November episode of 2 North Jackson Podcast now available
County Family members can now tune in to the November episode of ACCA’s monthly 2 North Jackson Podcast. This month’s episode features discussions on the upcoming ACCA District Meetings in January, ‘lessons learned’ from a unique journey in public service and details on ACCA’s first-ever annual report. County Family members can always access episodes of the 2 North Jackson Podcast by visiting the “News” section of the ACCA online community or by turning to their favorite podcast streaming app.

First-ever Stepping Up Summit taking place this Tuesday, Wednesday
More than 150 county leaders and mental health case workers will gather together in Montgomery this week for Alabama’s first-ever “Stepping Up” Summit. Spearheaded by the Alabama Department of Mental Health, the Summit will educate participants on mental health data collection, case management roles and responsibilities, community buy-in, and many other important topics to aid in the program’s goal of reducing the number of individuals with serious mental illness in jails and emergency rooms. The Summit is being conducted in response to this year’s dramatic increase of county participation in the Stepping Up program, a direct result of the hard work and determination of the members of PLAN (Passion, Leadership, Accountability and Networking) 2024 who recruited 30 additional counties to what was only a 17-county program in 2023. 

ACCA, ASA to host mental health training opportunities for county law enforcement
In partnership with the Alabama Sheriffs Association (ASA), ACCA will host two rounds of Crisis Response and Intervention Training (CRIT) for county law enforcement professionals in early 2025. CRIT is a five-day, 40-hour program designed to prepare law enforcement to respond to individuals experiencing crises related to behavioral health conditions and intellectual and developmental disabilities. The first round of training is set to take place February 10-14 and the second round on March 24-28, with each round limited to only 20 participants. This training opportunity is made possible through an expansion of State funding for the program during the 2024 Legislative Session — and the Association expresses much gratitude to Rep. Rex Reynolds, who serves as the General Fund Budget Chair in the Alabama House of Representatives and who spearheaded the initiative to provide this critical training for counties. All County Commissioners are asked to notify their Sheriff of this training opportunity and to encourage the department’s participation.

Renewal packets for ACCA Liability Fund, Property Program being distributed via email
This week, County Risk Services (CRS) will email 2025 Liability and Property renewal packets — which both contain an invoice, Declarations Page and Endorsements, if any — to every Fund member’s designated insurance contact. Fund members should have their Liability and Property Declarations Pages signed by their Commission Chair and the originals returned in their entirety, along with their premium-contributions, by January 1. Premium-contributions can be paid with one check — made payable to ACCA Liability Self-Insurance Fund Inc. — and mailed to ACCA LSIF, c/o CRS Inc., P.O. Box 589, Montgomery, AL 36101-0589. For questions, contact Ashley Watson, CRS Underwriting Analyst.

December 9 is deadline to complete WCSIF payroll audits
Attention, members of the ACCA Workers’ Compensation Self-Insurers Fund (WCSIF)! Time is running out to complete your payroll audit ahead of the December 9, 2024, deadline. Payroll audits are performed every year to confirm, and correct if necessary, members’ audit billing estimates submitted during the insurance renewal process. Fund members should be mindful that failure to complete their payroll audit by the annual deadline will result in late fees and are, therefore, urged to prioritize its completion. For audit-specific questions, contact Ashley Watson at County Risk Services.