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City staff proposes faster handling of insurance reimbursements for liability and property claims
Summary
Owasso staff proposed aligning the general-liability and property self‑insurance reimbursement process with a new healthcare‑fund approach so reimbursements would be added to the insurance fund and made available in the same fiscal year via consent‑agenda budget amendments; staff will examine whether the city manager can be authorized to approve.
Michelle Dempster presented staff recommendations to streamline the general-liability and property self‑insurance reimbursement process.
Dempster said the city’s self‑insurance fund — established by council policy in 2003 — pays general‑liability claims and state‑required vehicle collision damage up to policy retention levels, and the fund also passes through reimbursements when a city vehicle is damaged by a non‑employee. Historically, reimbursements have been recorded as revenue and folded into the fund balance for the next fiscal year or returned to council for a budget amendment.
Staff proposed mirroring a process adopted last fall for the city’s health‑care self‑insurance fund: when reimbursements arrive, staff would place a consent‑agenda item to amend the general‑liability fund’s revenue and expenditures by the reimbursement amount in the current fiscal year so those funds are available immediately to pay related repairs or other claims. Staff also said it would research whether city code or ordinance allows delegation to the city manager for routine acceptance and budget amendment approval and would return with options and any required ordinance changes.
Councilors asked whether the city manager could be given authority to approve such amendments and whether there should be dollar limits; staff said they will research ordinances and draft recommendations. Staff noted most reimbursements are modest, with larger sums arising occasionally for property‑damage claims following storms or major repairs.
Ending: Staff will return with proposed process language and the legal analysis on whether manager delegation is permissible and any recommended ordinance language.
