| ILLINOIS SCHOOL SYSTEM AUDITInsurance UniverseComplete Audit Framework — $307M+ Annual StatewideWCSIT | ISDA | CLIC | ISEBC | IERMPA | Commercial Brokers |
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| 5 PoolsCovering most of 864 districts | $307M+Annual statewide premiums | $1M SavedOrland Park — one RFP | 864Districts — how many ever bid? |
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Illinois School System Audit | May 2026 | 866-312-6456 | auditor@illinoisschooldistrictaudit.com
Pool 1 — WCSIT: Workers' Compensation Self-Insurance Trust
Sponsor: Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB)
Founded: 1982
Administrator: The Sandner Group — Insurance Program Managers
Contact: James Woodard | (630) 849-8758
Members: Hundreds of Illinois school districts (no public list)
Coverage: Workers' compensation — the largest WC pool for IL schools
Extras: School Board Legal Liability up to $10M, treasurer surety bonds, student accident
Governed by: Board of school board members and administrators
| ⚠ AUDIT FLAGBoard members of school districts sit on the governing board that sets their own workers' compensation rates. The regulated ARE the regulators. No external oversight. No public disclosure of what The Sandner Group is paid to administer this pool. |
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Pool 2 — ISDA: Illinois School District Agency
Sponsor: Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB)
Founded: 1986 — started with 17 districts and $854,000 in contributions
Administrator: The Sandner Group — same administrator as WCSIT
Contact: James Woodard | (630) 849-8758 | (312) 930-6124
Members: 150+ school districts statewide (no public member list)
Coverage: Property, general liability, auto, equipment breakdown, cyber liability, umbrella, student accident, school board legal liability, abuse/molestation
Property appraisal: ~80% of members use ISDA's in-house appraisal service
| ⚠ AUDIT FLAGS1. SAME administrator (Sandner Group) runs both WCSIT and ISDA — one firm controls workers comp AND property/casualty for the same districts with no competitive bid documented. 2. The property appraisal service is run by the same organization providing the coverage — direct conflict of interest in valuation. 3. No public disclosure of which 150+ districts are members. 4. No public disclosure of Sandner Group's administrative fee. |
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Pool 3 — CLIC: Collective Liability Insurance Cooperative
Founded: August 1, 1983 — 8 charter members at Stevenson HSD (in 'the trailer')
Original name: County of Lake Insurance Cooperative
Coverage area: 13 counties — ALL Illinois public school districts eligible
Property and related coverages
General Liability including Sexual Misconduct and Concussions
Auto Liability and Auto Physical Damage
Excess Liability, Crime, Student Accident, School Board Legal Liability
Boiler and Machinery, Employee Benefit Liability
Bonds — Treasurer / Life Safety / Notary Public
Workers' Compensation, Pollution Liability
Gallagher Crisis Protect — Identity Theft/Cyber Liability ($2M per member)
| ⚠ CRITICAL FLAG: GALLAGHER IS ALREADY INSIDE CLICCLIC uses Arthur J. Gallagher's 'Crisis Protect' product. Gallagher (AJG) just completed a $13.45 billion acquisition of AssuredPartners in 2025. The world's third-largest insurance broker already has a product embedded inside this school district cooperative. Board governance: each district is represented on the CLIC full board — same structural capture as WCSIT and ISDA. |
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Pool 4 — ISEBC: Illinois Schools Employee Benefits Consortium
Sponsor: Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB)
Coverage: Fully insured, comprehensive group health insurance for school employees
Purpose: Affordable health benefits for member districts
Website: iasb.com/memberships-and-divisions/sponsored-programs/group-health-insurance
| ⚠ AUDIT FLAGSWhich carrier provides the underlying coverage? What is the premium per employee vs. market? When was the carrier last competitively bid? Is there an RFP cycle, or does the contract auto-renew? Who sits on the governing board and do they have carrier relationships? |
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Pool 5 — IERMPA: Illinois Educators Risk Management Program Association
Structure: Independent self-insured pool — downstate focus
Health carrier: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBS)
2025 issue: 18% aggregate premium increase approved — no competitive bid documented publicly
Arcola SD #306, Belle Valley SD #119, Bismark-Henning CUSD #1
Blue Ridge CUSD #18, Cissna Park CUSD #6, Edgar County CUSD #6
Edwardsville CUSD #7, Fisher CUSD #1, GCMS CUSD #5
Gifford Community SD #188, Grayville CUSD #1, Harmony-Emge SD #175
Heritage CUSD #8, Hoopeston Area CUSD #11, Mascoutah CUSD #19
Monticello CUSD #25, Neoga CUSD #3, Okaw Valley CUSD #302
Olympia CUSD 16, Paxton-Buckley-Loda CUSD #10, Prairieview-Ogden CUSD #197
SALT FORK CUSD #512 ← CRITICAL FLAG: 34.6% of ALL expenditures on Fire Prevention & Safety
Shelbyville CUSD #4, Shiloh CUSD #1, St. Joseph Grade CCSD #169
Stewardson-Strasburg CUSD #5A, Thomasboro CCSD #130, Tuscola CUSD 301, Westville CUSD
| ⚠ CRITICAL FLAG: SALT FORK IS AN IERMPA MEMBERSalt Fork CUSD 512 — the district spending 34.6% of ALL district expenditures ($6.24 million) on Fire Prevention and Safety — is an IERMPA member. That same pool accepted an 18% BCBS health insurance premium increase in 2025 with no competitive bid documented in the public record. Two major financial anomalies in one district. Immediate investigation required. |
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The Sandner Group administers both WCSIT and ISDA — the two largest IASB-sponsored pools. James Woodard is the single named contact for both pools.
| Division | Function |
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| Sandner Group — Insurance Program Managers | Markets and administers WCSIT + ISDA |
| Sandner Group — Claims Management | Handles ALL claims for WCSIT + ISDA members |
| Sandner Group — Alternative Risk Solutions | Grows WCSIT + ISDA membership |
How long has Sandner Group administered these pools? Was there ever a competitive RFP for the administrator role?
What is Sandner Group's total annual administrative fee from WCSIT + ISDA combined?
Who on the governing boards approved Sandner Group's contract and at what rate?
Did any governing board member have a prior relationship with Sandner Group?
Sandner Group's website redirects to another firm — has there been an ownership change or acquisition?
| The Biggest Change Nobody Voted OnIn 12 months (2024-2025), every major Illinois insurance broker was acquired by a global firm. Horton → Marsh McLennan. NFP → Aon. AssuredPartners → Gallagher. Districts that thought they had an independent local broker now have one of the three largest insurance firms on the planet. No board voted on this. No competitive process happened. It just happened. |
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| Broker | Parent Company | Deal Size | What Changed for IL Schools |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horton Group | Marsh McLennan Agency | $7.75B | Orland Park-based, 864 districts' neighbor. Acquired Aug 1, 2024 |
| NFP / Assurance | Aon PLC | $13B | Benefits + P/C broker. Acquired April 2024. Now 'NFP, an Aon company' |
| AssuredPartners | Arthur J. Gallagher | $13.45B | Already inside CLIC via Crisis Protect product. Acquired 2025 |
| Gallagher (AJG) | Public (NYSE: AJG) | Acquirer | 3rd largest global broker. Now tied to CLIC + AssuredPartners |
| Hub International | Private (PE-backed) | N/A | Large Cook/collar county presence, unchanged |
| THE FACTSSame Policy. Same Carrier. $1,000,000 Less. |
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Before: Horton Group served the Village of Orland Park for approximately 25 years. Horton always recommended and placed a Horton-affiliated product. No competitive RFP documented.
After: New mayor took office. Village went to market with a competitive RFP. Got the SAME Blue Cross Blue Shield policy. Annual savings: $1,000,000 — on identical coverage.
| The Statewide ImplicationThis is ONE municipality. One broker. One RFP. $1 million saved. Illinois has 864 school districts. How many have had the same broker for 10+ years? How many have issued an RFP in the last 5 years? Conservative estimate of statewide excess premiums: $200-400 million annually. D230 (Consolidated HSD 230) used Horton for the same period. Now Horton is Marsh McLennan Agency. Same people. Global parent. No board vote required. |
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WCSIT, ISDA, CLIC, and IERMPA are all governed by boards composed of school district administrators and board members. These are the exact same people who:
Set the coverage terms they will personally receive as district employees
Approve the administrator contracts (Sandner Group, Gallagher, etc.)
Vote on dividend distributions back to member districts
Decide premium increases that their own districts will pay
| This Is Not Oversight — This Is Structural CaptureThe regulated are the regulators. There is no independent party reviewing whether pool premiums are competitive, whether administrator fees are reasonable, or whether the governing board members have undisclosed relationships with pool vendors. The Illinois Ethics Commission has issued fewer than 5 school district enforcement actions in 10 years. |
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5 ILCS 430 — Illinois Governmental Ethics Act (EIS filings)
105 ILCS 5/10-9 — School board conflict of interest
105 ILCS 5/10-20.21 — Competitive bidding requirements
50 ILCS 105/3 — Prohibited interest in public contracts
720 ILCS 5/33-3 — Official misconduct
Insurance renewal on consent agenda — no discussion, no vote on terms
Same broker named for 5+ consecutive years with no RFP documented
Board member recuses from insurance vote — conflict flag, cross-ref EIS
Broker fee increase approved without specific board vote (Del Galdo pattern)
Pool membership approved without comparison to commercial market alternatives
Workers comp experience modification rate (EMR) trending upward — why?
Property values not updated in 3+ years — underinsurance risk and appraisal fee question
Cyber liability limits below $2M — all pools now offer $2M standard
Life Safety bond listed as 'bond' in insurance — who is the surety and at what rate?
Health insurance carrier changed without documented RFP
BCBS renewal approved with double-digit rate increase and no alternatives presented
Horton Group or Marsh McLennan Agency named as broker post-August 2024 — was board notified of acquisition?
Illinois School System Audit Project
866-312-6456 | auditor@illinoisschooldistrictaudit.com | IllinoisSchoolDistrictAudit.com
May 2026 | All data from public records