Washington County Risk Pool director outlines major rate drivers, urges support for arbitration bill

Chuck Boyd, executive director of the Washington County Risk Pool, told San Juan County council on Feb. 3 that the pool's members face sharply rising liability costs and that a mix of higher jury awards, litigation funding and defense costs is driving insurance assessments higher.

"The trajectory is that it's gonna keep rising up because we haven't crested a hill at this point yet," Boyd said during a presentation to the council. He described the pool's structure, its coverages and how claims are handled, and answered council questions about how costs are allocated and what the pool is doing to control them.

The pool, formed under the Revised Code of Washington and interlocal agreement in 1988, provides liability, property, cybercrime and terrorism coverages to member counties. Boyd said member counties have up to $20 million in liability coverage, with an optional $5 million layer; the pool's self-insured retention for 2026 is $4,000,000 per occurrence. Member deductibles vary from $10,000 to $500,000, he said.

Boyd described WCRP's risk-management offerings'training, site visits, pre-defense reviews and small risk-reduction grants'and said those programs both reduce claims and support rate stability. He noted some reimbursements are available to members, including an 80% Lexipol subscription reimbursement for law enforcement agencies that implement the policy updates.

On the budget side, Boyd said the pool's 2026 liability assessments totaled about $73.3 million across members; the pool's operating budget and member programs were roughly $5.4 million. He described how actuaries calculated retained losses and how reinsurance layers operate, naming carriers and explaining that reinsurance generally "follows the fortunes" of the pool's coverage decisions.

Council members asked about the role of the state insurance commissioner and about legislative fixes. Boyd recommended support for Senate Bill 6239 (mandatory arbitration for certain claims involving the state and its subdivisions), arguing arbitration could shorten discovery, lower defense costs and reduce runaway jury verdicts. "If we take the jury out of it with an arbitrator, we have the possibility of lowering some of these awards," Boyd said.

Boyd also warned council that recent "nuclear verdicts" and litigation funding have changed plaintiffs' incentives and raised settlement values. He urged continued emphasis on proactive risk management, training and data-driven claims oversight to protect county funds.

The council thanked Boyd and indicated appreciation for the pool's member services and the presentation; no formal action was taken at the meeting beyond receipt of the briefing.

The presentation is available in the meeting record; council members asked staff to continue tracking related legislation and to follow up as needed.