Description

Intent: The City of Windcrest is requesting qualifications from qualified benefits brokerage/consulting firms to perform the full range of services related to the acquisition, maintenance, and improvement of the City’s employee benefits and insurance programs. The services will commence on October 1, 2026 to obtain benefits no later than July-August. 

Background: The City of Windcrest (“City”) is a Home Rule City in Bexar County, Texas. The city is governed by its City Council consisting of 5 members and the mayor.  The City currently offers health/life insurance, dental, vision and disability income protection to its employees.  The intent of this RFQ is to determine if the City would be better served by obtaining services through a different insurance agent than the one, we currently have.

The City currently has approximately 83 employees who are eligible to enroll in the health plan and about 99.6% are currently participating in the plan.  Essentially all employees are covered on one of the City’s plans. 

Requirements

Scope of Services 

The City seeks an employee benefits partner that can provide professional, highly qualified benefits guidance and services. The selected agent/broker will be expected to work in partnership with the City of Windcrest staff to perform the following services: 

A.    Develop short and long-range employee benefit goals and strategies.

B.    Partner with the City’s Human Resources Department in the administration of all group insurance plans, including responding to questions from and providing information to staff and providing other benefits-related advisory services throughout the plan year.

C.    Review and analyze claims experience, claim service, and claim administration to ensure maximum benefit to the City.

D.    Determine and recommend the most cost-efficient funding methods for benefit programs.

E.    Prepare bid specifications and solicit proposals, as needed, from insurance markets that specialize in group insurance plans.

F.    Evaluate bids and bidders, including administration, coverage, claim payment procedures, customer service, networks, reserve establishment policies and financial solvency.

G.    Provide recommendations for the proposed benefit components, specifically in the area of design, funding, cost and administration. This will include a review of current and proposed plan features and rate structures. Assist with the development and planning of long-range health insurance strategies and identifying future trends in employee benefits.

H.    Provide the City with in-depth analysis of proposed alternatives and assist with the process of selecting the most favorable annual renewal options.

I.      Conduct negotiations with carrier(s) and vendors to obtain coverage at the lowest rates possible for essentially the same or better coverage as is now in place

J.     Provide general problem-solving throughout the plan year and apprise the City of local and national benefit trends and provide benchmark survey data to help calibrate program offerings with employee and employer costs compared to similar organizations.

K.    Meet with and provide reports and presentations to various City representatives, including City Council if requested.

L.     Assist the City with the implementation and communication of new programs or changes to existing programs, including attending and presenting information at Open Enrollment meetings.

M.   Work closely with the benefits team to develop and execute the benefits communication strategy.  

N.    Partner with the City to effectively manage vendors that provide insurance or related services to the City.

O.    Act as advisor on issues, such as discrimination testing, 5500 filing, Section 125, COBRA, HIPAA, Medicare, FMLA, etc. Provide overall guidance to the City on Health and Welfare regulatory compliance.  

P.    Research and report any new developments in the employee benefits arena on an ongoing basis.

Q.    Recommend innovative ideas and new products, programs, and services to ensure a competitive and cost-effective benefits program.  

R.    Introduce proven programs and ideas to aggressively manage healthcare costs.

S.    Educate and advise on healthcare reform, and the key strategic decisions that the City should consider.

T.    Any other duties critical to the proper formation of a health insurance/employee benefit plan and its optimal operation and participation.

U. The Agent/Broker should be able to analyze and review all health and other carriers proposals, statements, claims forms/processing for the City of Windcrest.  

V. Provide the City of Windcrest with reasonable preliminary renewal figures during the budget process.

W. Assist the City’s Human Resource Department Designee with required employee presentations.

X. Identify issues and exposures with insurance carriers if any.

Y. Notify the City of any changes resulting from the new health care legislation and other state and federal legislative changes or legal decisions which would affect insurance coverages of the City and its employees.

Z. Review policies and endorsements for accuracy and conformity to specifications and negotiated coverages.

AA. evelop strategies for presentation and implementation of any new benefit plans to all employee groups as necessary.

BB. Provide coverage summaries for all new coverage’s and updates on changes to existing coverages.

CC. As necessary monitor claims status and assist in obtaining timely resolution of the submitted claim.  

DD. Help identify and implement Wellness programs

EE. Implement other programs to help the City be the most competitive and efficient City possible

Term

The term of the agreement will be two years, subject to an annual review. City will have option to renew the agreement for one additional and consecutive two-year term. 

Submission of Proposals 

Proposals shall be submitted to:

City of Windcrest

Natalia Witmer, Finance Department

 8601 Midcrown Drive 

Windcrest, TX  78239 

Proposals are due by 4:00pm on Thursday, June 4, 2026 4:00 PM

Proposals shall be in a sealed envelope plainly marked “Proposal for Health Insurance Agent/Broker — for City of Windcrest,” with your name and address clearly identified. Proposals shall be submitted in the following order and must include the following information:

1. Provide a brief history of your firm, including years in the insurance business, location of your office (or offices), growth of agency, number of employees and anything that makes your company unique. Include your company’s customer service philosophy and management style. Provide details of your firm’s financial status and stability.

2. A short narrative statement of the Respondent’s understanding of the City of Windcrest’s goals and needs. Provide examples of health insurance and benefit programs that Respondent has prepared for other municipalities of similar size and Scope of Services. The examples should identify the insurance carriers and description of types of coverage included in the programs. 

        3. List the name, title, mailing address, telephone number, facsimile number, and e-mail address of the contact person for this proposal. 

4. Describe the proposed team that would work with the City and provide information about the qualifications and expertise of each team member. Provide the name(s) of the agent/broker(s) to perform the work for the City of Windcrest and a brief statement as to why each agent is qualified to provide services to the City of Windcrest.  Briefly describe how the City of Windcrest account would be managed by your company.

5. Confirm that you are a licensed agent in the state of Texas and provide documentation as such. Provide proof that your company carries Commercial General Liability Errors and Omissions insurance and coverage.

6. Confirm that you serve as an independent agent and are not affiliated with any insurance company, third party administrative agency or provider network.

7. Please describe your vision of the relationship with the City of Windcrest while being the agent. 

8. Briefly describe the scope of services your company would offer and how your firm would accomplish the work described. Describe how often your team meet with your clients and for what purposes.

9. Outline your ability to provide expertise and experience in the areas of health benefit plan analysis and design. Detail your ability to advise municipal government on health care cost containment strategies. Give several examples of your work with other companies, similar or larger in size to the City of Windcrest. 

10. Please indicate any other services, capabilities, or features that differentiate your organization from competition. 

11. Provide detailed information concerning any suits filed, judgments entered, allegations made or claims made against the proposing firm or against any of its agents during the last fifteen years with respect to employee assistance program services provided by the firm, criminal activity, fraud, or any other declaration of default of termination for cause against the firm with respect to such services.  In addition, state whether during the past fifteen years the firm has been suspended from bidding or bared from working with or entering into any government contract.

12.  The “Proposer’s Warranties” attached as Exhibit “A” must be signed and attached to the proposal. 

Proposals may not be withdrawn for sixty (60) days after the proposal due date. 

The City of Windcrest reserves the right to reject any or all proposals. The City of Windcrest also reserves the right to exercise its discretion and be the sole judge of the proposal. The City of Windcrest is not liable for any costs incurred by Agents/Agencies prior to the issuance of a contract and receipt of all necessary approvals.

Three (3) copies of the proposal shall be submitted with the name and telephone number of the principal person provided. 

Changes, modifications or additions to the Request for Qualifications resulting from any inquiries shall be published by addenda to all those receiving the original proposal package. All material submitted becomes the property of the City of Windcrest and will not be returned. 

Agent finalists selected for final evaluation prior to final selection may be required to make an oral presentation of their proposal to the City of Windcrest. 

All questions shall be directed to Natalia Witmer emailed address is nwitmer@windcrest-tx.gov. 

Selection of Broker 

Proposals will be evaluated by the City of Windcrest, which reserves the right to reject any or all proposals received.  The City reserves the right to waive non-material deficiencies in any proposal.  Proposals will be evaluated based on what is deemed to be in the best interests of the City.  Firms responding may be interviewed by the selection committee.  If an interview is requested, the key person(s) to be assigned to this account must be present at the interview.

The selection process is expected to be completed by the end of June-July 2026. Starting contract date will be determined in the final selection.

The following will serve as the basic criteria for the selection of the agent eventually selected. 

A. Understanding of the work required by the project manager as evidenced by the proposal and the ability of the agent to commence work in a timely manner. Completeness of proposal will be critical. 

B. The qualifications of the Agent and Agency and dem

onstrated experience providing comparable Scope of Service work for Texas municipalities of similar size and scope. 

C. Ability to work with and relationship with and access to major health insurance carriers.

D. Ability to respond to the Scope of Services outlined.

E. Proposal conforms to requested format.

F. Local presence and ease of doing business with.

G. Past experience (including with similar local governmental entities).

H. Noncompliance with significant instructions will be grounds for disqualification of proposals.

I.  Longevity of the Agency and Agent(s) in the market place. 

J. Ability to provide support to the City as needed or desired.

Additional Comments:

Any proprietary information submitted for review should be submitted in a separate sealed envelope plainly marked as proprietary information. The City of Windcrest will disclose this information only to those involved in the selection process and as required by law.

In the event additional information is necessary to supplement this RFQ, responses will be given by email to all companies that have advised us of their intention to submit qualifications.

The City will not be responsible for any costs incurred by a firm in preparation of a submission to this RFQ.

The successful firm must be able to show proof of General Liability insurance, Errors and Omissions, and Workers’ Compensation coverage.

For complete RFQ please visit our website https://www.windcrest-tx.gov/