California’s incoming insurance commissioner is pledging a sweeping transformation of the state’s troubled insurance market, including a first-of-its-kind public disaster insurance program designed to guarantee wildfire coverage for homeowners.
Jane Kim, a former San Francisco supervisor who defeated fellow Democrat Ben Allen in the race for insurance commissioner, declared victory Friday after campaigning on a plan to move wildfire coverage away from private insurers and establish a state-run, nonprofit alternative.
“We are here to say no more. We are going to make insurance work for us again,” Kim told supporters at her victory event.
“We are going to take on this $3-trillion industry because they have been profiting for way too long by raising our premiums, canceling our coverage and fighting our claims.”
Kim’s proposal, called “Natural Disaster Insurance for All,” would remove wildfire protection from standard homeowners policies and place it in a public, nonprofit fund.
The program would offer wildfire insurance to every current California homeowner, directing premiums toward coverage instead of executive pay, shareholder returns or corporate advertising.
“The idea is that every current homeowner would be covered, and it would be a nonprofit fund where premiums don’t have to go to CEO pay, shareholders and Super Bowl ads,” Kim said.
The ambitious plan comes as California confronts a deepening homeowners insurance crisis. Major carriers are pulling back from the state, while residents face soaring costs and growing difficulty finding affordable coverage.
Seven of California’s largest property insurers have limited or paused the issuance of new homeowners policies, further shrinking the private market as wildfire threats and rising expenses weigh on coverage.
Homeowners insurance premiums have climbed 84% since 2020, according to Stanford research. At the same time, enrollment in the state’s FAIR Plan—the insurer of last resort for people unable to obtain traditional coverage—has nearly tripled.
The FAIR Plan now covers about 5% of California homes, up from less than 2%. The increase shows that the insurance crisis has expanded beyond traditionally fire-prone areas and into the wider housing market.
Kim’s proposed public fund would create a separate safety net for wildfire protection, reducing homeowners’ reliance on private insurers.
However, putting the plan into practice could be challenging. State lawmakers and community leaders would need to help create the program and decide how it would be funded and managed.
“This office is not a dictatorship. We’re going to have to work with community leaders across the state to make our big ideas possible,” Kim said.
Even with those obstacles, the commissioner-elect said she expects to make progress on affordability and access during her first year in office.
“I really believe we’re going to have some wins in our first year because there is a lot of work that can be done to make insurance more affordable, more available and more fair,” she said.
Kim, 49, won approximately 53% of the vote to Allen’s 47%, according to the Associated Press. Her lead has grown to roughly 400,000 votes as additional ballots were counted.
Allen called Kim on Friday morning to congratulate her before she announced the results to supporters at San Francisco’s Dolores Park.
The victory gives Kim responsibility for leading one of California’s most troubled industries as homeowners contend with rising premiums, canceled policies and fewer ways to protect their properties.
Her proposed nonprofit disaster insurance system would mark a dramatic departure from California’s traditional insurance model—and become one of the most significant tests of her incoming administration.