New Mexico County Reinsurance elects two board members, hires chief operating officer

At its Sept. 15 regular meeting, the New Mexico County Reinsurance Inc. board of directors elected Chaves County Attorney Stanton L. Riggs and Grant County Manager Charlene Webb to the board.

“We are very pleased to welcome Stan Riggs and Charlene Webb to the NMCRe board of directors. Their experience, depth of knowledge, and passion for public service will be an important as- set to our operations,” said President Gregory Shaffer.

The board also voted to hire Dorothy M. Gjerdrum as chief operating officer, according to a news release. Gjerdrum will handle day-to-day operations of NMCRe and will work closely with select New Mexico Association of Counties staff on matters of finance, claims, and risk management.

She served 10 years as the first New Mexico County Insurance Authority risk management director from 1989-99, during which time NMCIA established the law enforcement liability coverage program and formed County Reinsurance Limited. She also served on the board of County Reinsurance Limited during its formative years. Gjerdrum retired at the end of 2025 after 26 years at Arthur J. Gallagher, serving as senior managing director of Gallagher’s Public Sector and Education Practice.

“Dorothy is well-versed in all matters of self-insurance pooling and reinsurance, and we look forward to her expert guidance as we grow this captive reinsurance company into a more powerful partner for the NMCIA self-insurance pool,” said NMCIA Risk Management Director Grace Philips.

The board elected Shaffer president, Riggs as vice president and Amber Hamilton as secretary.

NMCRe is a captive insurance company domiciled in Utah and is a wholly owned subsidiary of NMCIA, the release stated. NMCRe provides 100 percent of NMCIA’s reinsurance for both its law enforcement liability and multi-line liability programs, and a portion of its workers’ compensation reinsurance.

NMCIA is a county self-insurance pool that provides coverage for workers’ compensation, property, liability, and law enforcement for member counties. Its mission is to provide tailored and affordable insurance coverage for its members, investing in state-of-the-art loss prevention services, and making smart decisions in the best interest of all county members, according to the release.

The board is comprised of county elected officials and employees representing each of four geographical districts, each member Class A county, and a representative for small, midlevel, and midlevel-high population counties, the release stated. Thirty-one New Mexico counties participate in the NMCIA pool, with 28 participating in the law enforcement and multi-line coverage programs and 29 participating in the workers’ compensation coverage program.

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