Historical Information

In 1971 and 1972, the Sacramento County Grand Jury expressed concern about the rising cost of insurance as well as the high deductibles carried by several school districts in the County. The Grand Jury charged the Sacramento County Office of Education with the responsibility of studying this problem and seeking ways to implement a county-wide insurance program.

The County Office of Education accepted the charge and invited each school district to send a representative to study the area of insurance. A task force was formed; it decided to establish a self-insurance pool to cover the most common property losses and to purchase excess insurance to cover catastrophic losses.

To determine the feasibility of this decision, it was decided to seek the assistance of an independent insurance consultant to study the matter and present alternative proposals for consideration. Marsh & McLennan, Inc., was selected because of its expertise and sophisticated analytical techniques. The firm presented a series of alternatives based on data from ten representative school districts. A self-insurance program, which would mutually benefit member districts, was determined feasible.

With the assistance of County Counsel, a suitable legal foundation was established and a joint powers agreement was drafted for presentation to, and ratification by, the governing boards of all school districts in Sacramento County. Early in 1974, five districts formed the Schools Insurance Authority.

The first insurance program implemented in 1974 was the Property Program, followed by the Liability Program in 1975, the Workers' Compensation Program in 1977, and the Benefits Programs in 1980.

Membership grew from the original five members in 1974 to a total of 37 members in 1993. Although not all district members participate in all programs, they continue to enjoy savings in those programs in which they choose to participate.

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