CALIFORNIA JPIA

Two Perspectives onJoint Powers Authorities

Jon Shull

Chief Executive Officer

Two Perspectives

• Perspective 1: We are a JPA– History– Purpose– Programs– Governance

• Perspective 2: We have JPAs as Members– Elements of Success– Elements of Difficulty

We are a JPA

• Formed under Government Code Sections 6500 and 990 to jointly provide self-insurance, purchased insurance, and administrative services for our member agencies

History

• Local government entity composed of and governed by its Members

• Created by the Contract Cities Association in the mid-1970s to provide liability coverage when the insurance industry abandoned local government

• Coverage began in 1978 with 33 members in Southern California

• Now 121 members throughout the state

Purpose

• A Risk Sharing Pool – Not an Insurance Company– A separate and distinct legal entity composed of

public entity members that have joined together to finance an exposure, liability, or risk; coverage is priced by exposure and experience; motivated by reducing the cost of risk to public entities; goal is to improve value to members.

• No Profit• No Shareholders

Programs

• Self-insured programs for Liability and Workers’ Compensation

• Group-purchased insurance for Property, Earthquake, Pollution and Remediation Legal Liability, Crime, Special Events

• Training Program• Risk Management Consulting• Loss Control Action Plans (LossCAP)

Governance

• Elected officials govern the Authority• Board of Directors selects Executive Committee• Executive Committee meets monthly• Managers Committee meets monthly• Finance Officers Committee meets monthly• CEO hired by Executive Committee• CEO responsible for hiring staff

WWW.CJPIA.ORG

We have JPAs as Members

• Elements of Success – Address Everything!– Bylaws– Governance– Powers of JPA– Allocation of Costs– Liability– Dissolution– Management Responsibilities– Amendment– Focus on Mission of JPA

We have JPAs as Members

• Elements of Difficulty– JPA might not be the best solution– Turf Wars!– Outdated Governing Documents– Weak Policies, Procedures, or Documentation– Lack of Authority to Act– Unfocused Management– Mission Creep– Failure to do what is “right”