PRISM, the public entities insurance pool, and broker Alliant presented to the Inyo County Board of Supervisors on Oct. 7 about why liability and property insurance costs for public entities in California have risen and what the pool is doing to mitigate those increases.

Gina Dean, PRISM chief executive, told the board that PRISM is a member‑directed joint powers authority that pools premiums for more than 300 public entities and delivers coverage, loss control services and training. She said PRISM uses investment earnings and actuarial rate setting to reduce members’ upfront costs and that the pool is taking governance and allocation steps to stabilize premiums.

Kevin Bibler, a broker with Alliant Insurance Services, described trends in the commercial reinsurance and liability market. He said a key driver is “social inflation,” meaning claim awards and verdicts that grow faster than ordinary inflation, combined with an “incredibly aggressive plaintiff’s bar” and a backlog in the courts that has produced an uptick in very large verdicts. Bibler said the industry now sees more frequent multimillion‑ and multiten‑million‑dollar claims across coverages, and he called these “nuclear” or “thermonuclear” verdicts when they exceed $10 million.

Dean described PRISM’s mitigation efforts: changes to premium allocation, expanded use of data analytics to target loss drivers, strong carrier‑relations and a captive insurance vehicle created in 2016 that boosts investment earnings. She also said PRISM’s board is engaged in legislative outreach and urged member jurisdictions to help “educate the public” about the local taxpayer impact of large claim payouts. PRISM noted that counties with good loss histories, including Inyo County, have fared better on renewals.

Supervisors asked about prospects for tort reform and parliamentary remedies at the state level; PRISM said it is actively working with members and legislators and will seek county support when lobbying efforts advance.

Ending

PRISM and Alliant urged continued local implementation of risk management practices, greater public education about claims costs, and an active legislative strategy. The board thanked PRISM and asked staff to stay engaged with the pool on renewals and legislative advocacy.