District warns of rising insurance costs; board OKs storm protection pool participation

Lewis Central administrators told the school board on June 16 that the district’s insurance renewal for liability and workers’ compensation rose about 10% for the coming year and explained a pooled option the board approved to reduce catastrophic deductibles.

Staff reported the district’s current total insurance cost of about $1,022,000 would increase to roughly $1,125,000 under the lowest bid the district received. The renewal also raised the district’s wind/hail deductible on some facilities to about $1,800,000, staff said, creating a potential large exposure if substantial storm damage occurs.

To limit that exposure, staff described an annual pooled product offered through a risk-pool mechanism. For an annual buy-in of about $71,000, the pool would effectively reduce a district-wide deductible in a qualifying wind/hail event to $50,000 (the pool pays the difference). District staff recommended participation in the pool as an option to avoid a catastrophic out-of-pocket bill.

Board members voted to approve participation in the storm protection fund, adopting a resolution that references Iowa Code Chapter 28E and an Iowa risk pool structure. Board minutes show the motion passed during the June meeting.

Administrators urged continued local control of the “management fund,” which covers insurance and certain legal exposures. The superintendent said the fund’s name causes public confusion and suggested calling it an “insurance fund” would make the purpose clearer; she also noted the state has discussed capping management-fund balances, which she said would limit districts’ flexibility for covering insurance increases or legal bills.

Ending: The board adopted the storm-protection resolution and staff said they will proceed with the pool enrollment; the district will cover the annual buy-in and continue to present budget impacts to the board.