Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-10-04
POINTS OUT
HOW CITY CAN
SAVE $1,175
State Fund Calls Attention of
Council to Advantages of
Insuring With 1t

Stating the city can save S1,175
| by contracting with the State Work
mems Insurance Fund for workmen's
compensation liability in one year,
has sent a letter to Mayor ]. William
| Bowman and the City Commissioners
calling attention to the advisability of
taking out n state pOticy.
At the City Council meeting on
Tuesday, Commissioner Lynch in
troduced an ordinance on first read
| ing awarding an insurance contract
to private company for a period
of fifteen months, beginning October
this year, and extending until the
close of 191S'
Last winter when the 1917 budget
was made up provision was made to
take out insurance for this year in
the state fund. Later an ordinance
| giving the contract to a stock COM
pany was introduced but never
| passed finally. In the controversy
which developed and because of the
vacancies in Council it was decided
the city would carry it's own insur-
ance risk.
Because of the effort now to give
a private company the contract Mr..
Allen in his letter explains the inter
est taken in the move, and says:
Should Consider Economy
"As representatives of the CITY of
| Harrisburg, the Council should con-
slider the securing of compensation
insurance where it can be obtained
with the greatest economy, with the
knowledge that prompt service will
be given the claims of injured en-
| ployes and that absolute security is
| provided.
From the standpoint of security,
| the average stock insurance COM
| pany is approximately on par with
the state fund.
From the standpoint of claim
service. ii is self-evident that an in
surance medium with its home office
! located in your city can undoubtedly
| give more prompt and efficient serv-
| ice than company whose home
office is located outside the limits
| of this Commonwealth.
| From the standpoint of economy,
there is a vast difference in favor
| of the state fund which Is an item
| of extreme Importance and should
I be seriously considered.
! For example. if your insurance
] premium amounts to $4,000 per year
! fund will furnish the same COM
plete protection at Il ten per cent.
! lower rate. creating an initial saving
| Of $500. In addition to that saving,
the state fund pays dividends from
profits and in the year 1916, on your
! class of business, paid to other cities
/ insured a fifteen per cent. dividend.
! On the basis of $4,000 premium, this
dividend would amount to $675 in
i 4 ~ NT,1
/ the same dividend will be continued,
which is probable, this amount of
insurance would result in a gross
saving. below stock company cost,
of $1,175. Can such a saving he
! ignored by the City Council of Har-
risburg? This saving alone is suf1ici-
! ent to pay the annual salary of pos
sibly an additional policeman or
other necessary city employe.
Many Cities Insured
There is another phase to this
question. The state fund is purely a
Pennsylvania institution created by
| your Commonwealth and realizing a
spirit of local pride, has invested all
moneys in reserves to strictly Penn
! sylvana municipal. school district
| and Improvement investments. The
only exception to this rule has been
an investment in the First United
States Liberty Loan. From our
knowledge, stock companies incor-
porated in other states do not make
their investments entirely in the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as
does the state fund.
Among the Pennsylvania mu-
inequalities now insured in the State
| Workmen's Insurance Fund are AL
| lentown, Lancaster. Meadville,
Franklin, Johnstown, etc. Among
other governmental agencies now in
sured in the state fund are the school
districts of Philadelphia, Pittsburgh,
Altoona, Johnstown ana several
hundred others. In addition, poll
cies are carried by many boroughs,
| townships and road supervisors.