SCI wants records, but bureau says they have no right

by: Jason Springer

Tue Sep 02, 2008 at 11:03:19 PM EDT

Another day, another request for records:

New Jersey's State Commission of Investigation is seeking pay records, meeting minutes and internal documents from the state's Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau, a secretive insurance-funded agency that helps set rates for the $1.8 billion workers compensation insurance system.
So far, the bureau has refused to turn over the material.

This one has a twist because wait until you see why they haven't turned over the material:

Czech said he has resisted the SCI's request for information on the grounds the bureau is not funded by state money.
"My response to the Commission was that the Bureau is not a state agency, we have no state employees and we are not paid by the state," Czech said. "There are absolutely no state or public monies involved in funding the Bureau; we are funded by assessments paid by insurer members of the Bureau."

I don't know nearly enough about their funding, but let's see why he might not be willing to share the information:

Last year, insurers collected $1.8 billion in workers comp premiums, while paying out about $1.2 billion in benefits. A surcharge on the premiums pays for the Compensation Bureau's operations.
In May the Star-Ledger reported that a six-member board comprised executives from the insurance companies that sell workers compensation policies has routinely granted Grover Czech, the Bureau's executive director, generous annual raises and bonuses of up to $21,000.
Pay for Czech's top deputy, Fred Huber, jumped from $105,000 to $145,000 between 2002 and 2006, while pay for the rest of CRIB's executive staff grew by 27 percent over those four years.
Meanwhile, the Bureau recommended six straight increases in workers compensation premiums, raising the total paid to the insurance companies by more than $600 million a year.

I guess we'll have to wait and see if a subpoena follows the request and if Czech is indeed right, that SCI has no right to these records. The Governor has legislation on his desk awaiting signature to expand the board and include new members that aren't from the insurance industry. If Czech's response is any indication, more may still need to be done.

Jason Springer :: SCI wants records, but bureau says they have no right