The McAllen ISD Board of Trustees voted 6-1 to approve Valley Risk Consulting as its insurance and employee benefits consulting service provider Monday evening.
The board approved the top ranked vendor and administration’s recommendation, Valley Risk Consulting, at an annual cost of $49,000.
The McAllen-based firm is helmed by Roger Garza, according to its website.
“The district has used the services of a benefits consultant for several years,” Andres Silva, director of employee benefit-risk management, said. “The current agreement expires in February, so RFPs were solicited.”
Silva said the district solicited proposals for the services and received 10 proposals, including three no-bids.
Debbie Crane-Aliseda was the only trustee to vote against approving Valley Risk Consulting.
For her, Crane-Aliseda said after the meeting, the problem isn’t which firm fills the consultant role so much as the role itself.
“I’ve always just really liked our own employee benefits director, Mr. Andy Silva. I think he’s just incredible and I never thought that we needed an outside consultant,” she said. “To me it just muddies the waters, and I’ve just never liked that position.”
A potential lack of oversight, Crane-Aliseda said, makes her wary about that relatively new role.
“The reason I don’t like that position, and the reason it concerns me to have an outside consultant, is because they don’t fall under the same rules MISD employees do as far as the procurement laws,” she said. “Like accepting gifts, hiring relatives, things like that from the insurance company.”
