|
|
|
Specialty Lines
It is almost the end of 2018, which seems a little hard to believe. Just like our county members, CCAP is heading toward yearend budget and planning events, and I want to remind you of some opportunities to have input about the CCAP insurance and member service programs in which you participate.
At the CCAP Fall Conference you can attend the PCoRP annual meeting to find out about what PCoRP is doing, vote on the elected members of the PCoRP Board of Directors, and meet the board and staff. It's an easy way to provide input on the program. In January the PCoRP board meets for it annual planning retreat, and prior to that all PCoRP members will get a survey asking to rate PCoRP's services, and with open ended questions for you to provide feedback.
The same will happen in the spring when the PComp annual meeting is held at the CCAP Spring Conference. You will also get an email survey to provide feedback about PComp.
And every time we closed a claim in PCoRP or PComp which involved a defense counsel, you will get a survey asking for feedback about the defense counsel that was assigned to your claim.
There are other opportunities too - when you read an article in this monthly newsletter, there are links to the author - use them to comment on the article or suggest/ask about other matters. You will also see updates throughout the year about each of our programs. If you have questions or ideas for those programs, click on those email links and let us know.
We also have staff at every CCAP conference - Spring, Annual and Fall - stop by the CCAP Insurance Programs booth and let us know how things are going. We want to know how we can make our service to you even better.
Make sure you contact us when you need help with something,
|
|
New Law Makes It Illegal To Spy On People With Drones
Pennsylvania will start imposing criminal penalties on people who use drones to spy on other people. Governor Wolf signed the bill on October 12, and it takes effect in 60 days.
Under it, the state imposes a fine of up to $300 on someone who uses a drone to invade someone else's privacy or puts someone in fear of being physically harmed. The law imposes a more serious penalty for someone who uses a drone to ferry contraband to an inmate in a prison. That's a prison sentence of up to 10 years and a fine of up to $25,000. The law prohibits municipalities from regulating drones.
This is a good reminder for PCoRP member counties - if the county owns a drone and wishes to have liability coverage for it from PCoRP, you must report the drone to PCoRP. There is an additional fee per drone. Contact
Marsha Elmer
for more information.
(Much of the information for this article came from The Associated Press.)
|
| PComp 2019 Rates in Process - Overall Costs Remain the Same
The PComp Board of Directors met on September 20 and approved the actuary's proposal for renewal rates with no change in the average premium level. Rates for some payroll classifications will change, based on the experience of PComp's members.
Members will see changes in their costs based on their experience modifications, which are driven by their claims costs. Experience mods range from a high of 1.141 to a low of .720 (where 1.000 is average). While member premiums are the same total as last year, changes by member range from a reduction of 49 percent to an increase of 52 percent.
Please note that the 2019 rates are not finalized until approved by the Department of Labor and Industry. In the interim, we will provide members and their producers with estimated 2019 premium amounts, and then confirm the final numbers once we hear from L&I.
|
|
CCAP UC Trust Update - 2019 Rates Will Decrease An Average of 5.9 Percent!
The Board of Directors of the CCAP Unemployment Compensation Trust met on October 12 at the CCAP office. The board received financial, operational and other updates. As a result of continued overall decreases in unemployment benefit charges and general economic improvement compared to the last several years, the Board approved the actuary's recommendation for a 5.9 percent decrease in the total average contributions to the Trust. The Board also approved the 2019 operating budget.
The Board encourages all members to continue their education in risk management through onsite programs through CCAP, online training through Local GovU and Corporate Cost Control. Questions regarding the UC Trust and related training should be directed to Desiree Nguyen at (717) 736-4779 or
[email protected]
or Linda Rosito at (717) 736-4728 or
[email protected].
|
|
Coolidge, Howsare and Snyder
Re-Elected to Health Alliance Board!
The nomination process for the Health Alliance Board of Directors was completed in October. Incumbents Erick Coolidge, Tioga County's Commissioner, Steve Howsare, Southern Alleghenies Planning and Development Commission Executive Director and Jeff Snyder, Clinton County's Commissioner were declared re-elected for another two year term. Thank you to the membership for your nominations and to the Health Alliance Board of Directors for their ongoing service and dedication to the board.
The CCAP Health Alliance offer a complete range of medical plans fully customized to meet the needs and interests of the individual member. Participants design their own benefit plan and coverage parameters. The CCAP Health Alliance offers guaranteed rates for the remainder of the calendar year, with no end-of-the-year adjustment. For more information about the Health Alliance, contact Desiree Nguyen at
[email protected].
|
|
UC Trustees Snyder and Thomas
Re-Elected!
The nomination process for the UC Trust Board of Trustees was completed in October. Incumbents Jeff Snyder, Clinton County Commissioner and Jeff Thomas, Huntingdon County Commissioner were declared re-elected for another two-year term. The UC Trust Board of Trustees nominated the following Officers to serve in 2019 - Derek Williams, Chair; Jeff Snyder, Vice Chair and Kristy Bixler, Secretary.
Thank you to the membership for your nominations and to the UC Trust Board of Trustees for their ongoing service and dedication to the board.
A totally self-insured program, the Trust currently provides unemployment compensation insurance for forty seven counties and county related entities, covering a total of more than 26,000 employees. Members receive a full service package, including processing of all unemployment claims filed against the county, auditing of all unemployment charges, quarterly claims statements, training workshops, onsite training and use of the Employee Assistance Program with Mazzitti & Sullivan EAP. For more information about the UC Trust contact Desiree Nguyen at
[email protected].
|
|
2019 Center for Excellence in County Leadership!
Strong leadership is essential to county success and future growth. The CEL Program offers county commissioners or council members, chief clerks, county administrators and solicitors in Pennsylvania's 67 counties the opportunity to be immersed in an intensive leadership curriculum which will enhance personal and professional growth. Key county leaders and department heads may apply by providing a written letter of support from their county commissioner/council member. The program features curriculum including managerial versatility, interpersonal dynamics, crisis communication, media management, problem solving, decision making and more.
The two and a half-day intensive program will be held at the CCAP office in Harrisburg on June 12 - 14, 2019. We invite you to explore this exciting educational opportunity offered exclusively by the
County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP)
. Participation is available to one eligible person per county per year, with a maximum of 12 participants per year. Application is required by January 31, 2019 to be considered for participation in the June 2019 session.
We invite you to be involved in this exciting program!
Please feel free to contact CCAP directly with questions.
|
|
Fall Risk Management Workshops!
Although the workshop season is winding down, there are a few educational opportunities left for the fall workshop season! Please see the listing below for all the sessions we have planned.
November
As a reminder, most of the workshops are FREE to attend if your county is a member of the sponsoring Insurance Programs. Please refer to the GLIMPSE Online section the CCAP website for all the information on topic descriptions, dates, times, locations and membership!
The CCAP Insurance Programs continues to collaborate with the Academy for Excellence in County Government. Please refer to our website for additional information on co-sponsored events. These workshops are FREE to current Academy participants.
If interested in attending a training, please register here! As always, if you have any questions please feel free to contact Linda Rosito at (800) 895-9039 x 3328 or (717) 736-4728.
Thank you for your support at the workshops this fall! I look forward to seeing you in March for the spring sessions!
|
|
Hot Topics
Disabled Access to Websites
Public entities are starting to see lawsuits alleging their websites violate disability law. Similar to
suits about handicap access to buildings, these suits claim websites and other methods of online sharing of information are not accessible to the disabled. Nationwide there has been an increase in the number of these types of suits of about 30 percent from last year.
Most of the lawsuits involve plaintiffs with visual or hearing impairments. Since the internet is often used by public entities for job applications, community activities, information about property values, voter registration and much more, plaintiffs are arguing that having a website that denies access severely limits what people with disabilities are able to do.
These types of claims would most likely not be covered by cyber security insurance, but would be considered a public officials (errors and omissions) liability claim based on allegations of discrimination/accessibility.
It is a good idea to refer the ADA when designing sites, especially to ensure that colors selected are visually ADA compliant. When adding images or links, county staff or vendors should also add alternative text that all readers can read. This is just one facet of ADA compliance.
Note: Some information for this article came from a Saint Paul Pioneer Press (MN) article on10/07/2018.
For more information, contact
Karen Cohen
at CCAP.
|
|
Upcoming Events
November 18-20, 2018
CCAP Fall Conference
The Hotel Hershey, Hershey
|
|
Quote of the Month
"We all need people who will give us feedback. That's how we improve."
-Bill Gates
|
|
| |
|
