ESAC Standards & Procedures

The fundamental credibility of ESAC and of the entire accreditation and financial assurance process rests fully on the trust by applicants and ESAC-accredited PEOs that all information provided to ESAC shall be used appropriately and held in strict confidence. The following principles of conduct will be adhered to by ESAC staff, officers, Board of Directors, service providers, and trusted advisors to the Board:

1. The portion of Board meetings, where matters related to specific applicants or ESAC-accredited PEOs are scheduled for discussion, are closed to all persons except authorized representatives of the applicant or accredited PEO in question and Board members, Board advisors and ESAC staff.
2. Every applicant or ESAC-accredited PEO must be provided with 10 business days’ prior written notice, whenever matters specifically pertaining to them are included in the discussion agenda of any Board meeting, except in the case of an urgent situation involving an alleged default of employer responsibilities by an ESAC-accredited PEO in which case notice provided to the PEO may be less than 10 business days.
3. Any applicant or ESAC-accredited PEO has the right to petition the recusal of any Board member it reasonably believes possesses a bias against it, has a conflict of interest, or is otherwise unable to cast an objective decision on the matter at hand. Such petition must be received by ESAC in writing at least 3 business days prior to such Board action and must include the reason why recusal is requested. A copy of the petition shall be provided to the Board member in question, and he or she shall be required to respond in writing. The Board will evaluate such petition and the Board member’s response, and will vote whether to require the recusal of the member as requested by the petitioner. The affected Board member shall not vote on the petition for his or her recusal. The Board shall be liberal in approving such requests for recusal based on receipt of factual justification.
4. ESAC shall hold all information submitted by an applicant and the fact that an applicant has applied in strict confidence, except for basic public information, the announcement of approved applicants, and as specifically provided in this manual and in the PEO Participation Agreement (Exhibit A). The proceedings of ESAC are not subject to any Freedom of Information or “Sunshine” laws. Such information is for the exclusive use by ESAC for the purpose of accreditation and program administration, and is not released to anyone outside of ESAC, except upon an order from a court of competent jurisdiction or as specifically provided in this manual.
5. All Board members, Board advisors, ESAC staff and service providers are required to execute a comprehensive, enforceable non-disclosure agreement protecting the confidentiality of information submitted by applicants and ESAC-accredited PEOs, and such individuals are subject to removal for violating the terms of such agreement.
6. All financial statements provided by an applicant or an ESAC-accredited PEO are submitted to ESAC for evaluation by ESAC’s independent financial advisor and the surety and/or insurance carrier(s) backing the PEO Client Assurance Program, or their authorized agent. Such financial statements and the confidential information contained therein are not provided to the ESAC Board or any other party without the written consent of the applicant or accredited PEO.