OAR 836-043-0320: Competitive Selection Process; Designation of a Workers’ Compensation Statistical Agent

(1) When the Director licenses more than one workers’ compensation rating organization, the Director shall notify each licensed rating organization of the Director’s intent to begin a competitive process for selecting a statistical agent for gathering workers’ compensation insurance data. Only a licensed workers’ compensation rating organization may apply for designation as the statistical agent. (2) The notification required in section (1) of this rule shall describe the competitive process and establish a deadline for applications and related submissions. (3) Upon receipt of notice of the Director’s intent to begin a selection process, and licensed rating organization may, in writing to the Director, waive its right to pursue selection as the designated statistical agent. (4) Each applicant for designation as the statistical agent must submit the following with its proposal: (a) A compilation plan that provides for: (A) A flow of required data to the state; (B) A flow of statewide compiled data to all rating organizations and their member insurers, and interested agents and insured employers; and (C) A flow of individual insured employer data necessary for employerexperience rating and other individual employer rating of the insured employers of each rating organization’s members to each rating organization and their member insurers, and the authorized agents of the insured employers and the insured employers; (b) A plan for assuring timeliness, oversight and quality control of data received from the rating organizations; (c) A description of the level of professional staffing the applicant will dedicate as statistical agent to serving the State of Oregon and rating organizations; (d) A description of the capacity and quality of the applicant’s electronic data processing system dedicated to the workers’ compensation rating system in Oregon; (e) A description of the applicant’s availability to rating organizations in Oregon and its ability to assist them with their operations; (f) A waiver of all intellectual property rights in compilations of Oregon data required to be prepared by the statistical agent; and (g) A statement of fees that the applicant will charge rating organizations for statistical agent services with adequate itemization of the components of the fees to demonstrate they are reasonable and not excessive for the services provided (5) The Director, upon completing a review of all applications with supporting material and such other information as the Director may require, shall designate one rating organization to serve as the statistical agent for a period of three years. (6) The Director may extend the designation of the current statistical agent pending the competitive selection process. In the event the current statistical agent is unable or unwilling to continue, the Director may designate a temporary statistical agent pending the completion of the competitive selection process. (7) The statistical agent may establish and assess reasonable fees against all licensed rating organizations. The statistical agent must first demonstrate to the Director that the fees will minimize costs to rating organizations without compromising data quality controls and its performance of other statutory responsibilities.