Staff recommends renewing district insurance package; board asks for line-item breakout
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Summary
Staff recommended the district renew property, liability, auto, cyber and workers' compensation coverage through the recommended providers for a total premium of $2,167,196 and the board asked purchasing to provide a detailed breakout of the package before final approval.
District staff recommended renewing the district’s insurance program and presented the board with a total premium figure of $2,167,196 that covers property, cyber, auto, liability, student accident and workers’ compensation coverage.
A staff presenter described the procurement as a request for proposals (RFP) that produced limited responses. “We are recommending tonight that you renew, with public risk insurers for all 4 across the board. It is a total of $2,167,196 that is actually cheaper than we estimated it would come in,” the presenter said.
Board members asked for more detail about what is included in the “package premium” and how the total breaks down between commercial property, auto, cyber, umbrella liability and workers’ compensation. Purchasing staff and the presenter said the purchasing office formatted the RFP results and that some carriers respond only to portions of the solicitation. One staff member explained that Key Risk (carriers) insures 18 Tennessee school systems and that an alternate bidder’s carrier, Summit, had no Tennessee school systems.
Board member Miss Stevenson questioned whether workers’ compensation was handled differently in the RFP; staff clarified the whole solicitation was issued as an RFP, but one company bid only on the workers’ compensation piece. Board members also flagged audit documentation requirements for selecting a provider that is not the lowest-cost option. A staff member recommended documenting service and price trade-offs in procurement records: “What audit cares about is justification. If you're not going with lowest, justify it. Show your work.”
Officials told the board the workers’ compensation premium of $305,359 is split among school budgets (some cost is charged to food services) and that the package premium covers the remainder of coverages. Board members asked purchasing to provide a breakout of the commercial property, cyber, umbrella and auto portions; staff agreed to supply that detail to the board during the week.
The board agreed to move the insurance renewal to the special called meeting for formal action; staff said the current policy ends June 30 and a rider might be needed if the item is delayed.
