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MABE executive director tells Cecil board rising insurance costs linked to climate and cyber risks; Time to Care rollout delayed
Summary
MABE executive director Milt Nagle briefed the board on group insurance pool mechanics, drivers of rising premiums — including climate-driven natural disasters and reduced market capacity for cyber coverage — and a collaborative approach to implementing the Time to Care Act; the pool expects softer rates for FY2026, officials said.
Milt Nagle, executive director of the Maryland Association of Boards of Education (MABE), told the Board of Education of Cecil County on April 9 that increases in property and cyber insurance costs for school districts are driven by national trends — chiefly an increased frequency of billion-dollar weather and climate disasters and a constrained insurance market for cyber coverage.
“We want to advocate for local control,” Nagle said, describing MABE’s role supporting boards and staff across Maryland. He explained the MABE group insurance pool’s structure — 19 of 24 Maryland school systems participate — and how pools self-insure to a point and purchase excess coverage on the commercial market. “When cyber events were up, we saw a 50% decrease in the number of insurance companies willing to bid on the insurance we needed,” he said, adding that limited market capacity drives up price even for members with good loss histories.
Nagle described how climate-driven losses elsewhere in the U.S. affect pricing for all government property policies, noting a rise in billion-dollar weather/climate disasters: from an average of 8.5 events annually (1980–2023) to 20.4 events in recent years and 27 such events in 2024. That increased market demand, he said, contributes to higher premiums in property lines.
Nagle told the board MABE runs a workers’ compensation fund and an OPEB (other post-employment benefits) investment trust; he described OPEB as the fund that holds future retiree health liabilities outside the general operating fund. He also summarized MABE’s outreach and services (legal/policy desk book, conferences, professional development and board training).
On the Time to Care Act — the state program to provide paid leave — Nagle said the Department of Labor pushed an administrative change that sets implementation for January 1, 2028. MABE and a large collaborative of local governments and boards (106 entities statewide) are working with the Maryland Insurance Administration and the Department of Labor on plan design and procurement to avoid a state-run default plan.
Regarding near-term budgetary effects, Nagle said the pool’s actuaries had at first projected significant increases but that carriers have recently “softened” and the outlook for FY2026 appears more favorable. Board members asked questions about the pool’s governance and the trustee structure; Nagle said every member district has an equal trustee vote and that Cecil County has historically been an active trustee participant.
No district action was taken on April 9; the presentation was informational and MABE materials were placed on the board docket for reference.
