Town of Orchard Park

TOWN ENDS INSURANCE BATTLE, DISBANDS BROKERS COMMITTEE:

The insurance war is over in Orchard Park. For now.

And the town is no longer paying for insurance on a non-existent water department.

The Town Board has disbanded Orchard Park's insurance brokers committee and appointed two agents to represent the town.

The board approved a contract Tuesday night that will save the town at least $130,000 over last year's $500,000-plus coverage for liability insurance.

"The town saves a substantial amount of money because a company that refused to write insurance for Orchard Park in the past decided to get in the market," said Councilman Stanley Jemiolo Jr. "For some reason they now have [gone into that market]."

The town also will be reimbursed $29,000 from last year's insurance contract because its carrier charged the town for insuring a water department that was dissolved when the Erie County Water Authority took over operations in 2004.

The town also will receive a prorated share of its 2004 premiums for the part of the year after the department was dissolved, said Supervisor Mary Travers Murphy.

The insurance coverage has been an issue of contention between Travers Murphy and the members of the board since March, when she issued a report criticizing the committee system.
. Jemiolo said the town has since received an opinion from the New York State Association of Towns that the situation was improper.

"They said if you appoint a committee, they're officers of the town," he said, which creates a potential conflict with receiving income from the accounts. "Now what they want us to do is appoint agents . . . It's a matter of semantics in some regards."

I'd like to read the Association of Town's opinion if someone could e-mail it to me, and woud be happy to post it online.