practices prescribed or permitted by insurance regulatory authorities.  Under these practices, total surplus at December 31, 2021 was $40.0 million and net gain from operations was $0.2 million for CICA for the year ended December 31, 2021.  Based upon these amounts, a $0.2 million dividend could be paid to the Company without prior regulatory approval in 2022.  Payments of dividends in excess of such amounts would generally require approval by regulatory authorities.

CICA, CNLIC, SPLIC, MGLIC and SPFIC have calculated their risk-based capital ("RBC") in accordance with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners' ("NAIC") Model Rule and the RBC rules as adopted by their respective states of domicile. As part of the novation transaction with CICA International, the Company agreed to infuse capital into CICA as required by the Colorado Department of Insurance to maintain CICA's RBC above 350% in any future calendar year-end periods. All insurance subsidiaries exceeded RBC minimum levels at December 31, 2021.

Under the Bermuda Insurance Act 1978, an insurer is prohibited from declaring or paying a dividend if it is in breach of its Enhanced Capital Requirement (“ECR”) or Minimum Margin of Solvency (“MMS”) or if the declaration or payment of such dividend would cause such a breach. Where an insurer fails to meet its MMS on the last day of any financial year, it is prohibited from declaring or paying any dividends during the next financial year without the approval of the Bermuda Monetary Authority (the “BMA” or the "Authority"). Insurers are also prohibited from paying a dividend in an amount exceeding 25% of the prior year’s total statutory capital and surplus, unless at least two members of the board of directors and its principal representative sign and submit to the BMA an affidavit attesting that a dividend in excess of this amount would not cause such insurer to fail to meet its relevant margins. In certain instances, the insurer would also be required to provide prior notice to the BMA in advance of the payment of dividends.

In the event that such an affidavit is submitted to the BMA in accordance with the Bermuda Insurance Act, and further subject to CICA International meeting its MMS and ECR requirements, CICA International would be permitted to distribute a dividend not exceeding 25% of its prior year's total statutory capital and surplus. Distributions in excess of this amount require the approval of the BMA. Further, CICA International must obtain the

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
BMA’s prior approval before reducing its total statutory capital as shown in its previous financial year statutory balance sheet by 15% or more. CICA International is also prohibited from declaring or paying any dividends unless the value of its long-term business assets exceeds its long-term business liabilities, as certified by its approved actuary, by the amount of the dividend and at least the MMS. These restrictions on declaring or paying dividends and distributions under the Bermuda Insurance Act of 1978 are in addition to those under Bermuda’s Companies Act 1981 which apply to all Bermuda companies. Based upon these rules, CICA International can pay a dividend of $4.5 million without prior regulatory approval in 2022. However, the BMA has requested that CICA International notify the Authority in advance of any potential dividend payments and any intercompany related payments or transactions.

As of December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
CICA International capital and surplus$141,931 158,447 

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
CICA International net income (loss)$14,029 9,000 7,649 

The BMA established risk-based regulatory capital adequacy and solvency margin requirements for Bermuda insurers that mandate that a Bermuda-domiciled subsidiary’s ECR be calculated by either: (a) Bermuda Solvency Capital Requirement ("BSCR"); or (b) an internal capital model that the BMA has approved for use for this purpose. CICA International uses the BSCR in calculating its solvency requirements. The Economic Balance Sheet ("EBS") framework is embedded as part of the BSCR and forms the basis of its ECR. CICA International held capital in excess of the BSCR requirements at December 31, 2021. At the request of the BMA, on April 15, 2021, Citizens and CICA International entered into a Keep Well Agreement. The Keep Well Agreement requires Citizens to contribute up to $10 million in capital to CICA International as necessary to ensure that CICA International has a minimum capital level of 120% (equal to the TCL). Since CICA International's capital level currently exceeds 120%, Citizens is not currently required to make a capital contribution.

On June 10, 2016, the NAIC Executive Committee and Plenary voted to adopt a recommendation for January 1, 2017 as the operative date for the implementation of Principles-Based Reserves (“PBR”) as a national standard for life insurance products. Although this NAIC standard does not change the reserving requirements under U.S. GAAP, it can be significant for many life insurers. PBR replaces the current formulaic approach to determining policy reserves with an approach that more closely reflects the risks of highly complex products. Companies will be expected to develop “right-sized” reserves that better align with their specific product features, their observed actuarial experience, and their overall risk management procedures. PBR was required effective January 1, 2020. The Company files annual requests for PBR exemption with the various state Departments of Insurance since all of our domestic insurance subsidiaries met the small company exemption outlined in the NAIC Valuation Manual, VM-20, for principle-based reserving.

(7)(8) COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

QUALIFICATIONS OF LIFE PRODUCTS

We have previously reported that a portion of the life insurance policies issued by our subsidiary insurance companies failed to qualify for the favorable U.S. federal income tax treatment afforded by Sections 7702 and 72(s) of the Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") of 1986. Further, we have determined that the structure of our policies sold to non-U.S. persons, which were novated to CICA International effective July 1, 2018, inadvertently generated U.S. source income over time, which subjected the Company to certain tax withholding and information reporting requirements under Chapters 3 or 4 of the IRC. The products have been and continue to be appropriately reported as life insurance under U.S. GAAP for financial reporting.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
To satisfy the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") tax withholding and information reporting requirements for the novated policies sold to non-U.S. persons as described above, the Company submitted withholding tax returns to the IRS in December 2019, and amended returns in August 2020 and paid the associated withholding tax. The IRS processed these withholding tax returns in 2021, and the Company considers this matter closed.

LITIGATION AND REGULATORY ACTIONS

From time to time, we are subject to legal and regulatory actions relating to our business. We defend all claims vigorously.  As a result, we incur defense costs, including attorneys' fees, other direct litigation costs and the expenditure of management time that otherwise would be devoted to our business. If we suffer an adverse judgment as a result of litigation claims or if a regulator fines us, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

CREDIT FACILITY

On May 5, 2021, the Company entered into a $20 million senior secured revolving credit facility (the “Credit Facility”) with Regions Bank ("Regions"). The Credit Facility has a three-year term, maturing on May 5, 2024, and allows the Company to borrow up to $20 million for working capital purposes, capital expenditures and other corporate purposes.

Revolving loans may be requested by the Company in aggregate minimum principal amounts of $0.5 million per loan. At the Company's election, the revolving loans may either bear a base rate, which is 1.75% plus a base rate (a fluctuating rate per annum) equal to the greatest of (a) Regions' prime rate, (b) the federal funds rate plus 0.50%, (c) the one-month LIBOR rate plus 1%, and (d) 0.75%; or an adjusted LIBOR rate, which is 2.75% plus an adjusted LIBOR rate but cannot be less than(c) 0.75%. The Company is required to pay Regions a quarterly commitment fee of 0.375% of the unused portion of the Credit Facility, which the Company expenses as it is incurred.

Obligations under the Credit Facility are secured by substantially all of the assets of the Company other than the equity interests in all of the regulated insurance subsidiaries, real estate owned by the Company, and other limited exceptions. The Credit Facility contains customary events of default and financial, affirmative and negative covenants, including but not limited to restrictions on indebtedness, liens, investments, asset dispositions and restricted payments. As of December 31, 2021,2023, the Company had not borrowed any funds against the Credit Facility and was not in violation of any covenants.

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)

CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS

The Company leases home office space in Austin, Texas for Citizens and in BermudaPuerto Rico for CICA InternationalNES as well as several district office locations related to our Home Service Insurance segment across Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas, which are classified as operating leases. Certain operating leases include renewal options that extend the lease term. The exercise of lease renewal options is at our sole discretion when it is reasonably certain that we will exercise such option. The Company also has a minimal amount of finance leases regarding equipment. Leases with an initial term of 12 months or less are immaterial to the consolidated financial statements and are recognized as lease expense on a straight-line basis over the lease term and not recorded on the consolidated balance sheets.

Our operating lease liabilities had a weighted-average lease term of 8.96.8 years remaining as of December 31, 2021.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
2023.

Maturities of our remaining operating lease liabilities as of December 31, 20212023 are as follows.
(In thousands)(In thousands)Operating Lease Payments(In thousands)Operating Lease Payments
Maturity of operating lease liabilities
2022$1,272 
20231,271 
Maturity of operating lease liabilities:
2024
2024
202420241,303 
202520251,335 
202620261,368 
After 20265,567 
Total operating lease payments12,116 
2027
2028
After 2028
Total operating lease liabilities
Interest expenseInterest expense(1,290)
Present value of operating lease liabilitiesPresent value of operating lease liabilities$10,826 

We record the lease right-of-use asset in Other AssetsProperty and Equipment, net and the lease liability in Other Liabilities using a weighted average discount rate of 2.81%2.59%. Cash payments related to the operating lease liabilities were $1.4 million and $1.3 million for both of the years ended December 31, 20212023 and 20202022 and were reported in operating cash flows.

The Company does not engage in lease agreements among related parties.

As of December 31, 2021,2023, CICA International is committed to fund investments up to $39.8$27.3 million related to limited partnership investments.

(8)(9)STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY AND RESTRICTIONS

STOCK

Our Restated and Amended Articles of Incorporation authorize the issuance of 127,000,000 shares, of which 100,000,000 shares shall be Class A common stock, 2,000,000 shares shall be Class B common stock, and 25,000,000 shall be preferred stock. Both authorized classes of common stock are equal in all respects, except (a) each share of Class A common stock is entitled to receive twice the cash dividends paid on a per share basis to the Class B common stock, if any; and (b) the holders of the Class B common stock have the exclusive right to elect a simple majority of the Board of Directors of Citizens. In April 2021, we repurchased all of the outstanding Class B common stock and it is now classified as treasury stock. As a result, all of the directors are elected by the holders of the Class A common stock. Citizens has never issued any preferred stock.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
A summary of the change in the number of shares of Class A and Class B common stock and treasury stock issued is as follows:
(In thousands)Common StockTreasury
Class AClass BStock
Balance at December 31, 202052,654 1,002 3,136 
Stock issued under stock investment plan404 — — 
Stock issued for compensation112 — — 
Acquisition of Class B shares— — 1,002 
Balance at December 31, 202153,170 1,002 4,138 
Stock issued under stock investment plan475 — — 
Stock issued for compensation91 — — 
Acquisition of Class A shares— — 799 
Other share issuance22 — — 
Balance at December 31, 202253,758 1,002 4,937 
Stock issued for compensation125   
Acquisition of Class A shares  393 
Balance at December 31, 202353,883 1,002 5,330 

EARNINGS PER SHARE

The following table sets forth the computation of basic and diluted earnings per share.
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except per share amounts)
202320222021
Net income (loss)$24,437 26,007 72,706 
Numerator for Basic Earnings Per Share:   
Net income (loss) allocated to Class A common stock$24,437 26,007 72,481 
Net income (loss) allocated to Class B common stock — 225 
Net income (loss)$24,437 26,007 72,706 
Denominator for Basic Earnings Per Share:
Weighted average shares of Class A outstanding49,696 50,139 49,664 
Weighted average shares of Class B outstanding — 308 
Total weighted average shares outstanding49,696 50,139 49,972 
Basic earnings (loss) per share of Class A common stock$0.49 0.52 1.46 
Basic earnings (loss) per share of Class B common stock — 0.73 
Numerator for Diluted Earnings Per Share:
Net income (loss) allocated to Class A common stock$24,437 26,007 72,484 
Net income (loss) allocated to Class B common stock — 222 
Net income (loss)$24,437 26,007 72,706 
Denominator for Diluted Earnings Per Share:   
Weighted average shares of Class A outstanding50,681 50,867 50,337 
Weighted average shares of Class B outstanding — 308 
Total weighted average shares outstanding50,681 50,867 50,645 
Diluted earnings (loss) per share of Class A common stock$0.48 0.51 1.44 
Diluted earnings (loss) per share of Class B common stock — 0.72 

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)

STATUTORY CAPITAL AND SURPLUS

The table below shows the combined total of all of our domestic insurance subsidiaries' statutory capital and surplus and statutory net income (loss) for life insurance operations and property insurance operations, although these amounts are not all available as dividends to Citizens since CICA Domestic is the only subsidiary directly owned by Citizens.  All other domestic subsidiaries are owned by CICA Domestic.

As of December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Combined statutory capital and surplus:
Life insurance operations$29,416 35,433 
Property insurance operations5,692 6,912 
Total combined statutory capital and surplus$35,108 42,345 
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Combined statutory net income (loss):
Life insurance operations$(3,606)(1,885)5,280 
Property insurance operations(1,219)1,615 (1,512)
Total combined statutory net income (loss)$(4,825)(270)3,768 
Generally, the net assets of the domestic insurance subsidiaries available for transfer to their immediate parent are limited to the lesser of the subsidiary's net gain from operations during the preceding year or 10% of the subsidiary's net statutory surplus as of the end of the preceding year as determined in accordance with accounting practices prescribed or permitted by insurance regulatory authorities.  Under these practices, total surplus at December 31, 2023 was $26.3 million and net loss from operations was $0.9 million for CICA Domestic for the year ended December 31, 2023.  Based upon these amounts, no dividend could be paid to the Company without prior regulatory approval in 2024. Payments of dividends in excess of such amounts would generally require approval by regulatory authorities.

Our domestic insurance subsidiaries have calculated their risk-based capital ("RBC") in accordance with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners' ("NAIC") Model Rule and the RBC rules as adopted by their respective states of domicile. As part of the novation transaction with CICA Bermuda, the Company agreed to infuse capital into CICA Domestic as required by the Colorado Department of Insurance to maintain CICA Domestic's RBC above 350% in any future calendar year-end periods. All domestic insurance subsidiaries exceeded RBC minimum levels at December 31, 2023.

CICA International is a Puerto Rico domiciled company. The Insurance Code of Puerto Rico does not specifically set forth minimum capital and surplus standards, but rather requires that an insurer submit a business plan for approval to the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance ("OIC") that includes proposed minimum capital and surplus. CICA International is required to maintain a minimum of $750,000 in capital and maintain a premium to surplus ratio of 7 to 1. CICA International began issuing new business as of January 1, 2023 and received the transfer of all of CICA Bermuda's in force insurance business as of August 31, 2023. On that date, Citizens entered into a Keep Well Agreement with CICA International to replace the Keep Well Agreement that had been in place between Citizens and CICA Bermuda. The Keep Well Agreement requires Citizens to contribute up to $10 million in capital to CICA International as necessary to ensure that CICA International maintains at least either (i) 112% of its required ratio of premiums to capital and surplus, or (ii) 200% of the minimum capital and surplus requirement, whichever is higher. The initial term of the Keep Well Agreement is 12 months. Since CICA International's capital exceeds both of the metrics, Citizens is not required to make a capital contribution. Any capital that Citizens is required to contribute could negatively impact the Company's capital resources and liquidity.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
As of December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
CICA Bermuda capital and surplus$ 61,801 
CICA International capital and surplus$66,619 — 

CICA Bermuda requested a modification as permitted under Section 6C (1) of the Bermuda Insurance Act 1978 (the "Insurance Act") to remove the impact of unrealized gains or losses from the Minimum Margin of Solvency requirement. On January 19, 2023, the Bermuda Monetary Authority granted CICA Bermuda a permitted practice, effective December 31, 2022, pursuant to Section 6C (1) of the Insurance Act to report its fixed income maturity securities at amortized cost in its unconsolidated statutory financial statements.

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
CICA Bermuda net income (loss)$ (1,024)14,029 
CICA International net income (loss)$27,484 — — 

As stated above, CICA International exceeded both of the capital and surplus metrics established by the OIC. CICA International could pay up to $5.0 million in dividends during 2024 without regulatory approval.

(10) SEGMENT AND OTHER OPERATING INFORMATION

The Company has 2two reportable segments:  Life Insurance and Home Service Insurance. Our Life Insurance segment primarily issues endowment contracts, which are principally accumulation contracts that incorporate an element of life insurance protection, and ordinary whole life insurance to non-U.S. residents through CICA International.  These contracts are designed to provide a fixed amount of insurance coverage over the life of the insured and may utilize rider benefits to provide additional coverage and annuity benefits to enhance accumulations. CICA issues credit life and disability and accident and health related policies throughout the Midwest and southern U.S. CNLICDomestic issues ordinary whole life, final expense, life products with living benefits, critical illness and credit life and credit disability policies in Florida.throughout the U.S.

Our Home Service Insurance segment operates through our subsidiaries SPLIC, MGLIC and SPFIC, and focuses on the life insurance needs of the middle- and lower-income markets, primarily in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas.  Our policies are sold and serviced through 169 funeral homes and 397 independent agents who sell policies, collect premiums and service policyholders.  Our Home Service Insurance segment also sellssold property insurance policies in Louisiana.Louisiana and Arkansas until operations were ceased effective June 30, 2023.

The Life Insurance and Home Service Insurance portions of the Company constitute separate businesses. In addition to the Life Insurance and Home Service Insurance business, the Company also operates other non-insurance portions of the Company ("Other Non-Insurance Enterprises"), which primarily include the Company’s IT and Corporate-support functions that are included in the tables presented below to properly reconcile the segment information with the consolidated financial statements of the Company.corporate-support functions.

The accounting policies of the reportable segments and Other Non-Insurance Enterprises are presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP and are the same as those described in the summary of significant accounting policies.  The Company evaluates profit and loss performance based on U.S. GAAP net income (loss) before federal income taxes for its two reportable segments.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The Company's Other Non-Insurance Enterprises represents the only reportable difference between segments and reported consolidated operations.

Year ended December 31, 2021
(In thousands)
Life
Insurance
Home
Service Insurance
Other
Non-Insurance
Enterprises
Consolidated
Revenues:    
Premiums
Life insurance$125,558 44,243  169,801 
Accident and health insurance500 750  1,250 
Property insurance 3,677  3,677 
Net investment income (loss)47,216 13,224 1,055 61,495 
Investment related gains (losses), net9,176 618 1,197 10,991 
Other income (loss)3,362 7 (37)3,332 
Total revenue185,812 62,519 2,215 250,546 
Benefits and expenses:    
Insurance benefits paid or provided:    
Claims and surrenders91,390 28,345  119,735 
Increase in future policy benefit reserves29,407 7,037  36,444 
Policyholders' dividends6,140 40  6,180 
Total insurance benefits paid or provided126,937 35,422  162,359 
Commissions18,747 16,716  35,463 
Other general expenses20,846 14,739 7,785 43,370 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(16,174)(6,566) (22,740)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs21,571 3,381  24,952 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquired343 863  1,206 
Goodwill impairment12,624   12,624 
Total benefits and expenses184,894 64,555 7,785 257,234 
Income (loss) before federal income tax$918 (2,036)(5,570)(6,688)


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Year ended December 31, 2020
(In thousands)
Life
Insurance
Home
Service Insurance
Other
Non-Insurance
Enterprises
Consolidated
Year ended December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
Year ended December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
Life
Insurance
Home
Service Insurance
Other
Non-Insurance
Enterprises
Consolidated
Revenues:Revenues:    Revenues:  
Premiums
Premiums:
Life insurance
Life insurance
Life insuranceLife insurance$128,900 41,428 — 170,328 
Accident and health insuranceAccident and health insurance301 718 — 1,019 
Property insuranceProperty insurance— 3,982 — 3,982 
Net investment income (loss)Net investment income (loss)45,885 13,051 1,261 60,197 
Investment related gains (losses), netInvestment related gains (losses), net1,340 223 (61)1,502 
Other income (loss)Other income (loss)1,806 19 1,828 
Total revenue178,232 59,421 1,203 238,856 
Total revenues
Benefits and expenses:Benefits and expenses:    Benefits and expenses:  
Insurance benefits paid or provided:Insurance benefits paid or provided:    Insurance benefits paid or provided:  
Claims and surrendersClaims and surrenders93,813 27,332 — 121,145 
Increase in future policy benefit reservesIncrease in future policy benefit reserves25,825 4,098 — 29,923 
Policyholder liability remeasurement (gain) loss
Policyholders' dividendsPolicyholders' dividends5,554 33 — 5,587 
Total insurance benefits paid or providedTotal insurance benefits paid or provided125,192 31,463 — 156,655 
CommissionsCommissions17,944 14,125 — 32,069 
Other general expensesOther general expenses16,323 17,402 19,944 53,669 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costsCapitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(15,568)(4,907)— (20,475)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costsAmortization of deferred policy acquisition costs23,987 3,452 — 27,439 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquiredAmortization of cost of insurance acquired460 1,356 — 1,816 
Total benefits and expensesTotal benefits and expenses168,338 62,891 19,944 251,173 
Income (loss) before federal income taxIncome (loss) before federal income tax$9,894 (3,470)(18,741)(12,317)


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Year ended December 31, 2019
(In thousands)
Life
Insurance
Home
Service Insurance
Other
Non-Insurance
Enterprises
Consolidated
Revenues:    
Premiums    
Life insurance$136,941 41,410 — 178,351 
Accident and health insurance725 658 — 1,383 
Property insurance— 4,613 — 4,613 
Net investment income (loss)44,779 13,058 1,694 59,531 
Investment related gains (losses), net6,795 1,470 (3,016)5,249 
Other income (loss)1,412 1,418 
Total revenue190,652 61,213 (1,320)250,545 
Benefits and expenses:    
Insurance benefits paid or provided:    
Claims and surrenders82,964 23,863 — 106,827 
Increase in future policy benefit reserves39,873 1,839 — 41,712 
Policyholders' dividends6,004 36 — 6,040 
Total insurance benefits paid or provided128,841 25,738 — 154,579 
Commissions20,128 14,094 — 34,222 
Other general expenses23,012 19,517 5,911 48,440 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(17,448)(4,807)— (22,255)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs23,832 4,436 — 28,268 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquired492 1,054 — 1,546 
Total benefits and expenses178,857 60,032 5,911 244,800 
Income (loss) before federal income tax$11,795 1,181 (7,231)5,745 

The table below summarizes assets by segment.

December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
Assets:  
Life Insurance$1,390,392 1,381,723 
Home Service Insurance407,603 385,931 
Other Non-Insurance Enterprises56,516 75,766 
Total assets$1,854,511 1,843,420 


Year ended December 31, 2022
(In thousands)
Life
Insurance
Home
Service Insurance
Other
Non-Insurance
Enterprises
Consolidated
Revenues:    
Premiums:
Life insurance$124,156 43,430 — 167,586 
Accident and health insurance497 781 — 1,278 
Property insurance— 4,850 — 4,850 
Net investment income (loss)50,680 13,632 1,114 65,426 
Investment related gains (losses), net(8,826)(1,277)(188)(10,291)
Other income (loss)3,668 3,675 
Total revenues170,175 61,417 932 232,524 
Benefits and expenses:    
Insurance benefits paid or provided:    
Claims and surrenders95,576 24,359 — 119,935 
Increase in future policy benefit reserves3,894 910 — 4,804 
Policyholder liability remeasurement (gain) loss1,728 1,156 — 2,884 
Policyholders' dividends5,990 23 — 6,013 
Total insurance benefits paid or provided107,188 26,448 — 133,636 
Commissions20,031 16,191 — 36,222 
Other general expenses23,192 16,444 5,541 45,177 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(17,942)(6,957)— (24,899)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs12,160 2,230 — 14,390 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquired123 498 — 621 
Total benefits and expenses144,752 54,854 5,541 205,147 
Income (loss) before federal income tax$25,423 6,563 (4,609)27,377 

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Year ended December 31, 2021
(In thousands)
Life
Insurance
Home
Service Insurance
Other
Non-Insurance
Enterprises
Consolidated
Revenues:    
Premiums:    
Life insurance$125,558 44,243 — 169,801 
Accident and health insurance500 750 — 1,250 
Property insurance— 3,677 — 3,677 
Net investment income (loss)47,216 13,224 1,055 61,495 
Investment related gains (losses), net9,176 618 1,197 10,991 
Other income (loss)3,362 (37)3,332 
Total revenue185,812 62,519 2,215 250,546 
Benefits and expenses:    
Insurance benefits paid or provided:    
Claims and surrenders91,390 28,345 — 119,735 
Increase in future policy benefit reserves7,822 1,951 — 9,773 
Policyholder liability remeasurement (gain) loss829 605 — 1,434 
Policyholders' dividends6,140 40 — 6,180 
Total insurance benefits paid or provided106,181 30,941 — 137,122 
Commissions18,747 16,716 — 35,463 
Other general expenses20,846 14,739 7,785 43,370 
Capitalization of deferred policy acquisition costs(16,174)(6,566)— (22,740)
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs11,536 1,909 — 13,445 
Amortization of cost of insurance acquired150 607 — 757 
Goodwill impairment12,624 — — 12,624 
Total benefits and expenses153,910 58,346 7,785 220,041 
Income (loss) before federal income tax$31,902 4,173 (5,570)30,505 

The table below summarizes assets by segment.

December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Assets:  
Segments:
Life Insurance$1,267,243 1,194,285 
Home Service Insurance359,773 341,671 
Total Segments1,627,016 1,535,956 
Other Non-Insurance Enterprises41,912 54,747 
Total assets$1,668,928 1,590,703 


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION

The following table sets forth, by country, the Company's annual total of earned premiums from geographic area for the years indicated:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Area:Area:   Area:  
United StatesUnited States$56,000 52,667 53,656 
ColombiaColombia24,829 25,783 26,768 
TaiwanTaiwan19,042 19,078 19,403 
VenezuelaVenezuela17,788 19,956 22,353 
EcuadorEcuador13,115 13,301 14,198 
ArgentinaArgentina9,160 9,175 10,069 
Other foreign countriesOther foreign countries38,871 38,993 40,562 
Net reinsuranceNet reinsurance(4,077)(3,624)(2,662)
Total premiumsTotal premiums$174,728 175,329 184,347 

(9)(11) INCOME TAXES

CICA International aand CICA Bermuda, wholly-owned subsidiarysubsidiaries of Citizens, isare considered a controlled foreign corporationcorporations for federal income tax purposes. As a result, the insurance activity of CICA International isand CICA Bermuda are subject to Subpart F of the IRCInternal Revenue Code ("IRC") and isare included in Citizens’ taxable income. Due to the 0% enacted tax rate in Bermuda, there are no deferred taxes recorded for CICA International'sBermuda's temporary differences. CICA International has applied for a tax exemption decree from the Government of Puerto Rico which will freeze the income tax rate at 4% on any taxable earnings in excess of $1.2 million. For the yearsyear ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019,2023, the Subpart F income inclusion generated $2.1 million, $2.2 million and $5.9$1.6 million of federal income tax expense respectively.and $2.1 million of federal income tax expense for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.

In connection with the transfer of CICA Bermuda’s business from a zero tax jurisdiction to CICA International’s 4% tax jurisdiction in Puerto Rico, certain opening tax assets and liabilities, mainly related to investments, DAC and reserves, were established. The net deferred tax asset of $1.4 million was recorded to retained earnings during 2023 in accordance with ASC Topic 805.

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
A reconciliation between the U.S. corporate income tax rate and the effective income tax rate is as follows:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
2021%2020%2019%
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands, except for %)
2023%2022%2021%
Expected tax expense (benefit)Expected tax expense (benefit)$(1,404)21.0 %$(2,586)21.0 %$1,186 21.0 %Expected tax expense (benefit)$5,497 21.0 21.0 %$5,749 21.0 21.0 %$6,406 21.0 21.0 %
Change in valuation allowanceChange in valuation allowance  — — — %
Foreign income tax rate differential
Foreign income tax rate differential
Foreign income tax rate differentialForeign income tax rate differential(2,912)43.5 (1,817)14.8 (1,562)(27.7)
Tax-exempt interest and dividends-received deductionTax-exempt interest and dividends-received deduction(114)1.7 (146)1.2 (145)(2.6)
Tax-exempt interest and dividends-received deduction
Tax-exempt interest and dividends-received deduction
Adjustment of prior year taxesAdjustment of prior year taxes(61)0.9 194 (1.6)(99)(1.8)
Adjustment of prior year taxes
Adjustment of prior year taxes
Effect of uncertain tax position
Effect of uncertain tax position
Effect of uncertain tax positionEffect of uncertain tax position(43,834)655.4 — 1,148 20.3 
Nondeductible costs to remediate tax compliance issueNondeductible costs to remediate tax compliance issue(176)2.6 (620)5.0 (27)(0.5)
Compensation limitation under 162(m) and 280(g)Compensation limitation under 162(m) and 280(g)(21)0.3 2,386 (19.4)480 8.5 
Subpart F incomeSubpart F income2,102 (31.4)2,217 (18.0)5,853 103.6 
PFIC QEF inclusions
Puerto Rico income tax exclusion
Rate differential on net operating loss carryback claimRate differential on net operating loss carryback claim295 (4.4)(999)8.1 — — 
Goodwill impairmentGoodwill impairment2,651 (39.6)— — — — 
Goodwill impairment
Goodwill impairment
OtherOther(1) 41 (0.3)281 5.2 
Total federal income tax expense (benefit)Total federal income tax expense (benefit)$(43,475)650.0 %$(1,329)10.8 %$7,115 126.0 %Total federal income tax expense (benefit)$1,737 6.6 6.6 %$1,370 5.0 5.0 %$(42,201)(138.4)(138.4)%

Income tax expense (benefit) consists of:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Income tax expense (benefit):
Current - normal operations$1,848 632 (68)
Current - UTP release impact(971)(1,185)(43,834)
Deferred860 1,923 1,701 
Total income tax expense (benefit)$1,737 1,370 (42,201)


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
Income tax expense (benefit) consists of:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Income tax expense (benefit):
Current - normal operations$(68)(927)5,542 
Current - UTP release impact(43,834)— — 
Deferred427 (402)1,573 
Total income tax expense (benefit)$(43,475)(1,329)7,115 

The components of deferred federal income taxes are as follows:

December 31,
(In thousands)
December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Deferred tax assets:Deferred tax assets:  Deferred tax assets:  
Future policy benefit reservesFuture policy benefit reserves$2,572 2,657 
Net operating and capital loss carryforwardsNet operating and capital loss carryforwards1,545 1,395 
Accrued policyholder dividends and expensesAccrued policyholder dividends and expenses115 124 
InvestmentsInvestments218 147 
Deferred intercompany lossDeferred intercompany loss1,848 2,002 
Deferred intercompany loss
Deferred intercompany loss
Unrealized losses on investments available-for-sale
Accrued compensationAccrued compensation337 513 
Lease liabilityLease liability2,274 2,514 
Fixed assets
OtherOther236 584 
Total gross deferred tax assetsTotal gross deferred tax assets9,145 9,936 
Less:
Valuation allowance
Valuation allowance
Valuation allowance
Net deferred tax assets
Deferred tax liabilities:Deferred tax liabilities:  Deferred tax liabilities:  
DAC, COIA and intangible assetsDAC, COIA and intangible assets(8,955)(8,693)
Future policy benefit reserves
Unrealized gains on investments available-for-saleUnrealized gains on investments available-for-sale(10,350)(4,522)
Tax reserves transition liability
Tax reserves transition liability
Tax reserves transition liabilityTax reserves transition liability(2,989)(3,736)
Right-of-use lease assetRight-of-use lease asset(2,274)(2,514)
OtherOther(33)(35)
Total gross deferred tax liabilitiesTotal gross deferred tax liabilities(24,601)(19,500)
Net deferred tax liabilityNet deferred tax liability$(15,456)(9,564)

A summary of the changes in the components of deferred federal and state income taxes is as follows:

December 31,
(In thousands)
December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Deferred federal and state income taxes:Deferred federal and state income taxes:  Deferred federal and state income taxes:  
Balance January 1,Balance January 1,$(9,564)(12,428)
Deferred tax benefit (expense)Deferred tax benefit (expense)(427)402 
Investments available-for-saleInvestments available-for-sale(5,709)2,774 
Effects of unrealized gains on DAC, COIA and reserves244 (391)
Adoption of ASU 2016-13 79 
Investments available-for-sale
Investments available-for-sale
Change in valuation allowance
Effects of unrealized gains (losses) on reserves
Effects of unrealized gains (losses) on reserves
Effects of unrealized gains (losses) on reserves
Balance December 31,Balance December 31,$(15,456)(9,564)
Balance December 31,
Balance December 31,

The Company and our subsidiaries have no net operating loss carryforwards at December 31, 2023. The Company and our subsidiaries have capital loss carryforwards of $1.6 million at December 31, 2023, which begin expiring in 2026.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The Company and our subsidiaries have net operating loss carryforwards of $6.3 million at December 31, 2021, which will begin expiring in 2036. MGLIC joined the Company's consolidated tax return filing group in 2020 and had a $0.4 million net operating loss carryforward as of December 31, 2021, which will begin expiring in 2037. The MGLIC net operating losses were incurred while it was owned by the Company; thus, there will be no IRC Section 382 limit on the utilization of these net operating losses.

The Company and our subsidiaries had capital loss carryforwards of $1.0 million at December 31, 2021, which begin expiring in 2026.

At December 31, 20212023 and 2020,2022, we determined that as a result of our taxable capital gain income in carryback periods, the expected reversal of existing deferred tax liabilities, and tax planning strategies, it was more likely than not that thea portion of our capital deferred tax assets would not be realized.realized in their entirety. Thus, the Company holds no valuation allowanceallowances of $4.5 million and $4.2 million in operations or other comprehensive income (loss) at December 31, 20212023 and 2020.2022.

The Company recognizes only the impact of tax positions that, based on their technical merits, are more likely than not to be sustained upon an audit by the taxing authority.

A reconciliation of unrecognized tax benefits is as follows:

Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Balance at January 1,$45,990 45,989 44,841 
Balance January 1,
Additions for tax positions of prior years 1,148 
Reductions for tax positions of prior years
Reductions for tax positions of prior years
Reductions for tax positions of prior yearsReductions for tax positions of prior years(43,834)— — 
Balance December 31,Balance December 31,$2,156 45,990 45,989 

This unrecognized tax benefit iswas reported net in the balance of current federal income tax payable on the consolidated balance sheets. Included in these amounts are interest expense of $0.4$0.2 million and $9.9$0.4 million with respect to unrecognized tax benefits as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, and 2020, respectively. There are no unrecognized tax benefits remaining as of December 31, 2023.

The Company’s unrecognized tax benefits at December 31, 2021 would affect the effective tax rate if recognized. The Company accrued an uncertain tax position of $46.0$1.0 million and $2.2 million at December 31, 2020.2022 and 2021, respectively, which would have affected the effective tax rate if recognized. However, the Company released $43.8 millionall of thisthe remaining uncertain tax position,positions, including interest, during the fourth quarter of 20212023 following the expiration of the statute of limitations on the tax year ended December 31, 2017. The Company believes it is reasonably possible that $1.0 million of the uncertain tax benefits will decrease within the next twelve months.2019.

The Company’s practice is to recognize interest and penalties related to income tax matters in income tax expense.  In the consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss), the amount of interest income recorded was $9.5$0.2 million, for the year ended December 31, 2021, and interest expense of $0.0$0.2 million and $1.1$9.5 million were recorded for the years ended December 31, 20202023, 2022 and 2019,2021, respectively.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act ("CARES Act") was enacted on March 27, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act, among other things, permitspermitted net operating losses incurred in 2018, 2019 and 2020 to be carried back to each of the five preceding taxable years to generate a refund of previously paid income taxes. During the year ended December 31, 2020,2022, the Company was able to claim a net refund for taxes paid in preceding years as a result of the CARES Act. As of December 31, 2021,2023, the Company has an accrued tax refund remaining of $2.6$1.5 million.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act was enacted on December 27, 2020 and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was enacted March 11, 2021.2021 and the Inflation Reduction Act was enacted on August 16, 2022. These Acts did not have a material impact on the Company's financial statements.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The Company's Federalfederal income tax return is filed on a consolidated basis with the following entities:
 
Citizens, Inc.
CICA Life Insurance Company of America
Citizens National Life Insurance Company
Magnolia Guaranty Life Insurance Company
Security Plan Life Insurance Company
Security Plan Fire Insurance Company
Computing Technology, Inc.

The method of tax allocation among companies is subject to a written tax sharing agreement, approved by the Board of Directors, whereby allocation is made primarily on a separate return basis pursuant to the wait-and-see method.  Under this method, consolidated group members are not given current credit or refunds for net operating losses until taxable income on a separate return basis is generated. Intercompany tax balances are settled at least annually.

The Company and our subsidiaries file income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and various U.S. states. Our subsidiaries are subject to examination by U.S. tax authorities for tax years 2013 - 2016 and 2018 - 2020.

ending after December 31, 2019.

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(10)
(12) OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)

The changes in the components of other comprehensive income (loss) are reported net of the effects of income taxes of 21% in 2021, 2020for domestic entities and 2019,4% for Puerto Rican entities as indicated below.

(In thousands)AmountTax EffectTotal
Year ended December 31, 2021   
Unrealized gains (losses):   
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period$(41,123)3,084 (38,039)
Reclassification adjustment for (gains) losses included in net income(243)51 (192)
Effects on DAC37,679 (8,938)28,741 
Effects on COIA276 (58)218 
Effects on unearned revenue reserves(1,887)396 (1,491)
Other comprehensive income (loss)$(5,298)(5,465)(10,763)
Year ended December 31, 2020   
Unrealized gains (losses):   
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period$84,010 (6,044)77,966 
Reclassification adjustment for (gains) losses included in net income111 (23)88 
Effects on DAC(37,372)8,872 (28,500)
Effects on COIA(98)21 (77)
Effects on unearned revenue reserves2,102 (441)1,661 
Other comprehensive income (loss)$48,753 2,385 51,138 
Year ended December 31, 2019   
Unrealized gains (losses):   
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period$78,744 (5,535)73,209 
Reclassification adjustment for (gains) losses included in net income(1,927)405 (1,522)
Effects on DAC(484)102 (382)
Effects on COIA(224)47 (177)
Effects on unearned revenue reserves789 (166)623 
Other comprehensive income (loss)$76,898 (5,147)71,751 
(In thousands)AmountTax EffectTotal
Year ended December 31, 2023:   
Unrealized gains (losses):   
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period$50,894 971 51,865 
Reclassification adjustment for (gains) losses included in net income (loss)756 (159)597 
Unrealized holding gains (losses), net51,650 812 52,462 
Change in current discount rate for liability for future policy benefits(34,790)1,217 (33,573)
Other comprehensive income (loss)$16,860 2,029 18,889 
Year ended December 31, 2022:   
Unrealized gains (losses):   
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period$(328,673)17,555 (311,118)
Reclassification adjustment for (gains) losses included in net income (loss)104 (22)82 
Unrealized holding gains (losses), net(328,569)17,533 (311,036)
Change in current discount rate for liability for future policy benefits337,776 (24,795)312,981 
Other comprehensive income (loss)$9,207 (7,262)1,945 
Year ended December 31, 2021:   
Unrealized gains (losses):   
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period$(41,123)3,084 (38,039)
Reclassification adjustment for (gains) losses included in net income (loss)(243)51 (192)
Unrealized holding gains (losses), net(41,366)3,135 (38,231)
Change in current discount rate for liability for future policy benefits92,396 (4,584)87,812 
Other comprehensive income (loss)$51,030 (1,449)49,581 

(11)(13) STOCK COMPENSATION

In 2021, 20202023, 2022 and 2019,2021, the Company's Board of Directors approved awards of restricted stock units ("RSUs") under the Citizens, Inc. Omnibus Incentive Plan for non-employee directors and the executive management team. The RSUs granted to the directors vest one year from the date of the annual shareholders meeting, subject to continued service on the Board. RSUs granted to the executive management team are subject to achieving performance goals and once the goals are met, RSUs are awarded. These awarded RSUs have a time-based vesting component which was two years for the executive officers prior to 2021 and is nowof three years, in all cases, subject to continued employment. In addition, the Board also approved an allotment of RSUs for other employees with a delegation to the Chief Executive Officer to determine the participants and number of RSUs to be awarded. There were 3three million shares originally authorized to be granted under the plan.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
The following table provides a rollforward of restricted stock activity:activity.
Restricted Stock UnitsRestricted Stock UnitsUnitsWeighted Average Grant PriceWeighted Average Remaining Contractual Life
Aggregate Fair Value (1)
Restricted Stock UnitsUnitsWeighted Average Grant PriceWeighted Average Remaining Contractual Life
Aggregate Fair Value (1)
(In thousands)(In years)(In thousands)
Outstanding at December 31, 2019275 $7.09 0.50$1,947 
Granted350 6.59 1,948 
Less:
Vested435 6.65 2,753 
Forfeited 7.18  
(In thousands)(In thousands)(In years)(In thousands)
Outstanding at December 31, 2020Outstanding at December 31, 2020190 6.03 0.881,142 
GrantedGranted178 5.83 1,040 
Less:Less:
VestedVested147 6.21 913 
Vested
Vested
ForfeitedForfeited8 5.96 47 
Outstanding at December 31, 2021Outstanding at December 31, 2021213 $5.75 1.63$1,222 
Granted
Less:
Vested
Vested
Vested
Forfeited
Outstanding at December 31, 2022
Granted
Less:
Vested
Vested
Vested
Forfeited
Outstanding at December 31, 2023
(1) Fair value per share of restricted stock units was equal to Grant Date fair value per share, which was calculated based on the closing price of the Company's Class A common stock on the NYSE on the grant date, in accordance with ASC Topic 718.

As of December 31, 2021,2023, we recognized $0.7$0.9 million of expense, while $0.8$1.3 million was unrecognized and is expected to be amortized up to threetwo years.

Restricted stock unit awards give the participant the right to receive common stock in the future, subject to certain restrictions and a risk of forfeiture. Forfeitures are recognized in the period they occur. Compensation expense of $0.6 million, $2.2$0.5 million and $2.1$0.6 million was recognized as of December 31,in 2023, 2022 and 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively, related to these awards.

Under the terms of an employment agreement in connection with his resignation following a change in control of the Company, all of the outstanding restricted stock units granted to our former Chief Executive Officer immediately vested during 2020.

(12)(14) BENEFIT PLANS

The Company sponsors a defined contribution retirement plan.  The plan was initially established as the Citizens, Inc. Profit Sharing Plan and was restated as the Citizens, Inc. 401(k) Retirement and Profit Sharing Plan effective March 1, 2016. There have been no profit sharing contributions since 2014.

The 401(k) plan allowsautomatically enrolls employees who have completed three months of service to participate.service. Voluntary contributions are made by employees and the Company provides a matching contribution based upon the employee's level of contribution. The Company's expense was $0.7 million, $0.8 million and $0.8 million in 2021, 20202023 and 2019, respectively.$0.7 million in both 2022 and 2021.

The Company is primarily self-insured for employee health benefits.  The Company records its self-insurance liability based on an estimate of claims incurred but not yet reported.  There is stop-loss coverage for amounts in excess of $80,000 per individual per year.  If more claims are made than were estimated or if the costs of actual claims increase beyond what was anticipated, reserves recorded may not be sufficient and additional accruals may be required in future periods.
 

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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(13)(15) RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

The Company has various routine related party transactions in conjunction with our holding company structure, such as a management service agreementagreements related to costs incurred, a tax sharing agreement between entities, and inter-company dividends and capital contributions. We perform an expense study on an annual basis, utilizing an enterprise-wide time study, and we adjust cost allocations among entities as needed based upon this review.  Any allocation changes are reflected in the segment operations, but do not impact consolidated expenses. A reinsurance assumption and novation transaction was completed effective July 1, 2018 between CICA and CICA International to transfer the international policies from CICA to CICA International, the newly formed Bermuda entity. There were no changes related to these relationships during the year ended December 31, 20212023 and no additional related party transactions.

CERTAIN PAYMENTS FOLLOWING CHANGE IN CONTROL

For over 30 years, the Harold E. Riley Trust (the “Trust”), a trust controlled by our founder, Harold E. Riley, and his family, was the beneficial owner of 100% of the Company’s Class B common stock. The Trust documents provided that upon Mr. Riley’s death, which occurred in 2017, the Class B common stock would transfer from the Trust to the Harold E. Riley Foundation (the “Foundation”). Because our insurance subsidiaries are regulated entities, the transfer required regulatory approval by the insurance regulators of Colorado, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, the states in which the Company's insurance subsidiaries are domiciled. On July 29, 2020, the final approval was obtained. Because the Class B common stock elects a simple majority of the Board of Directors of the Company, the transfer of the shares from the Trust to the Foundation constituted a change in control of the Company.

Following the change in control of the Company, our then Chief Executive Officer, Geoffrey Kolander, resigned from his position as Chief Executive Officer and President and as a member of the Board of Directors, and terminated the Employment Agreement by and between the Company and Mr. Kolander dated January 1, 2019 (the “2019 Employment Agreement”) due to the change in control. Pursuant to Sections 6(g) and (h) of the 2019 Employment Agreement, Mr. Kolander was entitled to a cash severance amount of $8.8 million, less required withholdings and deductions. Additionally, all outstanding Restricted Stock Units held by Mr. Kolander were fully vested on August 5, 2020, the effective date of his resignation. In accordance with the 2019 Employment Agreement, the cash severance amount was paid on February 8, 2021. These amounts were expensed in 2020.

To assist in the orderly transition of his duties and responsibilities, Mr. Kolander entered into a Separation and Consulting Agreement with the Company. Under the Separation and Consulting Agreement, Mr. Kolander agreed to provide leadership transition guidance and business continuity assistance to the Company as a consultant, for up to 14 hours per week, after the separation date through March 9, 2021. Mr. Kolander was paid at a rate of $14,000 per week. The above summary of the Separation and Consulting Agreement is qualified by reference in its entirety to the Separation and Consulting Agreement, which was filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on July 30, 2020.

Gerald W. Shields, the Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Company, was appointed Interim Chief Executive Officer and President effective August 5, 2020. On such date, the Company entered into a Consulting Agreement with Mr. Shields (the “Consulting Agreement”), pursuant to which Mr. Shields provided consulting services to function as Interim Chief Executive Officer and President of the Company until a permanent Chief Executive Officer was hired by the Company. Pursuant to the Consulting Agreement, Mr. Shields was paid a consulting fee of $14,500 per week in 2020, a bonus of $125,000 for service performed in 2020, and in 2021, the Consulting Agreement was amended to provide a weekly payment of $15,500. The Consulting Agreement was terminated when Mr. Shields became the permanent Chief Executive Officer effective January 1, 2022.


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CITIZENS, INC.NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(14)(16) QUARTERLY FINANCIAL INFORMATION (Unaudited)

The following table contains selected unaudited financial data for each quarter.

(In thousands, except per share amounts)(In thousands, except per share amounts)Fourth
Quarter
Third
Quarter
Second
Quarter
First
Quarter
(In thousands, except per share amounts)Fourth
Quarter
Third
Quarter
Second
Quarter
First
Quarter
2021    
20232023  
RevenuesRevenues$69,921 61,584 63,558 55,483 
Benefits and expensesBenefits and expenses76,734 64,311 57,958 58,231 
Federal income tax expense (benefit)Federal income tax expense (benefit)(44,950)72 578 825 
Net income (loss)Net income (loss)38,137 (2,799)5,022 (3,573)
Net income (loss) available to common shareholdersNet income (loss) available to common shareholders38,137 (2,799)5,022 (3,573)
Basic earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stockBasic earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock0.77 (0.06)0.10 (0.07)
Basic earnings (losses) per share of Class B common stock0.36  0.05 (0.04)
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stockDiluted earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock0.77 (0.06)0.10 (0.07)
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class B common stock0.36  0.05 (0.04)
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock

2020    
2022
2022
2022  
RevenuesRevenues64,968 59,825 58,341 55,722 
Benefits and expensesBenefits and expenses67,317 67,996 57,903 57,957 
Federal income tax expense (benefit)Federal income tax expense (benefit)(3,887)(256)1,465 1,349 
Net income (loss)Net income (loss)1,538 (7,915)(1,027)(3,584)
Net income (loss) available to common shareholdersNet income (loss) available to common shareholders1,538 (7,915)(1,027)(3,584)
Basic earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stockBasic earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock0.03 (0.16)(0.02)(0.07)
Basic earnings (losses) per share of Class B common stock0.01 (0.07)(0.01)(0.04)
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stockDiluted earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock0.03 (0.16)(0.02)(0.07)
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class B common stock0.01 (0.07)(0.01)(0.04)
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock
Diluted earnings (losses) per share of Class A common stock

(15)(17) SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

The Company has evaluated the impact of subsequent events as defined by the accounting guidance through the date this report was issued and determined that no subsequent events need to be recognized or disclosed.



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CITIZENS, INC.FINANCIAL SCHEDULES

Schedule II
Condensed Financial Information of Registrant
CITIZENS, INC. (Parent Company)
Balance Sheets
Schedule II
Condensed Financial Information of Registrant
CITIZENS, INC. (Parent Company)
Balance Sheets
Schedule II
Condensed Financial Information of Registrant
CITIZENS, INC. (Parent Company)
Balance Sheets
December 31,
(In thousands)
December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Assets  
Assets:
Assets:
Assets:  
Investment in subsidiaries (1)
Investment in subsidiaries (1)
$271,639 231,992 
Fixed maturity securities available-for-sale, at fair valueFixed maturity securities available-for-sale, at fair value33,724 42,202 
Equity securities, at fair valueEquity securities, at fair value1,466 1,347 
Mortgage loans on real estate1,000 — 
Real estate held-for-sale 2,571 
Other long-term investments 8,790 
Short-term investments
Short-term investments
Short-term investments
CashCash3,399 3,102 
Accrued investment incomeAccrued investment income439 471 
Accounts receivable from subsidiaries (1)
Accounts receivable from subsidiaries (1)
5,832 4,911 
Property and equipment, netProperty and equipment, net11,564 12,666 
Other assetsOther assets3,049 3,183 
Other assets
Other assets
Total assetsTotal assets$332,112 311,235 
Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity  
Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity:Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity:  
Liabilities:Liabilities:  Liabilities:  
Accrued expense and other liabilitiesAccrued expense and other liabilities$11,541 10,290 
Total liabilitiesTotal liabilities$11,541 10,290 
Stockholders' equity:Stockholders' equity:  Stockholders' equity:  
Common stock:Common stock:  Common stock:  
Class AClass A$265,561 262,869 
Class BClass B3,184 3,184 
Accumulated deficit(45,565)(82,352)
Retained earnings
Unrealized investment gains (losses) on securities held by parent and subsidiaries, net of taxUnrealized investment gains (losses) on securities held by parent and subsidiaries, net of tax117,492 128,255 
Treasury stockTreasury stock(20,101)(11,011)
Total stockholders' equityTotal stockholders' equity320,571 300,945 
Total liabilities and stockholders' equityTotal liabilities and stockholders' equity$332,112 311,235 
 (1) Eliminated in consolidation.
 

Note to Schedule II:

Citizens, Inc.'s investments in consolidated subsidiaries are stated at cost plus equity in undistributed income of consolidated subsidiaries and unrealized gains (losses) on investments held by consolidated subsidiaries. The Company includes in its Statementstatements of Operationsoperations and Comprehensive Income (Loss)comprehensive income (loss) dividends from its subsidiaries and equity in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiaries, which represents the net income (loss) of each of its wholly-owned subsidiaries.



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CITIZENS, INC.FINANCIAL SCHEDULES
Schedule II, Continued
Condensed Financial Information of Registrant
CITIZENS, INC. (Parent Company)
Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Schedule II, Continued
Condensed Financial Information of Registrant
CITIZENS, INC. (Parent Company)
Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Schedule II, Continued
Condensed Financial Information of Registrant
CITIZENS, INC. (Parent Company)
Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Comprehensive income (loss):
Comprehensive Income (Loss):
Revenues:
Revenues:
Revenues:Revenues:     
Management service fees (1)
Management service fees (1)
$33,311 32,828 43,694 
Investment incomeInvestment income1,063 11,253 1,685 
OtherOther(37)
Investment related gains (losses), netInvestment related gains (losses), net1,197 (62)(3,013)
Total revenuesTotal revenues35,534 44,022 42,368 
Expenses:Expenses:   Expenses:  
General expensesGeneral expenses37,977 49,747 46,020 
Taxes, licenses and feesTaxes, licenses and fees198 189 146 
Total expensesTotal expenses38,175 49,936 46,166 
Income (loss) before federal income tax expense (benefit) and equity in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiariesIncome (loss) before federal income tax expense (benefit) and equity in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiaries(2,641)(5,914)(3,798)
Federal income tax expense (benefit)Federal income tax expense (benefit)(1,661)(5,583)(4,491)
Income (loss) before equity in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiariesIncome (loss) before equity in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiaries(980)(331)693 
Equity in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiariesEquity in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiaries37,767 (10,657)(2,063)
Net income (loss)Net income (loss)36,787 (10,988)(1,370)
Other comprehensive income (loss)Other comprehensive income (loss)(10,763)51,138 71,751 
Total comprehensive income$26,024 40,150 70,381 
Total comprehensive income (loss)
 (1) Eliminated in consolidation.


Note to Schedule II:

Citizens, Inc.'s investments in consolidated subsidiaries are stated at cost plus equity in undistributed income of consolidated subsidiaries and unrealized gains (losses) on investments held by consolidated subsidiaries. The Company includes in its Statementstatements of Operationsoperations and Comprehensive Income (Loss)comprehensive income (loss) dividends from its subsidiaries and equity in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiaries, which represents the net income (loss) of each of its wholly-owned subsidiaries.


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CITIZENS, INC.FINANCIAL SCHEDULES
Schedule II, Continued
Condensed Financial Information of Registrant
CITIZENS, INC. (Parent Company)
Statements of Cash Flows
Schedule II, Continued
Condensed Financial Information of Registrant
CITIZENS, INC. (Parent Company)
Statements of Cash Flows
Schedule II, Continued
Condensed Financial Information of Registrant
CITIZENS, INC. (Parent Company)
Statements of Cash Flows
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202120202019
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
202320222021
Cash flows from operating activities:Cash flows from operating activities:   Cash flows from operating activities:  
Net income (loss)Net income (loss)$36,787 (10,988)(1,370)
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:   Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:   
Investment related gains (losses), netInvestment related gains (losses), net(1,197)62 3,013 
Equity in loss (income) of consolidated subsidiariesEquity in loss (income) of consolidated subsidiaries(37,767)10,657 2,063 
Change in accrued expenses and other liabilitiesChange in accrued expenses and other liabilities(11,458)11,629 (6,530)
Change in federal income tax payableChange in federal income tax payable(2,683)(17,647)— 
Deferred federal income tax expense (benefit)Deferred federal income tax expense (benefit)227 79 — 
Amortization of premiums and discounts on investmentsAmortization of premiums and discounts on investments473 535 496 
DepreciationDepreciation239 133 267 
Change in accrued investment incomeChange in accrued investment income32 64 (5)
Stock-based compensationStock-based compensation646 2,223 2,099 
Decrease (increase) in receivable from subsidiaries and other assetsDecrease (increase) in receivable from subsidiaries and other assets(921)(141)1,101 
Other, netOther, net151 (3,896)(248)
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activitiesNet cash provided by (used in) operating activities(15,471)(7,290)886 
Cash flows from investing activities:Cash flows from investing activities:   Cash flows from investing activities:  
Purchases of fixed maturity securities, available-for-salePurchases of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale(2,678)(4,628)(12,970)
Purchases of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale
Purchases of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale
Maturities and calls of fixed maturity securities, available-for-saleMaturities and calls of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale7,548 7,114 691 
Purchase of equity securities (250)— 
Sales of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale
Sales of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale
Sales of fixed maturity securities, available-for-saleSales of fixed maturity securities, available-for-sale6,952 5,735 4,268 
Sales of property and equipmentSales of property and equipment14 11 14 
Sale of equity securities
Sale of other long-term investmentsSale of other long-term investments8,790 — — 
Sale of real estateSale of real estate3,552 — — 
Funding of mortgage loansFunding of mortgage loans(1,000)— —��
Purchases of other long-term investments (8,790)— 
Principal payments on mortgage loans
Purchases of property and equipment
Purchases of property and equipment
Purchases of property and equipmentPurchases of property and equipment(119)(60)(85)
Purchases of short-term investmentsPurchases of short-term investments — (2,456)
Maturities of short-term investmentsMaturities of short-term investments 1,300 9,090 
Sales of short-term investments
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activitiesNet cash provided by (used in) investing activities23,059 432 (1,448)
Cash flows from financing activities:Cash flows from financing activities:   Cash flows from financing activities:  
Issuance of common stockIssuance of common stock2,255 — — 
Issuance of common stock
Issuance of common stock
Acquisition of treasury stockAcquisition of treasury stock(9,090)— — 
Capital contribution to subsidiary
OtherOther(456)(869)(377)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activitiesNet cash provided by (used in) financing activities(7,291)(869)(377)
Net increase (decrease) in cashNet increase (decrease) in cash297 (7,727)(939)
Cash at beginning of yearCash at beginning of year3,102 10,829 11,768 
Cash at end of yearCash at end of year$3,399 3,102 10,829 

Note to Schedule II:
Citizens, Inc.'s investments in consolidated subsidiaries are stated at cost plus equity in undistributed income of consolidated subsidiaries and unrealized gains (losses) on investments held by consolidated subsidiaries. The Company includes in its Statementstatements of Operationsoperations and Comprehensive Income (Loss)comprehensive income (loss) dividends from its subsidiaries and equity in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiaries, which represents the net income (loss) of each of its wholly-owned subsidiaries.

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CITIZENS, INC.FINANCIAL SCHEDULES

Schedule III
Consolidated Supplementary Insurance Information
Schedule III
Consolidated Supplementary Insurance Information
Schedule III
Consolidated Supplementary Insurance Information
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
20212020
Years ended December 31,
(In thousands)
20232022
Deferred policy acquisition costs:Deferred policy acquisition costs:  Deferred policy acquisition costs:  
Life InsuranceLife Insurance$97,644 94,771 
Home Service InsuranceHome Service Insurance42,736 10,142 
Total consolidated deferred policy acquisition costsTotal consolidated deferred policy acquisition costs$140,380 104,913 
Future policy benefit reserves and policy claims payable:Future policy benefit reserves and policy claims payable:  Future policy benefit reserves and policy claims payable:  
Life InsuranceLife Insurance$1,084,455 1,052,638 
Home Service InsuranceHome Service Insurance293,824 286,056 
Total consolidated future policy benefit reserves and policy claims payableTotal consolidated future policy benefit reserves and policy claims payable$1,378,279 1,338,694 
Unearned premiums:Unearned premiums:  Unearned premiums:  
Life InsuranceLife Insurance$1,471 1,446 
Home Service InsuranceHome Service Insurance331 262 
Total consolidated unearned premiumsTotal consolidated unearned premiums$1,802 1,708 
Other policy claims and benefits payable:Other policy claims and benefits payable:  Other policy claims and benefits payable:  
Life InsuranceLife Insurance$105,310 92,758 
Home Service InsuranceHome Service Insurance2,028 1,922 
Total consolidated other policy claims and benefits payableTotal consolidated other policy claims and benefits payable$107,338 94,680 

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CITIZENS, INC.FINANCIAL SCHEDULES

For the Company's short duration contracts (property), written premium is not materially different from earned premium, therefore only earned premiums are detailed in Schedule IV.

Schedule IV
Consolidated Statement of Reinsurance
Schedule IV
Consolidated Statement of Reinsurance
Schedule IV
Consolidated Statement of Reinsurance
(In thousands)(In thousands)Direct
Amount
Ceded to
Other
Companies
Assumed
From Other
Companies
Net Amount% of
Amount
Assumed to
Net
(In thousands)Direct
Amount
Ceded to
Other
Companies
Assumed
From Other
Companies
Net Amount% of
Amount
Assumed to
Net
Year ended December 31, 2021     
Year ended December 31, 2023:Year ended December 31, 2023:  
Life insurance in forceLife insurance in force$4,627,509 465,954 4,366 4,165,921 0.1 %Life insurance in force$4,922,254 619,597 619,597 3,772 3,772 4,306,429 4,306,429 0.1 0.1 %
Premiums:Premiums:     Premiums:  
Life insuranceLife insurance171,567 1,850 84 169,801  Life insurance$166,336 1,795 1,795 68 68 164,609 164,609   
Accident and health insuranceAccident and health insurance1,255 5  1,250  Accident and health insurance1,641 4 4   1,637 1,637   
Property insuranceProperty insurance5,984 2,307  3,677  Property insurance2,580 1,787 1,787   793 793   
Total premiumsTotal premiums$178,806 4,162 84 174,728  %Total premiums$170,557 3,586 3,586 68 68 167,039 167,039   %
Year ended December 31, 2020     
Year ended December 31, 2022:Year ended December 31, 2022:  
Life insurance in forceLife insurance in force$4,612,145 474,792 4,615 4,141,968 0.1 %Life insurance in force$4,796,570 543,496 543,496 4,074 4,074 4,257,148 4,257,148 0.1 0.1 %
Premiums:Premiums:     Premiums:  
Life insuranceLife insurance172,503 2,266 91 170,328  Life insurance$169,432 1,920 1,920 74 74 167,586 167,586   
Accident and health insuranceAccident and health insurance1,033 14 — 1,019  Accident and health insurance1,283 — — 1,278 1,278   
Property insuranceProperty insurance5,416 1,434 — 3,982  Property insurance6,258 1,408 1,408 — — 4,850 4,850   
Total premiumsTotal premiums$178,952 3,714 91 175,329 0.1 %Total premiums$176,973 3,333 3,333 74 74 173,714 173,714 — — %
Year ended December 31, 2019     
Year ended December 31, 2021:Year ended December 31, 2021:  
Life insurance in forceLife insurance in force$4,728,826 486,937 4,892 4,246,781 0.1 %Life insurance in force$4,627,509 465,954 465,954 4,366 4,366 4,165,921 4,165,921 0.1 0.1 %
Premiums:Premiums:     Premiums:  
Life insuranceLife insurance180,204 1,952 99 178,351  Life insurance$171,567 1,850 1,850 84 84 169,801 169,801   
Accident and health insuranceAccident and health insurance1,400 17 — 1,383  Accident and health insurance1,255 — — 1,250 1,250   
Property insuranceProperty insurance5,405 792 — 4,613  Property insurance5,984 2,307 2,307 — — 3,677 3,677   
Total premiumsTotal premiums$187,009 2,761 99 184,347 0.1 %Total premiums$178,806 4,162 4,162 84 84 174,728 174,728 — — %


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EXHIBITS
Exhibit No.The following exhibits are filed herewith:

December 31, 2021 | 10-K 120

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December 31, 2023 | 10-K 120


101.INSXBRL Instance Document
101.SCHXBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema
101.CALXBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase
101.DEFXBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase
101.LABXBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase
101.PREXBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase
104Inline XBRL for the cover page of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021,2023, filed electronically herewith, included in the Exhibit 101 Inline XBRL Document Set.
Indicates management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.
*Filed herewith.


Item 16.FORM 10-K SUMMARY

None.

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SIGNATURES

 
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, hereunto duly authorized.
 
 CITIZENS, INC. 
   
Date:March 11, 202214, 2024By:/s/ Gerald W. Shields 
Gerald W. Shields,
Chief Executive Officer and President
(Principal Executive Officer)
 
By:/s/ Jeffery P. Conklin
Jeffery P. Conklin,
Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Investment Officer and Treasurer
 (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) 

POWER OF ATTORNEY

KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Gerald W. Shields and Jeffery P. Conklin jointly and severally, his or her attorneys-in-fact, each with the power of substitution, for him or her in any and all capacities, to sign any amendments to this Annual Report on Form 10-K, and to file the same, with exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, hereby ratifying and confirming all that each of said attorneys-in-fact, or his substitute or substitutes, may do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities indicated and on March 11, 2022.14, 2024.


Dated:  March 11, 202214, 2024
 
/s/ Christopher W. Claus/s/ Dr. Terry S. Maness
Christopher W. Claus, DirectorDr. Terry S. Maness, Director 
/s/ Jerry D. Davis, Jr./s/ Gerald W. Shields
Jerry D. Davis, Jr., Chairman of the Board and DirectorGerald W. Shields, Vice Chairman of the Board and Director
/s/ Dr. E. Dean GageChristopher W. Claus/s/ Dr. Robert B. Sloan, Jr.Cynthia H. Davis
Dr. E. Dean Gage,Christopher W. Claus, DirectorDr. Robert B. Sloan, Jr.,Cynthia H. Davis, Director
 
/s/ Dr. Terry S. Maness/s/ Mary Taylor
Dr. Terry S. Maness, DirectorMary Taylor, Director
/s/ Francis A. Keating II /s/ Cynthia H. DavisJ. Keith Morgan
Francis A. Keating II, Director Cynthia H. Davis, Director
/s/ J. Keith Morgan,/s/ Mary Taylor
J. Keith Morgan, DirectorMary Taylor, Director

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