Workers' comp for tree work in the US: the class code and published rates by state

This is not insurance advice, and it does not say what anyone should buy or pay. It reports what rating bureaus, state insurance departments and state funds publish for tree work. The guide on what tree-work insurance covers explains the kinds of cover; this one looks only at the worker injury side in the United States.

The class code

Workers compensation premium starts with a class. The class puts a business with others that do similar work, and each class has a figure per US$100 of payroll. The National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) keeps a national class system, and many states use its numbers.

For tree work that number is 0106. Pages print the wording a little differently. The New Jersey Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau prints it as "TREE PRUNING, SPRAYING, REPAIRING, TRIMMING OR FUMIGATING & D." Montana State Fund prints "Tree Pruning, Spraying, Repairing-All Operations & Drivers." The bureaus decide what falls inside the class, so the class wording on the state's own page is the one that counts.

Not every state uses 0106. Pennsylvania and Delaware publish tree pruning as their own class 5. Washington publishes risk class 0106 but prices it per hour worked, not per US$100 of payroll. North Dakota lists tree planting, trimming and harvest in its own class 0004.

What the published figures are

The figures in this guide are not all the same thing. The kind of figure differs from state to state, so two rows are not directly comparable.

Pure premium or loss cost. A bureau's estimate of claim costs per US$100 of payroll. The California Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) says its pure premium rates do not include an insurer's administrative and other overhead costs, so an insurer's rates are typically higher. The New York Compensation Insurance Rating Board says its published loss costs are not rates, and that insurers must apply their approved loss cost multipliers to reach final rates.
Final or manual rate. A figure an employer can be charged, often for a state fund or an assigned risk plan.
Composite rate. Washington's figure, which adds several funds together for one class.

Published figures for class 0106 by state

The table lists what each body publishes for tree work. Dates are the effective dates the page or file prints. Figures are per US$100 of payroll unless the row says otherwise.

State	Figure for tree work	Kind and effective date
California	US$12.393 (class 0106)	Advisory pure premium rate, September 1, 2026
New York	US$3.665 (class 0106)	Loss cost, not a rate, October 1, 2026
New Jersey	US$13.779 (class 0106)	Loss cost rate, 2026 rate file
Pennsylvania	US$5.135 (class 5, tree pruning)	Advisory loss cost, April 1, 2026
Delaware	US$4.81 (class 5, tree pruning)	Advisory loss cost, December 1, 2025
Michigan	US$2.145 (class 0106)	Advisory pure premium, January 1, 2027
Michigan assigned risk	US$2.920 (class 0106)	Placement Facility rate, includes loss-based expenses, January 1, 2027
Minnesota assigned risk	US$9.015 (class 0106)	Assigned Risk Plan rate, January 1, 2027
Montana State Fund	US$3.467 to US$7.732 (class 0106)	State fund rates in five tiers, policies from July 1, 2026
North Dakota	US$5.89 (class 0004)	Fund manual rate, July 1, 2026
Washington	US$7.0142 per hour worked (risk class 0106)	Composite base rate, 2026

Several of these rows need a note.

California

The WCIRB approved rates file lists class 0106 at US$12.393 per US$100 of payroll for new and renewal policies effective September 1, 2026. WCIRB Bulletin 2026-11 says the Insurance Commissioner approved the advisory pure premium rates, and that they average US$1.65 per US$100 of payroll across all classes. The class 0106 figure is more than seven times that average. The same bulletin gives US$1.55 as the September 2025 average. Each California insurer files its own rates, and the WCIRB says an insurer may start from the advisory pure premium rate and add its own factors, or build its own rate structure.

New York

The NYCIRB bulletin R.C. 2659, dated July 15, 2026, says the Department of Financial Services approved a 21.9% decrease in the overall loss cost level, effective October 1, 2026. Its table gives class 0106 at US$3.665 and shows the earlier figure of US$4.432, a 17.3% decrease for this class. The bulletin lists separate terrorism and natural disaster provisions of US$0.029 and US$0.003 per US$100 of payroll.

New Jersey

The New Jersey Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau (NJCRIB) rate file for 2026 gives US$13.779 for class 0106 under a "Loss Cost Rate" heading, in hazard group F. The file notes a Second Injury Fund surcharge of 3.75%.

Pennsylvania and Delaware

The Pennsylvania Compensation Rating Bureau publishes bureau advisory loss costs by class. Its circular says the Insurance Commissioner approved the April 1, 2026 loss costs as filed, and lists the provisions the manual loss costs include, such as the offset for the experience rating plan and a share of the Small Business Advocate's administration fund. The Delaware Compensation Rating Bureau file shows an advisory loss cost of US$4.81 and an assigned-risk manual rate of US$6.25 for tree pruning, effective December 1, 2025.

Michigan and Minnesota

The Compensation Advisory Organization of Michigan says its advisory pure premiums are neither manual nor gross rates, but loss, loss adjustment expenses and loss based expenses per US$100 of payroll. Its Placement Facility rate for the same class is higher at US$2.920, and the document says assigned risk rates include loss-base expenses.

The Minnesota figure is the Assigned Risk Plan rate. A Minnesota Department of Commerce circular says the plan uses a pure premium multiplier of 2.15 on the Minnesota Workers' Compensation Insurers Association pure premium base rates. It is not the voluntary market figure for the class.

The state funds

Some states do not leave workers compensation to private insurers in the usual way. Ohio's Bureau of Workers' Compensation says it is the exclusive provider of workers compensation insurance in Ohio. Washington and North Dakota also run state systems, and their figures follow.

Washington's Department of Labor and Industries prices by hours worked. Its 2026 sheet gives US$7.0142 per hour for risk class 0106, Tree Care and Pruning Services, up 8% from 2025.

North Dakota's Workforce Safety and Insurance lists class 0004, Tree Planting, Trimming, Harvest, at US$5.89 from July 1, 2026, down 7.1% from US$6.34.

The Montana State Fund rate sheet for policies from July 1, 2026 gives class 0106 in five tiers, from US$3.467 to US$7.732 per US$100 of payroll.

Why an actual premium can differ

A published figure is a starting point, and the pages say so in their own ways.

Insurer multipliers. New York says insurers apply approved loss cost multipliers to loss costs to reach final rates. California says an insurer's rates typically sit above pure premium rates because they add commissions, acquisition and general expenses.
Experience rating. Ohio says employers with expected losses of US$2,000 or more are placed in its experience rating plan and smaller ones are base rated. Oregon says an employer's premium is affected by payroll, modifications based on its claim experience, and its insurer's profit and expenses.
Assessments and surcharges. Oregon says an employer's total cost also includes a premium assessment. New Jersey's file notes its surcharge on top of the class figure.

Oregon's Department of Consumer and Business Services publishes an average, not a class table. Its September 9, 2026 proposal for 2027 would raise the average pure premium rate by 2.1%, and the average cost to employers, including insurer expenses and assessments, would be US$0.92 per US$100 of payroll.

Who has to carry coverage

State pages say different things, so this table gives only what each page states.

State	What its page says
California	Employers are required by law to have workers compensation insurance, even with one employee
New York	An employer with employees in the state may be required to provide coverage
Texas	Private employers can choose to carry coverage, and it is not required in most cases

Texas non-subscribers must report to the state that they have no coverage. The rules and the exceptions differ in every other state. The guide on questions to ask about cover covers subcontractors.

Where to look next

For state-by-state pay figures, see the guide on pay by state and province.