Click the hyperlinks above to contact an insurance or financial services representative directly.
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In This Issue:
- Florida Municipal Insurance Trust Gives Free Access to Employment Law Attorney
- When Hurricane Michael Struck, the FMIT Was Ready
- Florida Municipal Loan Council Helps with Financing and Refinancing
- Fly-In Coincides with Passage of FEMA Clawback Provision
- Post-Event Alert from FEMA about Hurricane Michael
- FMLC, FMIvT and FMPTF Receive CAFR Awards
- Timely Reporting Required for Workers’ Comp Claims
- Tips for Healthy Holiday Eating
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Florida Municipal Insurance Trust
Gives
Free Access to Employment Law Attorney
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Are you aware that the Florida Municipal Insurance Trust has launched a new service for members who need legal guidance on liability issues regarding employment-related matters? For members insured by FMIT for employment practices liability, this new Employment Law Advisor (ELA) program offers access to a Florida-based attorney with significant public-sector employment law experience. And, the best part is there is
no cost
to you or your organization.
Some of the employment-related matters the program is intended to address are hiring; discipline; promotion/demotion; transfer; reassignment; layoff; termination; and complaints of discrimination, harassment, unfair treatment and retaliation. Members can speak with an attorney Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) by calling (888) 368-FMIT (3648). Help is only a phone call away. Save the ELA phone number in your contacts today!
A free one-hour webinar with an introduction to ELA will be held at Thursday at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time. To register, click
here
.
For more information on ELA, click
here
.
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When Hurricane Michael
Struck, the FMIT Was Ready
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by Holly McPhail
The impact of Hurricane Michael was nothing short of catastro-phic. City buildings became more than just places to conduct business or receive services. They became beacons of hope.
”Ninety-five percent of the civilization in our city was taken out by Hurricane Michael,” said
Panama City Police Chief Scott Ervin
. “Getting government up and running was absolutely critical operationally but also critical for the community to see.”
For that reason, the
Florida Municipal Insurance Trust
was present – not right
after
the storm, but
during
it. “I’ve been in law enforcement for over 20 years and never had insurance people ride a storm out with us,” Ervin reflected. “Having them present at ground zero and their ability to immediately start assessing damage and getting critical resources in to sustain us and get us back operational was critical.” For an article about FMIT’s emergency response, click
here
.
Holly McPhail is the communications coordinator at the Florida League of Cities.
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Florida Municipal Loan Council Helps
With Financing and Refinancing
The Florida Municipal Loan Council offers municipalities long-term financing options through its fixed-rate bond program and bank loan program. Proceeds can be used for capital improvements, renovations, fixed asset additions and the refinancing of existing debt. The minimum loan size is $1 million. There are flexible terms of repayment, up to a 30-year maturity.
Since its inception in 1998, the FMLC has issued more than $1 billion in loans and has proven to be advantageous to cities of all sizes. The Florida League of Cities, as administrator, handles all the administration, the hiring of bond professionals and post-issuance compliance including continuing disclosure, investment of proceeds and arbitrage rebate calculations.
Click
here
for an application, and click
here
for more information on the FMLC. Please return applications via email to Molly Button at
mbutton@flcities.com
. Contact Button if you have questions about the program.
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Fly-In Coincides with Passage
Of FEMA Clawback Provision
Nineteen municipal officials from Florida participated in the Fall Federal Action Strike Team (FAST) Fly-in to Washington, D.C. The FEMA deobligation provision passed Congress during the trip.
The Florida League of Cities commends U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart and the rest of the Florida congressional delegation for their efforts to successfully pass legislation that will protect communities receiving FEMA disaster funds from unexpected clawbacks. To learn more, click
here
.
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Post-Event Alert from FEMA
About Hurricane Michael
FEMA's disaster declarations include specific Florida counties when identifying which areas are eligible for public assistance. Public entities outside of the declared counties for FEMA Public Assistance (PA) are not eligible for FEMA PA grant assistance.
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FMLC, FMIvT and FMPTF Receive CAFR Awards
The
Florida Municipal Loan Council
,
Florida Municipal Investment Trust
and
Florida Municipal Pension Trust
Fund
have each been awarded a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for the sixth year in a row. The certificates were given by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada for their comprehensive annual financial reports (CAFRs).
The certificate of achievement is the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management. The CAFRs were judged by an impartial panel to meet the high standards of the program, which includes demonstrating a constructive "spirit of full disclosure" to clearly communicate their financial stories and motivate potential users and user groups to read the CAFRs.
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Timely Reporting Required
For Workers’ Comp Claims
by Vernell K. Goodridge, CWC, ACA, CWCL
Not only is timely reporting of injuries or death important – it’s the law. There are penalties of up to $500 per late report that can be imposed by the Division of Workers’ Compensation for late reporting by an employer. Section
440.185(2),
Florida Statutes, states that “within 7 days after actual knowledge of injury or death, the employer shall report such injury or death to its carrier…”
Actual knowledge of an injury usually starts with someone at the supervisor level, who is not necessarily the person reporting the accident to the insurance carrier. It’s important that supervisors are aware of the strict timeline involved in timely reporting.
To read more about what to report, when to report and, most importantly, how to report workers’ compensation claims to the Florida League of Cities, click
here
.
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Tips for Healthy Holiday Eating
by Gwen Mahabir
On average, Americans gain weight every year. The largest percentage of this weight gain comes from unhealthy eating during the holiday season. Over time, this extra weight can lead to an increased risk of serious health problems that could include diabetes and heart disease.
For tips to avoid holiday weight gain and still allow yourself to enjoy those yummy holiday foods, click
here
.
Gwen Mahabir is Hometown Health manager for the Florida League of Cities. Contact
Mahabir
for more information about the health initiatives offered through the FMIT group health insurance program.
For the Winter Wellness edition of
FLC Hometown Health
, click
here
.
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