Rensselaer County recognized for risk management

TROY, N.Y. - Rensselaer County was honored recently with the 2021 Risk Management Award, given annually in recognition of a county's commitment to sound risk management, safety, and training efforts. The Risk Management Award was presented by the New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal (NYMIR) as part of the annual Fall meeting of the New York State Association of Counties (NYSAC), which was held last month in Onondaga County.

The award was presented to Rensselaer County Executive Steven McLaughlin by NYSAC's Executive Director Stephen J. Acquario and NYMIR's Executive Director Kevin Crawford. The award's inscription reads: "In recognition of a commitment to sound risk management, safety, and training that makes a difference."

In presenting the award, Crawford stated that, "Effective risk management requires a team approach, everyone working together to reduce the liability and exposure which are inherent in so many local government operations. Rensselaer County was chosen from among our subscribing members-which include 33 counties-because of the way in which its officers and employees respond to risk recommendations and other loss control suggestions. Since joining the Reciprocal in January of 2017, the County has made notable strides in improving safety within its ranks. Led by a dedicated risk management official that works with safety committees at the nursing home, jail, and other county departments, it has a group of officials and employees who take risk management into account and are proud to do so. Likewise, NYMIR is proud to recognize their efforts today."

"This is a testament to our team that works hard to focus on personnel training and education programs that protect the public's buildings and overall government operations. I proudly accept this reward on behalf of our employees and taxpayers and I appreciate the partnership with NYMIR and NYSAC, who work hard to deliver insurance services to 33 counties and more than 900 local governments across the state," McLaughlin said.

The county executive also commended the Rensselaer County Legislature for their role in selecting NYMIR as the insurance reciprocal best suited to serve the county's needs.

"NYSAC is proud of our work with NYMIR, the New York Conference of Mayors, the Association of Towns to create one of the best and largest municipal insurance companies in the nation," Acquario added.

NYMIR is a non-profit, statewide property and casualty insurance program for New York State's local governments. Formed by a partnership among New York State Association of Counties, the New York Conference of Mayors, and the Association of Towns of the State of New York, it was licensed by the NYS Insurance Department in 1993. It is now the State's largest underwriter of municipal property and casualty risk, with over 925 town, city, village, and county member subscribers from all across the state. NYMIR employs an active risk management program together with an aggressive claims defense philosophy to reduce the frequency and severity its members' claims experience. Member government premium payments are experience-rated in order to further reward those who practice sound risk management.