FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 9, 2026
Contact: contact@insurancefairnessproject.com
Insurance and Consumer Advocates Present 100 Day Priorities for California’s New Insurance Commissioner
A new policy memo outlines how newly-elected IC Jane Kim can make the biggest impact in her first 100 days in office to mitigate California’s worsening insurance crisis
Today, experts in insurance, consumer protection, climate, financial risk, and community investment published 100 Days to A.C.T. on Insurance, a policy priorities memo outlining recommendations for California’s newly-elected Insurance Commissioner Jane Kim’s first days in office. The memo recommends leveraging existing authority to save Californians money by increasing accountability and transparency from insurance companies, reducing climate risk, and having those responsible for increasing risks pay their fair share.
“The priorities we’ve outlined are achievable and meaningful actions that Commissioner-Elect Kim can take starting on her first day in office,” said California Insurance Commissioner Emeritus Dave Jones. “One example is requiring insurance models to account for climate risk mitigation when determining rate relativities to lower insurance costs for property owners and communities who take steps to lowering risks. There are also opportunities for strengthening insurance transparency by making the information already collected by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners publicly available and detailed to the ZIP code level.”
Additional actions include greenlighting a study on insurance availability and the costs of affordable multifamily housing; and requiring the FAIR Plan to publicly disclose claims data and financial records. Guidelines for new legislation that increase transparency, better support underserved communities, and hold fossil fuel companies accountable for their role in the climate crisis are also included.
Achieving the milestones will create the foundation for Commissioner-Elect Kim to achieve the aspirations she outlined in her victory speech, “This fight is not just about insurance and our homes and our property. It's a fight for our planet. And this office can and should be a leader in taking on not just wealth inequality and economic fairness, [...] but to take on the climate crisis.”
“Homeowners are suffocating under the weight of surging premiums, dropped coverage, and delays and denials of promised benefits. These solutions are a first 100-day roadmap of actions Commissioner-Elect Kim can take immediately to fight for consumers,” said Carmen Balber, Executive Director of Consumer Watchdog. "California homeowners deserve better treatment from insurance companies only looking out for their bottom lines, and Commissioner-Elect Kim is now in a position to push for those protections.”
“Californians elected an insurance commissioner who vowed to fight for them and put everyday families first,” said Sierra Kos, Co-founder and Co-executive Director of Extreme Weather Survivors. “Californians want a fighter. We urge Commissioner-elect Kim to take immediate steps in providing extreme weather survivors with the support they need and to use her authority to help achieve a more affordable and accountable insurance system that reliably provides every Californian with the protections they deserve. Commissioner-elect, please know that if you fight, you'll have the people with you. ”
Recent polling from the Insurance Fairness Project and Data for Progress shows that nearly half of California voters (49%) say they are paying more for home or renters insurance than they did last year, with voters across party lines expressing strong support for legal recourse against insurance companies and opportunities to hold oil and gas companies responsible for the financial harm they cause.
Americans for Financial Reform, CA Insurance Commissioner Emeritus Dave Jones, Climate Cabinet Education, Consumer Watchdog, Extreme Weather Survivors, The Greenlining Institute, Public Citizen, and Rise Economy wrote the memo as the groundwork for the policy roadmap outlined by The Blueprint to A.C.T. Commissioner-Elect Kim has already committed to many of the core elements of the blueprint in a primary candidate survey led by Consumer Watchdog.
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The Insurance Fairness Project works to raise awareness of the nation’s climate-driven property insurance crisis. We bring together consumer advocates, homeowners, disaster survivors, and policy experts to increase understanding of the crisis and its causes, and we work to advance possible solutions through research, media engagement, and public education.
