With the Insurance Corp. of B.C. projected to get back in the black this year, the B.C. government is moving to end the practice of transferring surplus funds to help the provinceB次元官网网址檚 overall bottom line.

Attorney General David Eby said Monday he is introducing legislation this week to make it illegal to direct ICBC to turn over excess revenues. That would mean a future government would need a majority vote in the B.C. legislature to change the law before doing it again.

Attorney General says law will protect optional capital to help hold rates down

B次元官网网址� Tom Fletcher (@tomfletcherbc)

The previous B.C. Liberal government last took what was called a B次元官网网址渄ividend to shareholdersB次元官网网址� in 2015, transferring $138 million from the Crown corporation for what was then a surplus budget. The annual transfers were as high as $576 million in 2009-10, diminishing in the following years as ICBCB次元官网网址檚 costs and claims began rising.

After losses of $2.5 billion in the past two years, Finance Minister Carole JamesB次元官网网址� February budget projects a loss of $91 million for the fiscal year ending March 31. With a cap on minor injury payouts and an administrative tribunal taking injury disputes out of court, the budget projects an $86 million surplus for 2020-21, increasing to $191 million in two years.

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Eby expects further legal battles with the personal injury lawyers who have challenged his reforms in court. A B.C. Supreme Court judge struck down his first effort to limit the number of expert witnesses in injury cases last year.

Since that decision, Eby has moved to further restrict the ability of injured people to sue. Further legislation is expected to move to the B次元官网网址渘o faultB次元官网网址� system for most injury cases, with a prescribed payout similar to the way WorkSafeBC deals with injuries or death on the job.

tfletcher@blackpress.ca
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