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<regulation prefix="Regulation" num=".05" citation="COMAR 14.09.14.05" title_num="14" subtitle_num="09" chapter_num="14" heading="Trustee Responsibilities.">
  <paragraph num="A.">
    <text>Trustee Election.</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>Trustees shall be elected or appointed for a stated term of office.</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>A trustee may not be an owner, officer, or employee of a service company with which the Board of Trustees contracts for a purpose authorized by this chapter, except that a Trustee may be an employee of the governmental group or sponsoring organization.</text>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="B.">
    <text>Delegation of Authority to Administrator.</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>Subject to final approval by the Commission, the Board of Trustees may delegate authority to perform specific functions to an Administrator including, but not limited to, the authority to:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Contract with a service company and other providers;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Determine the premium charged to and refunds payable to members subject to the restrictions of the Commission;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Invest surplus monies subject to the restrictions set forth in this regulation; and</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(d)">
        <text>Approve applications for membership.</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>The Board of Trustees shall include in the written minutes of trustee meetings the specific authority delegated to an administrator pursuant to this section.</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(3)">
      <text>The Board of Trustees shall submit a copy of the minutes under §B(2) of this regulation to the Commission for approval.</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(4)">
      <text>An Administrator designated by the Board of Trustees:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>May not be an owner, officer, or employee of a service company with which the Board of Trustees has contracted for a purpose authorized by this chapter, except that the Administrator may be an employee of the governmental group or sponsoring organization; and</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Shall furnish a fidelity bond, with the Fund as obligee, in an amount, as determined by the Commission, sufficient to protect the Fund against misappropriation or misuse of any monies or securities.</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="C.">
    <text>Authority of Board of Trustees.</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>The Board of Trustees may not:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Extend credit to individual members for payment of premiums other than normal premium payment plans;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Utilize any of the monies collected as premiums for any purpose unrelated to the Fund's workers' compensation program; or</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Borrow any monies from the Fund or in the name of the Fund:</text>
        <paragraph num="(i)">
          <text>Without obtaining the prior approval of the Commission; or</text>
        </paragraph>
        <paragraph num="(ii)">
          <text>For the purpose of engaging in an investment activity pursuant to this chapter.</text>
        </paragraph>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>The Board of Trustees may:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Direct the administration of the Fund;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Approve applications for membership in the Fund;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Invest surplus monies subject to the restrictions set forth in Labor and Employment Article, §9-404(a), Annotated Code of Maryland, and this chapter; and</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(d)">
        <text>Contract with a service company or other provider for a purpose authorized by this chapter.</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(3)">
      <text>The Board of Trustees shall:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Retain control of monies collected or disbursed from the Fund;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Establish a claims fund sufficient to cover payment of the entire aggregate loss fund as defined in any aggregate excess policy required by the Commission;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Establish a trustee fund sufficient to pay the administrative costs of the Fund and from which all administrative costs and other disbursements shall be made;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(d)">
        <text>Establish a revolving fund, to be replenished from time to time from the claims fund, for use by the Fund's staff or an authorized service company;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(e)">
        <text>Arrange for the annual audit of the accounts and records of the Fund by an independent certified public accountant, copies of which shall be filed with the Commission no later than 5 months after the close of the Fund fiscal year; and</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(f)">
        <text>Determine the premiums charged to and refunds payable to members.</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="D.">
    <text>Use of Service Company.</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>The Board of Trustees may contract with a service company to perform any function not specifically reserved to the Board of Trustees.</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>Prior to entering into a contract with a service company or other provider for a purpose authorized by this chapter, the Board of Trustees or Administrator shall provide to the Commission satisfactory proof that the service company or provider:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Is covered by a fidelity bond, with the Fund as obligee, in an amount sufficient to protect monies over which the service company or provider exercises control;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Maintains fiduciary liability insurance, and if not, how the Fund's interests are protected;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Possesses experience and expertise relevant to the activity that the service company or provider has been contracted to provide;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(d)">
        <text>Holds the qualifications required by the state or federal agency responsible for regulating the activity that the service company or provider has been contracted to provide; and</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(e)">
        <text>Is licensed, registered, or exempt from licensing or registration, with the state or federal agency responsible for regulating the activity that the service company or provider has been contracted to provide.</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="E.">
    <text>Prohibited Transactions.</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>Except as provided in §E(3), a fiduciary with respect to the Fund may not cause the Fund to engage in a transaction, if the fiduciary knows or should know that such transaction constitutes direct or indirect:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Sale, exchange, or leasing of property between the Fund and a party in interest;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Lending of money or other extension of credit between the Fund and a party in interest;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Furnishing of goods, services, or facilities between the Fund and a party in interest;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(d)">
        <text>Transfer to, or use by or for the benefit of, a party in interest, of an asset of the Fund; or</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(e)">
        <text>Engaging in investment, or other activity not provided for in the approved annual investment plan, this chapter, or Labor and Employment Article, §9-404(a), Annotated Code of Maryland.</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>Except as provided in §E(3) of this regulation, a fiduciary may not:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Deal with Fund assets in the fiduciary's own interest or for the fiduciary's own account;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Act in a transaction involving the Fund on behalf of a party whose interests are adverse to the interest of the Fund or its members; or</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Receive any consideration for the fiduciary's own personal account from a person dealing with the Fund in connection with a transaction involving the assets of the Fund.</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(3)">
      <text>The prohibitions in §E(1) and (2) of this regulation do not apply to the following transactions:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Contracting or making reasonable arrangements with a party in interest for office space, or legal, accounting, or other services necessary for the establishment or operation of the Fund and its workers' compensation insurance program, if not more than reasonable compensation is paid for those services; or</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Transactions described in §E(1) and (2) of this regulation between the Fund and a person that is a party in interest, other than a fiduciary, who has or exercises any discretionary authority or control with respect to the investment of the Fund assets involved in the transaction, or who renders investment advice, within the meaning of Regulation .01B(7)(a) of this chapter, with respect to those assets, solely by reason of providing services to the plan or solely by reason of a relationship to such a service provider, but only if in connection with such transaction the Fund receives no less, or pays no more, than adequate consideration as defined in Regulation .01A(2) of this chapter.</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(4)">
      <text>Upon application, the Commission may authorize other exemptions for fiduciaries or transactions.</text>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
</regulation>