Director Eric Fountain, representing the City of Cheyenne Compliance Department, told the council Friday that the department is proposing new safety investments after a multiyear rise in liability claims.

Fountain said Cheyenne remains “the number 1 in those claims” in the WARM pool and that the city saw an increase of $73,000 in liability costs this budget cycle. He said the city currently shows 18 claims marked as paid or reserved in the budget snapshot but that an up-to-date count of 30 claims was provided to council staff in the days before the presentation.

The proposal centers on adding two full-time safety officers and implementing a citywide safety plan that includes toolbox talks, root-cause training and closer coordination with workforce services and OSHA. Fountain said the department had shifted staffing to create those safety roles and asked the council for time to show results: “We’re gonna be able to support some of those concerns,” he said.

Why it matters: Fountain explained that Cheyenne’s liability premium is calculated from two main factors: the city payroll/FTE count and the number and dollar amounts of claims. Because payroll is rising with growth and annexation, reducing claims is the principal lever the city can use to limit future insurance increases. Fountain also asked council members to consider the pool’s perspective, saying other member jurisdictions have raised concerns about Cheyenne’s claim volume and have shared ideas for mitigation.

Supporting details: Fountain reviewed steps already taken, including a new safety committee, multi-factor authentication, and completion of various training programs across building, nuisance and animal-control staff. He said the building department’s master-level inspector certifications and the animal-control operation’s “level 3 NACA certification” are examples of internal capacity-building that support risk reduction.

Fountain described a conservative approach to budgeting because claims can surface years after an incident: “When we say a claim is paid and reserved, you have to understand that you have 2 years. Because of the governmental claims act, there are 2 years in which they can come back and file a claim,” he said.

Council response and next steps: Councilmembers expressed support for proactive safety work. Councilmember White said he appreciated the department’s efforts to “promote a culture of safety” and pressed for clarity on how the safety investments would reduce claims and costs. Fountain said staff would return with more quantitative detail within days about staffing needs tied to project acreage and inspection hours.

Ending: The Compliance Department’s safety plan and two additional safety officers are part of a broader budget request the department presented; Fountain asked the council for time to develop the safety culture and reduce Cheyenne’s high claims profile within the WARM pool.