Top Takeaways
- Districts that haven’t faced abuse allegations still pay due to insurance pooling.
- The Bass Lake Joint Union Elementary School District has paid nearly $150,000 since Assembly Bill 218 became law.
The costs of settling childhood sexual abuse claims under Assembly Bill 218 are not just hitting school districts that have been sued by victims.
Districts that have not faced any abuse allegations involving employees are also paying for settlements because nearly all the state’s school districts obtain liability insurance through obscure public agencies called Joint Power Authorities that pool costs. These authorities, commonly called JPAs, pay settlements when a member district is sued, often after years of legal wrangling.
The Bass Lake Joint Union Elementary School District in Madera County, not far from Yosemite National Park, is experiencing such costs. It enrolls about 800 students and hasn’t been sued for past childhood sexual abuse. Neither has members of its current insurance JPA, Tara Campanella, the district’s chief business officer, said in an interview…