NY State Senate Bill 2021-S6876A

Senate Bill S6876A

2021-2022 Legislative Session

Directs the commissioner of education, in consultation with the superintendent of financial services and the state comptroller, to study and prepare a report concerning school insurance reserve funds

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Education Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 05, 2022	referred to education
Jun 10, 2021	recommitted to rules
Jun 07, 2021	ordered to third reading cal.1578 committee discharged and committed to rules
Jun 01, 2021	print number 6876a
Jun 01, 2021	amend (t) and recommit to education
May 20, 2021	referred to education

Votes

- Jun 7, 2021 - Rules Committee Vote
  S6876A
  
  21
  
  Aye
  
  0
  
  Nay
  
  0
  
  Aye with Reservations
  
  0
  
  Absent
  
  0
  
  Excused
  
  0
  
  Abstained
  - - Rules Committee Vote: Jun 7, 2021
      
      aye (21)
      
      Addabbo Jr.
      
      Bailey
      
      Benjamin
      
      Biaggi
      
      Boyle
      
      Breslin
      
      Comrie
      
      Gallivan
      
      Gianaris
      
      Griffo
      
      Kennedy
      
      Krueger
      
      Lanza
      
      Liu
      
      Mayer
      
      O'Mara
      
      Ortt
      
      Parker
      
      Ritchie
      
      Savino
      
      Stewart-Cousins

Bill Amendments

Original

A (Active)

2021-S6876 - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Education
Law Section:: Education

2021-S6876 - Summary

Directs the commissioner of education, in consultation with the superintendent of financial services and the office of the state comptroller, to study and prepare a report concerning school insurance reserve funds; provides for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof.

2021-S6876 - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S6876

SPONSOR: JORDAN
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act in relation to directing the commissioner of education, in
consultation with the commissioner of health and the comptroller, to
study and prepare a report concerning school insurance reserve funds;
and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 directs the commissioner of education, in consultation with
the commissioner of health and comptroller, to study four issue areas
regarding school insurance reserve funds: the cost to school districts
of maintaining these funds, the cost or savings to their employees, the
impact on healthcare access self-insurance provides, and the amount of
funding set aside for the reserve funds.

Section 2 sets forth the requirements on when the completed study must
be submitted.

Section 3 provides for the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Current law allows municipal corporations to self-insure to provide
health insurance to their employees, officers, and retirees. The general
municipal law allows these municipal corporations to establish and make
expenditures from insurance reserve funds, but exempts accident and
health insurance from these provisions. Previous chapters authorized
specific school districts to use their insurance reserve funds for
expenses related to health and accident insurance.  In the era of the
tax cap, several school districts have opted to adopt self-insurance to
manage rising healthcare costs, and for these districts, insurance
reserve funds are necessary to maintain their self-insurance programs.

In 2019 and 2020 alone, the legislature voted 21 times to add new school
districts to those who are allowed to operate an insurance reserve fund.
As of March 2021, an additional 4 school districts have legislation
before the Senate to gain this authorization. It is clear that self-in-
surance is an option many school districts are interested in pursuing.
This legislation directs the Comptroller to study these reserve funds,
including the typical annual cost of maintaining them, the costs to
employees of school districts who self-insure, the impact on healthcare
access, and the amount of funding that participating districts have set
aside for the fund. By requiring this study and answering those critical
questions, this bill would provide clear information on the benefits, if
any, self-insurance would provide to school districts and the taxpayers
they are responsible to.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Minimal.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.

2021-S6876 - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6876
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 20, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  JORDAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Education
 
 AN ACT in relation  to  directing  the  commissioner  of  education,  in
   consultation  with  the commissioner of health and the comptroller, to
   study and prepare a report concerning school insurance reserve  funds;
   and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration there-
   of
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The commissioner of education,  in  consultation  with  the
 commissioner  of  health  and  the comptroller, or the designees of such
 persons, review and report on the adequacy, reasonableness and  afforda-
 bility of school insurance reserve funds as they relate to the provision
 of  health  care benefits to covered employees and prepare and deliver a
 report containing the findings of the study.  Such report shall  include
 but not be limited to an analysis of the following:
   (a)  the  typical  annual  costs of providing health insurance through
 self-insurance by a school district and the impact that such  self-insu-
 rance has on the annual budget of a school district, including the over-
 all immediate and long-term costs;
   (b) the costs to the employees in school districts of providing health
 insurance through self-insurance by the school district;
   (c)  whether  providing  health  insurance through self-insurance by a
 school district using  school  insurance  reserve  funds  has  increased
 access for covered school employees to health care or has made the proc-
 ess  of getting reimbursed or getting coverage easier or more difficult;
 and
   (d) the amount of funding participating self-insured school  districts
 have set aside in their reserve funds.
   §  2.  Within  one year of the effective date of this act, the commis-
 sioner of education shall submit the report to the governor, the  tempo-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD11586-01-1

 S. 6876                             2
 
 rary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly and the minor-
 ity leaders of the senate and the assembly.
   §  3.  This  act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be
 deemed repealed 60 days after the submission of the report  pursuant  to
 section two of this act.

2021-S6876A (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Education
Law Section:: Education

2021-S6876A (ACTIVE) - Summary

2021-S6876A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S6876A

SPONSOR: JORDAN
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act in relation to directing the commissioner of education, in
consultation with the superintendent of financial services and the
office of the state comptroller, to study and prepare a report concern-
ing school insurance reserve funds; and providing for the repeal of such
provisions upon expiration thereof

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 directs the commissioner of education, in consultation with
the superintendent of financial services and office of the state comp-
troller comptroller, to study four issue areas regarding school insur-
ance reserve funds: the cost to school districts of maintaining these
funds, the cost or savings to their employees, the impact on healthcare
access self-insurance provides, and the amount of funding set aside for
the reserve funds.

Section 2 sets forth the requirements on when the completed study must

be submitted.

Section 3 provides for the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Current law allows municipal corporations to self-insure to provide
health insurance to their employees, officers, and retirees. The general
municipal law allows these municipal corporations to establish and make
expenditures from insurance reserve funds, but exempts accident and
health insurance from these provisions. Previous chapters authorized
specific school districts to use their insurance reserve funds for
expenses related to health and accident insurance.  In the era of the
tax cap, several school districts have opted to adopt self-insurance to
manage rising healthcare costs, and for these districts, insurance
reserve funds are necessary to maintain their self-insurance programs.

In 2019 and 2020 alone, the legislature voted 21 times to add new school
districts to those who are allowed to operate an insurance reserve fund.
As of March 2021, an additional 4 school districts have legislation
before the Senate to gain this authorization. It is clear that self-in-
surance is an option many school districts are interested in pursuing.
This legislation directs the Comptroller to study these reserve funds,
including the typical annual cost of maintaining them, the costs to
employees of school districts who self-insure, the impact on healthcare
access, and the amount of funding that participating districts have set
.aside for the fund. By requiring this study and answering those crit-
ical questions, this bill would provide clear information on the bene-
fits, if any, self-insurance would provide to school districts and the
taxpayers they are responsible to.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Minimal.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.

2021-S6876A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  6876--A
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 20, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  JORDAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee  on  Education  --  committee
   discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
   to said committee
 
 AN  ACT  in  relation  to  directing  the  commissioner of education, in
   consultation with the superintendent of  financial  services  and  the
   office  of  the  state  comptroller,  to  study  and  prepare a report
   concerning school insurance  reserve  funds;  and  providing  for  the
   repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The commissioner of education,  in  consultation  with  the
 superintendent  of  financial services and the office of the state comp-
 troller, or the designees of such persons, shall review  and  report  on
 the  adequacy,  reasonableness  and  affordability  of  school insurance
 reserve funds as they relate to the provision of health care benefits to
 covered employees and prepare and deliver a report containing the  find-
 ings  of  the study.  Such report shall include but not be limited to an
 analysis of the following:
   (a) the typical annual costs of  providing  health  insurance  through
 self-insurance  by a school district and the impact that such self-insu-
 rance has on the annual budget of a school district, including the over-
 all immediate and long-term costs;
   (b) the costs to the employees in school districts of providing health
 insurance through self-insurance by the school district;
   (c) whether providing health insurance  through  self-insurance  by  a
 school  district  using  school  insurance  reserve  funds has increased
 access for covered school employees to health care or has made the proc-
 ess of getting reimbursed or getting coverage easier or more  difficult;
 and
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11586-02-1

 S. 6876--A                          2
 
   (d)  the amount of funding participating self-insured school districts
 have set aside in their reserve funds.
   §  2.  Within  one year of the effective date of this act, the commis-
 sioner of education shall submit the report to the governor, the  tempo-
 rary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly and the minor-
 ity leaders of the senate and the assembly.
   §  3.  This  act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be
 deemed repealed 60 days after the submission of the report  pursuant  to
 section two of this act.

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