City finance committee reviews expanded risk-management program, DriveCam rollout and rise in claims costs

Tammy Queen, director of finance, told the Finance Committee on a presentation that the city has expanded its formal risk-management program to make safety and claims mitigation "pervasive in everything that we do." Queen said the city's risk program is established in the code of ordinances and is implemented by the corporate safety and risk management division overseen by Sherry Adams, the city's risk manager.

The presentation reviewed the program's components, including a city safety program, an expanded DriveCam fleet camera program used for driver coaching and exonerations, insurance purchasing and risk-transfer strategies, the legal expense fund that pays third-party claims, and workers'compensation administration. "These are where we can be effective," Adams said of seat-belt and cellphone coaching, noting DriveCam "exonerations are huge" because video can show when the city is not at fault.

Why it matters: Committee members pressed staff for a clearer line between the program's activities and the city's rising payout trends. Councilwoman Robinson asked for a consolidated summary of the policy changes and mitigation steps being taken after committee members noted workers'compensation and legal-expense totals have increased in recent…