FAQs for school administrators

Both programs are administered by the Health Care Authority. The Public Employees Benefits Board (PEBB) Program provides benefits primarily for employees of state agencies and higher education institutions. The School Employees Benefits Board (SEBB) provides benefits for employees of school districts and charter schools, and for represented employees of ESDs. They have similarities in benefit design and premiums but differ in eligibility criteria and rules.

Here's a list of valid documents to verify dependents. New employees can upload their dependent verification documents for review via Benefits 24/7. Alternately, employees can take their paper documents to their benefits administrator for review and approval. Dependent verification documents must be approved during the SEBB Program timelines.

Under RCW 41.05.740 and 41.05.300 through 41.05.310, the SEBB Program includes authority to offer the following health insurance and other benefits to Washington school district and charter school employees, and union-represented educational service district (ESD) employees:

• Health care coverage, including all forms of:
  • Medical insurance (including supplemental medical products such as cancer insurance, critical illness insurance, emergency transportation insurance, and indemnity plans)
  • Dental insurance
  • Vision insurance
  • Prescription drug insurance
• Life insurance (all forms, including but not limited to, whole and term life insurance)
• Accidental death and dismemberment insurance
• Liability insurance (all forms, including but not limited to home and auto insurance) *
• Disability insurance (all forms, including but not limited to short- and long-term disability)
• Flexible spending arrangement (FSA) (all forms, including but not limited to “general-purpose” and “limited-purpose” FSAs)
• Dependent Care Assistance Program (DCAP)

All forms of the above insurance benefits are within the exclusive offering authority of the SEBB Program. SEBB organizations cannot offer, endorse, or make available any benefits under the SEBB Program’s authority, even if the SEBB Program does not offer the benefit (or a specific form of the benefit). For example, a SEBB organization cannot offer or endorse short-term disability insurance even though the SEBB Program does not currently offer this benefit

* For transitional relief on liability insurance during the 2019-2020 school year, see Can school districts offer liability insurance?.

State law requires that bargaining with the union coalition be completed before October 1 to allow for a fiscal analysis of the impact of any tentative agreement. That analysis is necessary to inform the budgetary process that is the responsibility of the Governor and Legislature. In the past, with very few exceptions, this deadline has been met. For future years, the agreement stays in place if no successive  agreement is reached.

The employee becomes eligible on the day they reach 630 hours. Their coverage begins on the first day of the following month.

They are automatically enrolled into UMP Achieve 1 (medical), Uniform Dental Plan (dental), MetLife (vision), basic life, basic accidental death and dismemberment, and basic long-term disability insurance. They are charged the tobacco use premium surcharge. Their dependents are not enrolled. In addition, they cannot change plans or enroll any eligible dependents until the next SEBB Program annual open enrollment or unless they have a special open enrollment event that allows the change, such as a marriage, birth, or adoption.

The Legislature can only approve or reject the tentative agreement in its entirety. If the Legislature decides not to fund a tentative agreement, the parties are left with no ratified agreement, and both the state and the union coalition would need to return to the bargaining table.

If the dependent verification document is uploaded to Benefits 24/7 and approved, it is kept for a short while and then deleted. Some documents might be kept longer for auditing purposes. If the verification is denied, the uploaded document is kept until any appeals are completed. If a paper document is given to the benefits administrator and approved, it can be returned to the employee.  

The results of bargaining are applied to all employees of school districts and charter schools, regardless of their representation status, and to all represented employees of educational service districts.

The employee would receive benefits in the school year they become eligible. Anticipated hours would be reassessed for the new school year. If they reach 630 hours two years in a row and return to the same type of position, they will be presumed eligible for the third year.