LCPS pays $11.3M for annual insurance coverage, up 14% from last year
Las Cruces Public Schools paid $11.3 million for annual risk insurance coverage for fiscal year 2027, about $1.4 million more than last year.
District officials say property and liability coverage and workers’ compensation account for about $8 million of the annual premium
Damien Willis, Organ Mountain News
LAS CRUCES - Las Cruces Public Schools has paid more than $11.25 million for insurance coverage for the current fiscal year, a roughly $1.4 million increase from last year as the district faces rising risk costs.
The payment to the New Mexico Public Schools Insurance Authority covers LCPS for the entirety of fiscal year 2027 and is about 14% higher than the $9.9 million the district paid last year.
Deputy Superintendent Chenyu “Alex” Liu discussed the increase Thursday during the Board of Education’s Finance Subcommittee meeting after board members questioned the size of the district’s July insurance payment.
“The payment for the $11.3 million is for the entire fiscal year of ’27,” Liu said.
District payment records show LCPS paid NMPSIA $11,255,430 on July 27.
The insurance payment was one of the largest transactions LCPS made during the month. Total nonpayroll disbursements in July were about $35.4 million.
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Liu said the two largest components of the district’s annual risk coverage are property and general liability insurance, at about $4 million, and workers’ compensation coverage, also at about $4 million.
The district’s coverage also includes fleet automobile insurance, bus liability and other related policies.
Liu emphasized later in the meeting that the $11.3 million payment is for risk coverage and is separate from health insurance provided to LCPS employees.
“That’s just a risk premium, that’s liability insurance, not related to the staff health insurance,” Liu said. “That’s a separate thing.”
He said LCPS had already paid the full annual premium in July.
District officials said NMPSIA considers several factors when calculating risk costs, including changes in the number of buildings and vehicles as well as claims and incidents involving the district.
Because NMPSIA pools risk among participating public schools, Liu said the financial impact of an individual LCPS incident can be diluted across the larger insurance pool.
But claims still matter.
“If we have more claims, more incidents happen in that fiscal year, you’ll see that the increase is pretty significant,” Liu said.
He said the district has been closely monitoring claims and requiring vendors to provide insurance documentation and endorsements so liability can be directed to a contractor’s insurer when appropriate rather than falling to NMPSIA.
The higher premium is already showing up in LCPS spending trends.
Liu said operational fund expenditures through July were 9.36% higher than during the same period last year, with the increased NMPSIA premium accounting for part of the difference.
Board member Teresa Tenorio returned to the insurance figure later in the meeting, asking Liu to clarify how much the premium had increased.
“It’s a 14% increase from $9.9 million to $11.3 million,” Liu said.
Damien Willis is founder and editor of Organ Mountain News. If you have a personal story to share or a lead we should follow up on, reach out at OrganMountainNews@gmail.com or connect with him on X at @damienwillis.
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