In a May 20 release, Governor Mike DeWine and Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) Administrator Stephanie McCloud proposed giving $1.5 billion back to Ohio’s employers. The proposed amount includes approximately $114 million for local governments and around $50 million for Ohio’s public school districts. This would be both the fifth investment return to public and private employers of at least $1 billion and the sixth overall since 2013.
More specifically, the proposed $1.5 billion dividend equals 88% of the premiums employers paid for the policy year that ended June 30, 2018 (calendar year 2017 for public employers). BWC insures roughly 242,000 public and private employers. BWC earned $1.3 billion in net investment income in 2018, with a net return of 5.1 percent on assets of $26.9 billion.
Administrator McCloud will present the proposal to the BWC Board of Directors on May 22 during board committee meetings. A vote would follow at the board’s June 28 meeting. If approved, checks would be issued to employers in September.