OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — During his 2004 campaign for attorney general, Rob McKenna vowed that he would use the position to curb how much state agencies pay out for major lawsuits.
Instead, those costs have grown rapidly under his watch.
Washington agencies disbursed $76 million for tort claims last year — three times more than was spent the year before McKenna took office. Records released to The Associated Press show the state has paid out about $300 million over the past six years.
The Republican, who is now running for governor, blamed the Legislature for failing to enact changes to the state’s expansive liability rules. Those rules can place government on the hook for major settlements even when the state is found to be only minimally at fault. But state risk manager Lucy Isaki says she doesn’t think McKenna has given enough focus to the torts division.
