I have not been ignoring all your postings.  I have been reading with interest all the recent ideas for NALTEA. 
I make it a point not to jump in with a knee jerk reaction to most postings.  I am the type of person that has to mull things over & do some research before I make any comments. 
Also even tho I am the president of NALTEA, and I do have my opinions, as Ellen states it is up to the majority of the members to decide what direction NALTEA takes. 
Personally I am always open to any ideas that would help the abstractor, especially in the climate we are working in now.  And I welcome anyone, member and non member to give suggestions, do research, formulate a plan , etc etc & present it to the board.  I will promise you, that we will not automatically dismiss any valid ideas.  I applaud Ellen for her "thinking out of the box" & for volunteering to research this idea.  I wish there were more people with your dedication to our profession.  I don't mean to imply that others are not.  There are so many out there that are just trying to keep their heads above water, & stay in business, so that they can pay their bills & provide for their families.  It has been said more then once, that if we had something to offer to abstractors then they would join.  All of us & I do mean ALL of us have to have some form of "what is in it for me" attitude, or we would not be operating our own businesses.  It has also been said that in order to make any changes, we have to come together.  I agree!  The difficult part, as we have already seen, is trying to get a large group of intelligent free thinking people to agree on ANYTHING.
All this being said, I would just like to pass along some information regarding setting up licensing in all 50 states, from my past experience.
1.  This is not going to be something that will be easy or an immediate help to the abstractor.  It can take months & sometimes years to get licensing in some states.  I don't see how we can just start out with offering a few states.  That would help some abstractors in those states but not those that are not set up.  In the two VM companies that I have been involved with, we had to go state by state by state.  It is not an easy task.
2.  Each state has different requirements.  It is helpful that abstractors in the different states are willing to help research this. 
3.  There has to be an agent licensed in any particular state that is authorized to sign for work done in that state.  They would probably want to be compensated.  Also most states have required agents to undergo continuing education or testing to keep or renew.  Someone would have to keep up with this. 
4.  Would there be a central title office, responsible for examining, approving, coordinating closings, follow up on filings, clear title, process the policy?  Also what about appraisals & surveys?
5.  We would also have to find an underwriter or underwriters willing to work with us. 
These are just a few things that popped in my head.  There of course, are many questions that need to be asked and answered.  And there would have to be many more people involved. 
I have a call into a good friend of mine who has set up licensing in all 50 states, more then once.  He is out of town for a couple of weeks but when I hear from him, I will be able to give you some of his expertise. 
I am not agreeing or disagreeing with this idea.  That is not my place!!  I will provide you with any information that I can, and if you put something together I will bring it to the board.

Thank You,
Wanda Steudel
Accusearch Co