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Bill would require biennial report on state risk insurance fund amid concerns about fund shortfall
Summary
Senate Bill 463 would require the Department of Administrative Services to report every even-numbered year on the financial condition of Oregon’s state insurance fund. Sponsors said the fund’s reserves are small relative to known and projected liabilities and urged immediate informational follow-up with DAS and the Department of Justice.
Senate Bill 463, sponsored by Sen. Suzanne Weber with co-sponsorship noted from Sen. Gelser and Representative E. Warner Raschke, would require the Oregon Department of Administrative Services (DAS) to submit a report by Aug. 30 of each even-numbered year on the financial condition and stability of the state insurance (risk) fund. The bill also carries a subsequent referral to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means.
Weber told the committee the proposal is “a simple bill” intended to prevent the fund’s decline from becoming a larger fiscal crisis. She said the fund’s cash and invested assets were roughly $96.8 million as of the prior summer while large, known liabilities exist: the estimated cost to comply with a 2017 court order to replace curb ramps on state highways has “ballooned to well over $1,000,000,000,” and a 2023 settlement related to former foster youth abuse is “set to cost $40,000,000.” Weber said legislators do not have a clear, readily available picture of assets, liabilities, pending cases or which funds were used to pay past settlements.
Rep. Raschke explained Oregon is self-insured and that the assessment rate on agencies is not keeping pace with payouts. He said DAS presentations (Feb. 14, 2024) show a declining reserve ratio and that DAS prefers a 70% coverage metric; current projections show the fund trending downward. Raschke said annual claims number roughly 2,000–2,500 and that the run rate on payouts is about $10 million per month. He urged the committee to consider both a legislative informational hearing with DAS and DOJ and possibly an amendment to allocate funds to the risk fund to restore reserves.
Chair Taylor said the committee would schedule follow-up hearings and invited DAS and the Department of Justice to appear. No public votes were taken; the committee closed the SB 463 hearing and said it would return for further information.
The testimony framed SB 463 as a transparency and fiscal safeguard measure aimed at giving legislators a recurring, consolidated accounting of the state’s exposure and reserves.
