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Committee approves lower participant rates for Chautauqua County workers' compensation plan
Summary
The county Administrative Services Committee approved a resolution setting participant charges for the county self-insurance workers' compensation plan, reflecting an overall 7% reduction and a $115,000 net change in the county's share.
The Chautauqua County Administrative Services Committee on Aug. 18 approved a resolution setting participant charges for the county's self-insurance workers' compensation plan, a move officials said will lower costs for most participants next year.
Kitty Crowe, director of finance for Chautauqua County, told the committee the resolution is the county's annual action to set participant rates for the municipal workers' compensation plan and that the plan's charges flow through the county's self-insurance (MS) fund. "This is our annual resolution to set the participant plan rates for the workers' comp plan," Crowe said.
Crowe said the "grand total reflects a 7% reduction from last year," and that the county, towns, villages and cities all see reductions in total. She also said there is a net change of about $115,000 to the county's portion. "There's a net change of a $115,000 to the county's portion," she said.
Crowe explained how charges are allocated among municipal participants: 40% of the charge is based on payroll and 60% on each participant's experience. She said the allocation method and a catastrophic provision help smooth large year-to-year swings for individual participants. "The charges to municipalities are allocated 40% based on their payroll, and then 60% based on their experience," Crowe said, and added there is a catastrophe provision so no participant faces a dramatic single-year increase.
Committee members asked clarifying questions about prior-year shares and how the allocation treats larger employers; officials noted the county moved from assessment-based allocation to payroll-based allocation to better match expected claim exposure. The resolution passed by voice vote; the meeting record shows no recorded opposition.
The vote sets the participant charges that will be billed to municipalities and other plan members for the coming plan year and allows the county to finalize budget entries tied to the self-insurance fund.
