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Knox County Board defers vote on 403(b) administrator after weeks of public comment; supporters of current vendor urge broader procurement
Summary
The board voted to defer a contract award for 403(b) third-party administrative services after extended public comment from employees arguing the solicitation bundled administration with investment products and would displace a widely used vendor. The motion to defer was approved 7–1; staff said they will return to the board in April.
The Knox County Board of Education voted March 6 to defer action on a planned contract with USI Consulting Group for 403(b) third-party administrative services after more than an hour of public comment from employees and local vendors.
The contract under consideration (agenda item 8a) would have engaged USI for third-party administrative services for the period 03/01/2025–02/28/2030, with a possible five-year extension. Speakers at the meeting argued the district’s procurement bundling the plan administrator and an investment provider effectively disqualified many established administrators and limited teachers’ choice of retirement vendors.
Brandy Jarrell, who identified herself as representing Value Teachers and stated the firm serves more than 2,000 Knox County employees, told the board the procurement "is exclusionary" and asked the board to "say no to the procurement."…
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