To:

To: &nb= sp; = Bellevue’s PTSA Presidents

From: &= nbsp; Co= nnie Gerlitz, Bellevue PTSA Council President

Date: &= nbsp; Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Subject: &nbs= p; After School Programs and Ski Schools<= /span>

So many questions on this subject this year. Some have been instigat= ed by the District, some by individual principals and some by PTAs themselves.&nb= sp; I'll try to make this as simple as possible.

Fir= st of all, nobody but your unit can actually answer all your questions because we don't have access to your bylaws. You are an independent organization= and can make your own decisions. Those decisions can not go against State Uniform Bylaws, unit Bylaws, non-profit corporation laws or normal laws, of course. The school district or school administration can not tell you what to do or not do. What they can say is what they will do or not do--like provide facilities for your activities. You don't ever h= ave to ask can we do something or other. The answer is always yes--if you= are not breaking a law or bylaw.

Wha= t you can do and what you should do are certainly different things, however. = ; We should support kids and cooperate with the schools to which we are attached. We should take every action necessary to protect our kids and our membership. So, on to some specifics.

Abo= ut 50% of the inquiries that I have received, start out= by asking "Can our PTA be sued if we do such and such...?" The answer is yes to all those questions, too. You can be sued for anythi= ng at any time no matter how careful you are. Caterpillar Company is bei= ng sued after the horrible death of the young woman in the Middle East who stood in front of a huge earth mover. I guess Caterpillar was supposed to warn her that if she were attacked by one of th= eir machines she might be killed. The answer is yes, you can be sued but I don't think that is really the question you are asking.

I t= hink you are asking (or at least should be asking) whether or not you have insurance coverage to defend you from erroneous accusations of wrong-d= oing or pay for damages in which you are found liable. The answer to = this question is found in your AIM policy if you have bought one. You can = read the policy (It really isn't hard, just boring) by going to the AIM web= site www.aim-companies.com.= Our contact is Chad Joyce at cjoyce@aim-companies.com= . There is also a very good synopsis of the policy provided on the web site a= nd provided in your Leadership Kit that was mailed to you--it's called Risk Management Guide.

Fun= damentally, the policy says that it will provide coverage for damages arising from= PTA sponsored events with some very pointed exclusions. Key words here are sponsored and exclusions.

An = event is a PTA sponsored event if:

The PTA must have been in= volved with the creation, planning and implementation of the activity.=
The majority of the manpo= wer is provided by PTA members, volunteers, employees, or independent contrac= tors
The PTA membership or BOD= must vote to authorize the activity
The PTA must handle the moneys (this can be an in-and-out line item or a separate account which is audited by the PTA)
The PTA must execute the contract, oral or written

Thi= s is pretty straight forward. Where the problems come in is when some organization wants PTA to "sponsor" something but will not agree = to the requirements of the PTA- or its insurance carrier-like, actually sponso= ring it. Be tough. You either sponsor it or you don't.

The= re aren't many exclusions but two that I want to po= int out are;

&nb= sp;NO COVERAGE FOR ANY TYPE OF TRANSPORTATION--PLANES, TRAINS, BUSES, BUSES, BUSE= S, CARS, CARS CARS, BOATS--ANY KIND OF MOTORIZED VEHICLES. Wheelbarrows are not excluded that I can see.

NO = COVERAGE FOR ORGANIZED SPORTS THAT REQUIRE REGULAR PRACTICES AND CONTESTS. (This mea= ns sports that we are all used to--not a yoga for k= ids class or a ski school)

The= re are other exclusions. Read them. But these are the two that are most associated with the after school activity/ski school question.

Can= we hire people is another question. Remember the answer to these questions are always yes. Should you do it? PTA advises that you not actually hire people because of all the responsibiliti= es of an employer which I have no intention of delineating here--just the IRS = and paper work involved should be enough to make you shy away from hiring peopl= e to say nothing of benefits, etc.

But= there are ways to pay people to do things for the organization without actually hiring them if they can be considered an independent contractor. Ther= e is an excellent write up about independent contractors on the state web site. In a nutshell it tells you (1)how mu= ch you can pay for each of the IRS forms necessary--below $600 and above $600 per year. (2) If they have a business license it helps prove they are independe= nt contractors--get a copy to file with the IRS forms (3) Do you have to give extensive instruction to the person for them to perform their duties--proba= bly not an independent contractor. They should already know how to do the= ir duties (4) Will the person have an opportunity to profit from his activities? If so, could be an independent contractor. A ski school, = for example is most likely an independent contractor. A teacher could be hired as an independent contractor with a little work on the teacher's part= .

Jus= t think, is this person in a business. Once you have decided you have an IC, t= hen there are things like the IRS forms that I mentioned and of course, a writt= en contract with the IC which outlines exactly what is expected and it should state that the PTA considers the person to be an IC.

Don= 't let this throw you. Again, simple. Don't= hire anyone as an employee unless you want a lot of work. Hire an independ= ent contractor. File the proper IRS forms and sign a proper contract.&nbs= p; There are examples of good contracts available.

So,= can you sponsor after school activities? Of course. Do you have coverage for it? Probably, but you need to follow the rul= es outlined by the company.

Can= you provide transportation to whatever? Yes. Do you have coverage f= or that transportation? No you do not. Should you do it? If there is coverage somewhere else, go for it. Let me give you an example. Council charters buses to take people to Olympia for Focus Day. Do we have coverage for those activities? Yes, for all the activities but not for damage as a result of the transportation. Who provides that? The bus company.

Can= you sponsor a ski school? It is exactly the same as any other after school activi= ty (it's listed as an approved activity on the AIM website) with the exception of the transportation. Who provides that coverage? The bus/ski company. Want extra protection? = ; Ask the ski school to name you as an additional insured on their policy. = The school district will ask for that as well if you depart from the school.&nb= sp; The school district will also ask the parents to sign a hold harmless form which I'm sure the district will provide. The hold harmless should al= so hold your unit harmless for both the skiing and the bus ride. Can peo= ple sue if they signed a hold harmless? Yes, of course. That's why = you want to be named as an additional insured on the = ski school policy.

I'm= almost done.

You= will always need to have all of your parent volunteer= s be PTA members.

You= always need to have PTA member volunteers at every event--omnipresent--on the buss= es, at the chess club, at the play practice.

You= should have assurance that any company you use has done actual State Patrol checks= on their employees.

So,= what have I forgotten? Ask away. The answer is probably yes or = the answer is you have to read something. The other answer is GO TO PTA A= ND THE LAW!

Thi= s email is not to be construed as providing or de= nying coverage or giving legal advice. It is Connie's advice based on years= in the legal, insurance, and PTA business and my ability to read. Please hold me harmless.