Members of the South Carolina Counties’ Insurance Trusts met at the end of January to review best practices in risk management and to celebrate their accomplishments in keeping their communities safe.
Attendees heard from SC Counties Workers’ Compensation Trust Claims Manager Lang Kelly and a panel of experts on how to navigate the complexities of workers’ compensation coverage for law enforcement personnel who moonlight for other employers and organizations.
Moonlighting for sheriff’s deputies and other law enforcement officers is encouraged, as it has a positive impact on retention, according to Kelly. However, she added that it also imposes significant legal and financial risk to the deputies’ primary employer and the county which they serve.
Demand for moonlighting deputies and law enforcement officers has increased in recent years. Security detail for businesses, school sporting events and houses of worship are often-approved off-duty assignments for deputies and officers.
The panel featured Berkeley County Safety Superintendent Brandon Peters, Charleston County Deputy Director of Safety and Risk Management Dana Henderson, Gene Matthews with Richardson Plowden and Will Lyon with Willson Jones Carter & Baxley.
Peters shared information about the third-party vendor Berkeley County uses to manage moonlighting assignments for off-duty personnel, which includes an app where all available jobs are posted.
“Usually, there are 30 to 40 jobs posted at all times,” Peters said.
Henderson emphasized the importance of officers and deputies’ second jobs not being a conflict of interest with their primary duty and recommended having a strong policy that addresses second jobs and moonlighting gigs.
“You’re going to need someone on your staff to manage all this chaos,” she said.
She also shared insights on extra-duty solutions to clarify who manages claims for off-duty assignments and to assist with avoiding on-duty fatigue.
“If you’re considering it, it’s a really good place to put some of your procurement dollars to limit risk to your organization,” Henderson said.
Cybersecurity was also a hot topic, including social engineering and how AI is making it more difficult to discern actual threats. Ryan Truskey, director of South Carolina Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity and chief information security officer with SLED, and Sean Scranton with Willis Towers Watson gave an overview of best practices to ensure county networks are secure.
Scranton stressed the importance of practicing good “password hygiene” and using multifactor authentication (MFA) to add an extra level of security to your login data.
“Trust me, your username and your password are out on the dark web. Most of the feeds are breached usernames and passwords. Your solution to that is MFA,” he said.
They shared information on cybersecurity insurance policies, which can include ransomware coverage and data restoration.
They also advised attendees on the security and legal risks with increasing inclusion of AI in daily processes.
“AI by definition is supposed to hallucinate. That’s how it gets better,” Scranton said, but added that AI also can open an organization to risk.
Another threat to safety is mother nature, and many in attendance had firsthand experience with that during Hurricane Helene. Mayor Doug Roper of Vidalia, Ga., spoke to attendees about the lessons he learned as a community leader during that natural disaster.
“For me, my biggest lesson was how invaluable it is to work and collaborate with others and my role in keeping the community informed,” Roper said.
He recalled how those first days after the storm were critical but also complicated by a lack of electricity and water.
“What people needed in that moment was hope,” Roper said. “They needed to know that we were there, we were present, we were there for them and that help was on the way.”
He encouraged attendees to learn how to deal with failure, saying that those are the moments that will present them with opportunities to learn and grow.
“Look at things through the lens of opportunity,” he said.
The meeting culminated in celebrating the hard work county risk managers do to improve and maintain safety in their communities with the announcement of the year’s Risk Management Awards.
SCAC Director of Insurance Services Robert Benfield encouraged those in attendance to advocate for resources for their departments.
“The success of your program is based on the support you get,” he said.
See photos from the meeting and the Risk Management Awards ceremony.