• In the case of elected officials, their license is their oath of office. This must have either two signatures, OR it must have a notary OR they must sign in front of a judge in order for their oath to be official.  
  
  
• Their surety bond is OFTEN embedded inside a blanket liability insurance policy – and most of them don’t even know they are bonded. This is why they might tell you they are not but THEY ARE.
  
  
• In order to get bonded and insured, the schools work with “Public Educational Risk Management Pools (PERKS).”  This is a company that pools all the districts together under one policy
  • Note: They may be referred to as Public Educational Insurance Provider (PEIP) but we will refer to them as PERKS.

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Public Educational Risk Management Pools (PERKS)

• This is the only point of contact for the school districts.
  
  
• The Districts don’t really know anything about the Risk Management Department, they just know to work with the PERKS.
  
  
• PERKS usually pool schools under one policy and they propose the insurance policy to them.
  
  
• PERKS are also responsible for collecting fees and handling renewals and they distribute the contracts to the school districts once they are renewed. 
  
  
• These PERKS are often organized by county in a given state but we haven’t figured out the pattern for this yet.
  
  
• Here are some examples of PERKS:
  • CO – CSDSIP – Colorado School Districts Self Insurance Pool
  • CT – CIRMA Connecticut Interlocal Risk Management Agency
  • ID – ICRMP – Idaho Counties Risk Management Program
  • CLIC Collective Liability Insurance Cooperative
  • MD- UTICA -National Insurance Group – in Montgomery, Maryland 
  • OH – SORSA Schools of Ohio Risk Sharing Authority
  • OR – PACE  – Property and Casualty coverage for Education – in Oregon
  • SC – SCSBIT – South Carolina School Boards Insurance Trust
  • VA – VACORP Virginia Corporation for Risk Management 
  • EMC Employers Mutual Casualty Company – this is in A LOT OF STATES
  • WA – WSRMP – Washington Schools Risk Management Pool
  • WA – USIP – United Schools Insurance Program
  • WA – SIAW – Schools Insurance Association of Washington
    
    
• When you send these companies a request you can be less formal but be very specific.  Ask for the Liability Insurance Policy that covers your district.  They are required by the insurance ethics code of the state to provide this to you. Also ask them for a complete listing of the School Districts they support.  
  
  
• If you can’t find the PERK for your district, here is a directory of State Insurance Departments – if you want to do your state a favor, call your state insurance department and get a list of ALL the PERKS in your state!
  
  
• Another way to find out who your district is working with is to call one of the treasurers in your district and just ask them WHO they pay for their insurance policy each year.  It’s normally paid on a yearly basis.  Most are renewed on the 1st of March, July or August.
  
  
• If you can get the liability policy for ONE school district, it’s easy to trace back the PERK who manages MULTIPLE districts.  This is helpful for other people in your area! 
  
  
• The PERKS work with the Risk Management Department to obtain the insurance policy.
  
  
• DO NOT file a claim with a PERK!  They will intercept you and send you to the Risk Management Department.  You will file your claim with the insurance provider ONLY.
  
  

Risk Management Department

• Every county has it’s own risk management department.
  
  
• The Risk Management HOLDS THE ACTUAL county liability policy
  
  
  • THE PROBLEM IS THAT THE RISK MANAGEMENT COMPANY WILL NOT WILLINGLY PROVIDE YOU WITH THIS INSURANCE POLICY !!!!  
    
    
  • Their entire job is to block and mitigate issues BEFORE A CLAIM CAN BE FILED !!!!
    
    
  • We call them the INTERCEPTOR.
    
    
  • This policy provides coverage for ALL the school districts plus any elected or appointed officials and employees that are not responsible for carrying their own bond.  
    
    
  • Depending on your state laws and your board of education, some officials will still need to have their OWN LIABILITY POLICY these may include:
    
    
    • District Level Superintendent(s)
    • District Level Assistant Superintendent(s)
    • District Level Treasurer(s)
    • District Level Assistant Treasurer(s)
    • The Board of Supervisors
    • The County Super
    • The County Sheriff
    • The District Attorney
    • Coroners 
    • Director of Social Services
    • Health Department
    • County Commissioners (also referred to as the 5 or 7 Count Commissioners)
      
      
    • FOIA every one of these people even if you are not sure!!!
       

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The Agent

• The Agent is an underwriter, they are the go-between for the Risk Management, the PERK and the Insurance Provider.
  
  
• PERKS report to Risk Management when they have a new school to add to the policy. Risk Management calls the Agent to facilitate this process.
  
  
• The Agent sends the policy to Risk Management AND he will also send a copy of the policy to the insurance company.
  
  
• The PERK solicits the School Districts and gets them to sign on with the PERK. 
  
  
• The PERK notifies the Agent that he has a new client that needs to be added to an existing policy.
  
  
• Once the Agent adds a new client to the existing policy and modifies the policy, he will send the new, modified policy to the PERK, Risk Management and the Insurance Provider.
  
  
• If you can find Agents who are willing to share with you who their PERKS are and which insurance providers they work with – it’s a GREAT find!!!  Especially one that wants to help save the children and stop all this madness.
  
  
• The agent who writes the insurance policy for Risk Management will literally provide you with the name of the company that insures the County Bond and the policy number.  This is what we need.  We can figure out who the insurance providers are based on policy numbers.