State conference will soon be here and while we have lots of fun planned for you, the heart of the meeting is the annual business that will be conducted. Delegates should have now been notified by their chapter regent of the proposed by-law changes that were sent out last month. While a few proposals are clarifying wording, two proposed changes would impact dues. It should be noted that dues have not increased in six years, and we are only considering it now to help fund statewide chapter insurance coverage. We will be presenting and voting on the by-law proposals during the afternoon business session on Saturday of conference. Since the proposals have been sent out there have been several questions that have come up that we wished to address before the business session commences. We have complied the following list of frequently asked questions in regard to the proposed General Liability Coverage for Chapters.
1. Would certificates of insurance be available for chapters whose meeting place requires it? Yes, those would be requested and issued for covered chapter meetings or usual events, as requested. They have to be issued by the carrier.
2. Will there be any coverage for chapter property? Yes, the current TSDAR policy provides limited property coverage for several state-owned pins. We would expect to be able to cover chapter-owned regents pins as long as they were scheduled and valued properly. There could be additional premium charged to individual chapters for highly valued chapter-owned jewelry. This would be subject to the carrier’s approval.
3. Does the proposed coverage contain Officers and Directors insurance for the chapters? No, it does not. D&O is a separate type of policy from General Liability.
4. Does the coverage also serve to bond the chapter treasurers? No, it does not. A treasurer’s bond is a different type of coverage than the General Liability policy proposed.
5. In one of the virtual insurance informational meetings, one chapter brought up obtaining insurance for $100 annually from Farm Bureau. Did the committee look into this as an option? Yes, we did. In fact, we spoke directly with the executive at their home office in Columbia for this type of package policy. What we discovered was that while the policies have a minimum premium of $100 now, they are currently in the process of re-evaluating their pricing and we can expect to see large increases in that pricing in the near future. Those increases would put them more in-line with other carriers for non-profits, and would make the premium untenable for most Tennessee chapters. While buying a cheap policy now to get by is a good idea, it will not be a long-term solution for our chapters.
6. If this proposal passes, when would coverage incept for the chapters? This coverage would incept at the earliest on January 1, 2023. There would be no coverage available for Tennessee chapters through the TSDAR policy prior to that date. If chapters currently carry their own insurance, we would urge them to continue to carry their coverage until such time as they are notified that we will be covering them under this new policy. If the proposal passes, the Insurance Committee will notify chapters as to when the new coverage would incept.
We hope that this will help chapters and delegates prepare to make an informed decision during the business session.
Finally, as a reminder today is the last day to preorder copies of Word, Thought, Prayer: A Season of Devotion. Due to the nature of the printing process for the devotional, Word, Thought, Prayer will be presale only. This will be your last opportunity to purchase this heartfelt book, and proceeds will go to the new scholarship fund.
I am looking forward to seeing all of you very soon!
In Service, Cecile
