The Affordable Insurance and Recovery Act (SB 982)
Stabilizing the housing insurance market and protecting Californians from climate-driven hikes
Wildfires, heat waves, and floods—made worse by the climate crisis—are driving up insurance premiums and energy bills for Californians. Homeowners struggle to find coverage, and when insurance costs surge, landlords pass those hikes on to renters.
These aren’t distant problems. They’re showing up in our monthly bills, forcing impossible choices.
Nearly 9 in 10 voters, across party lines, are worried about rising insurance rates. And they’re frustrated. While costs keep climbing, too many of our elected leaders are siding with Big Oil.
Californians shouldn’t be the only ones footing the bill, and legislators must hold polluters accountable for climate-driven disasters their products have caused. That’s why Senator Scott Wiener introduced the Affordable Insurance and Recovery Act (SB 982) to make insurance affordable for California’s working families.
But yesterday, the California Senate Insurance Committee narrowly failed to pass the Affordable Insurance and Recovery Act.
While the Affordable Insurance and Recovery Act won’t be moving forward this year, the fight to lower costs in California isn’t over.
Californians need affordable insurance now. This bill would have helped make home insurance affordable and available in California. It would have allowed the Attorney General to take large oil and gas corporations to court to hold them accountable and protect Californians, who are currently bearing these costs through high insurance premiums.
While too many lawmakers chose to ignore Californians’ calls for this common-sense solution, we were inspired to see many of our state leaders stand up to protect Californians. We’re thankful for bill author Senator Scott Wiener, coauthors Ben Allen, Eloise Gómez Reyes, Jerry McNerney, Akilah Weber Pierson, and Henry Stern, and Senators Josh Becker, Caroline Menjivar, Steve Padilla, John Laird, Tom Umberg, Angelique Ashby, and Anna Caballero for demanding Big Oil finally pay its fair share in the affordability crisis it helped create.
Fill out our form to ask your legislator about this vote and urge them to take action to hold corporate polluters accountable, reduce costs, and support affordable insurance now.
