Surety Bond News

Not many people know what a public official bond is. Public official bonds ensure that individuals serving the public such as tax collectors or judges follow the rules of their county/state. The people of New Albany, IN may soon become fans of public official bonds pending a ruling on a recent case where a public official allegedly mishandled thousands of dollars. (more…)

Various public officials in Indiana are affected by new surety legislation recently put in place. The new law is named HB 1025 and revokes the requirement that makes various public officials’ bonds annual. HB 1025 modifies an existing requirement for a bond with annual coverage in the amount of $30,000 for each $1 million of receipts of the officer’s office during the previous fiscal year before the acquisition of the bond; this new law affects city controllers, city clerk treasurers, town clerk treasurers, Barrett Law fund custodians, county treasurers, county sheriffs, circuit court clerks, township trustees, and conservancy district financial clerks. HB 1025 caps the bond at $300,000 for the officials listed.

There is a new law in Indiana State that puts forth a new surety bond requirement. The new law is titled SB 549 and establishes the Indiana Public Retirement System for the handling of state retirement funds, pensions, and disability or benefit funds. The Director of the Indiana Public Retirement System must obtain a surety bond in a quantity that the System's board of directors will determine. The bond will guarantee the safe handling of the funds.

Legislation has been re-adopted relating to mixed martial arts promoters in Indiana State. The Indiana Gaming Commission has implemented rules under the name SB 160 (2009), which allowed the Commission to regulate the mixed martial arts matches. SB 160 requires match promoters to acquire a surety bond of at least $10,000. The law that’s already in place allows the Commission to require bonds for boxing and sparring match promoters. The rules also permit the Commission to ask the promoter to supply a supplementary surety bond for separate events which must be in a quantity equivalent to an estimate of the total ticket tax for the event. The surety’s aggregate yearly liability can’t surpass the amount of the surety bond.

Indiana public officials are affected by a new bill which alters the surety bond required of them. The bill is named HB 1025 and states that the surety bond required of public officials is no longer an annual bond. The SFAA realized that if the bond was annual it could make it cumulative throughout a public official’s term which would stack the amount bond every year, increasing the surety’s liability. Since the surety is financially backing the bond they are on the line should a public official not fulfill their responsibilities; and with a cumulative bond, the bond would increase every year but there would be no additional premium needed to be paid by the official. The Insurance Institute of Indiana agreed with the SFAA, ran with the bill and pushed it through the legislature.