Weber County weighing switch of workers' compensation coverage amid big short-term savings, officials say

Commissioner Gage opened a 1 p.m. discussion June 15 on a potential change to Weber County's workers' compensation coverage and asked county staff and the trust representative to explain the proposal.

Christopher Crockett, a county staff member, told the commission that this year's workers' compensation dividend is about 7% of member contributions, and that dividends historically ranged from roughly 5% to 12%. He said the county's 2026 experience modification factor (mod) was 1.06, meaning the county paid about 6% more than an average employer in the state because of higher-than-expected losses in recent years.

Crockett cautioned that the Utah Local Governments Trust's proposal could not be assumed to use the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) rates or NCCI mods because the trust does not subscribe to NCCI and does not report its members' loss data to NCCI. "They are not actually using if that was what you left those meetings with was that they were going to use the same rates and mods as others in this, they're not," he said. Crockett warned that if Weber County left the current pool and the trust did not report payroll and loss data to NCCI, other carriers would be unable to calculate an NCCI mod for Weber County and would be forced to assume a 1.00 mod when quoting coverage, which would make competition difficult later.

Crockett also said portions of the trust's proposal appeared to be "writing to a loss" (below the expected cost of claims) and recommended the county obtain, in writing: a firm, auditable quote; the payroll-by-code worksheet used to generate the quote; the loss cost multipliers and experience-mod assumptions; confirmation of reinsurance placement and limits; and any rate- or multi-year guarantees. He urged the commission to confirm what the quote covered and how audits would be handled to avoid unexpected post-contract charges.

Johnny Miller, identified in the meeting as the trust representative, participated in the discussion and answered procedural questions about notice and timing. Commissioners and staff discussed procedural deadlines for notifying the county's current pool and how the county could preserve the option to change by placing a termination notice on the commission agenda. Commissioners asked staff and counsel to draft a counterproposal and request contract guarantees before taking final action.

Commissioners emphasized the tradeoff: short-term budget relief from a lower contribution versus long-term risks including the potential loss of NCCI data, different claims administration and reduced local loss-control services. The commission instructed staff to request the detailed paperwork and reinsurance confirmations, present a counterproposal or contract changes to the trust, and place a notice item on the commission agenda to preserve the county's options while staff completes due diligence.

The commission did not take a final vote on changing carriers at the June 15 session; staff will return with the requested documentation and a recommendation.