The Board of Trustees for the Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) Group Self-Insurance Workers’ Compensation Fund recently voted to return a dividend in the amount of $3 million to members participating in the program. The ACCG Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fund, also known as the ACCG - Group Self-Insurance Workers’ Compensation Fund (GSIWCF), is a non-profit, member-owned workers’ compensation insurance pool designed to meet the insurance needs of Georgia county governments.
“ACCG is uniquely suited to provide workers’ compensation insurance to county governments because they know and understand the potential exposures of local government,” said Greene County Commissioner Walter L. “Bud” Sanders, who serves as Chairman of the Board of Trustees. “I am pleased that we are able to offer this dividend and know that it will help county governments who are continuing to deal with challenging budget times as a result of declining revenues.”
This marks the 16th consecutive year that ACCG Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fund has returned a dividend, which is intended to benefit the long-term participants of the insurance program. Since 1985, the program has returned more than $42 million dollars to the membership. The dividend will be returned in the form of a premium credit to members that have participated in the program since 1999.
Because county governments are responsible for many programs and services not commonly provided by the private sector, such as law enforcement, jails and road maintenance, they require specialized coverage. The workers’ compensation insurance pool allows counties and authorities to pool their risks in a program designed to meet these unique needs. The ACCG Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fund currently has 171 members, consisting of 135 counties and 36 authorities and assets of $148.5 million.
“We are pleased that the Board voted to extend the divided to our membership once again,” said David A. Paulk, ACCG Director of Risk Management and Insurance. “Because this fund has always been operated conservatively, we are able to use proceeds from the investment income for the dividend.”
To complement the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fund, ACCG also offers property & liability insurance, as well as a fully-insured Group Health Benefits Program through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia. Furthermore, ACCG offers Local Government Risk Management Services (LGRMS) to its members in partnership with the Georgia Municipal Association at no additional charge. LGRMS provides training for county and authority employees on a wide range of loss control topics including legal liabilities, jail exposures and workers’ compensation issues. LGRMS also has two driving simulators that are used to train defensive driving techniques to county personnel. LGRMS also provides wellness program consultation to counties and authorities that participate in ACCG’s Group Health Benefits Program.
For information on ACCG’s Workers’ Compensation Insurance Program, please contact Ben Pittarelli at bpittarelli@accg.org.
