Cotati City Council
Agenda Staff Report
Item type: REGULAR AGENDA (ACTION)
To: City Council
Subject: CIRA INSURANCE UPDATE
Date: February 10, 2026
Written by: Damien O'Bid, City Manager
Recommendation
It is recommended that the City Council receive a presentation on the state of the general liability insurance market and insurance captives. No action will be taken.
Background
The City is a member of the California Intergovernmental Risk Authority (CIRA), a statewide risk-sharing Joint Powers Authority (JPA) providing comprehensive coverage to cities, towns, and non-municipal public agencies throughout California. Representing over 60 California cities and growing, they primarily provide coverage for general liability, property, workers compensation and a variety of sublines.
Analysis/Discussion
The insurance market, particularly in general liability, continues to experience significant challenges for a variety of reasons. Staff will review the current state of the insurance market.
Attached is a summary of the general liability market for reference.
Partially in response to this, CIRA is working on forming a ”captive” insurance company, which is also summarized in the attached slides.
Financial Considerations
There are no financial impacts related to receiving this presentation.
Environmental Issues
Where it can be determined with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment, the activity is not subject to CEQA review.
This general rule can be applied to activities which could be subject to the CEQA process, but which logic dictates should not be subject to CEQA review. Therefore, based on the information provided above, the proposed resolution is exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 14.03.021 of the CEQA Guidelines in that there is no possibility that the activity may have a significant impact on the environment.