[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8483 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8483
To require studies regarding insurance coverage for damages from
wildfires, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 21, 2022
Ms. Waters introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Financial Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require studies regarding insurance coverage for damages from
wildfires, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Wildfire Insurance Coverage Study
Act of 2022''.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL WILDFIRE RISK ASSESSMENT.
(a) Study.--The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management
Agency shall, pursuant to the authority under section 1371 of the
National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4122), conduct a study
regarding wildfire risk in the United States to--
(1) identify trends in declarations for wildfires under the
Fire Management Assistance grant program under section 420 of
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance
Act (42 U.S.C. 5187), with respect to geography, costs,
probability, and frequency of wildfire disasters;
(2) identify mitigation practices that would assist in
reducing premiums for insurance policies covering damages from
wildfires;
(3) identify existing programs of the Federal Government
and State governments that measure wildfire risk and assess
their effectiveness in forecasting wildfire events and
informing wildfire response; and
(4) analyze and assess the need for a national map for
measuring and quantifying wildfire risk.
(b) Report.--Not later than the expiration of the 12-month period
beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator
shall submit to the Congress a report regarding the findings and
conclusions of the study conducted pursuant to subsection (a), which
shall include a recommendation with regard to the need for a national
map referred to in subsection (a)(4).
SEC. 3. GAO STUDY REGARDING INSURANCE FOR WILDFIRE DAMAGE.
(a) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States, in
consultation with the Director of the Federal Insurance Office and
State insurance regulators, shall conduct a study to analyze and
determine the following:
(1) Existing state of coverage.--With respect to the
existing state of homeowners insurance coverage and commercial
property insurance coverage for damage from wildfires in the
United States--
(A) the extent to which private insurers have,
during the 10-year period ending on the date of the
enactment of this Act, increased rates, cost-sharing
provisions, or both for such coverage (after adjusting
for inflation) and the geographic areas in which such
increased rates, cost-sharing, or both applied;
(B) the extent to which private insurers have,
during the 10-year period ending on the date of the
enactment of this Act, refused to renew policies for
such coverages and the geographic areas to which such
refusals applied;
(C) the events that have triggered such increased
rates and refusals to renew policies;
(D) in cases in which private insurers curtail
coverage, the extent to which homeowners coverage and
commercial property coverage are terminated altogether
and the extent to which such coverages are offered but
with coverage for damage from wildfires excluded; and
(E) the extent to which, and circumstances under
which, private insurers are continuing to provide
coverage for damage from wildfires--
(i) in general;
(ii) subject to a condition that mitigation
activities are taken, such as hardening of
properties and landscaping against wildfires,
by property owners, State or local governments,
park or forest authorities, or other land
management authorities; and
(iii) subject to any other conditions.
(2) Regulatory responses.--With respect to actions taken by
State insurance regulatory agencies in response to increased
premium rates, cost-sharing, or both for coverage for damage
from wildfires and exclusion of such coverage from homeowners
policies--
(A) the extent of rate regulation;
(B) the extent of moratoria on such rate and cost-
sharing increases and exclusions and on non-renewals;
(C) the extent to which States require homeowners
coverage to include coverage for damage from wildfires
or make sales of homeowners coverage contingent on the
sale, underwriting, or financing of separate wildfire
coverage in the State;
(D) the extent to which States have established
State residual market insurance entities, reinsurance
programs, or similar mechanisms for coverage of damages
from wildfires;
(E) any other actions States or localities have
taken in response to increased premium rates, cost-
sharing, or both for coverage for damage from wildfires
and exclusion of such coverage from homeowners
policies, including forestry and wildfire management
policies and subsidies for premiums and cost-sharing
for wildfire coverage;
(F) the effects on the homeownership coverage
market of such actions taken by States; and
(G) the effectiveness and sustainability of such
actions taken by States.
(3) Impediments in underwriting wildfire risk.--With
respect to impediments faced by private insurers underwriting
wildfire risk, what is or are--
(A) the correlated risks and the extent of such
risks;
(B) the extent of private insurers' inability to
estimate magnitude of future likelihood of wildfires
and of expected damages from wildfires;
(C) the extent to which need for affordable housing
contributes to people relocating to more remote,
heavily wooded areas with higher wildfire risk;
(D) the potential for wildfire losses sufficiently
large to jeopardize insurers' solvency;
(E) the extent to which, and areas in which, risk-
adjusted market premiums for wildfire risk are so high
as to be unaffordable;
(F) the manners in which the Federal Government and
State governments can alleviate any of these
impediments, including through--
(i) improved forest management policies to
reduce wildfire risk;
(ii) improved data to estimate risk;
(iii) relocating homeowners from wildfire
zones;
(iv) allowing insurers to charge risk-
adjusted premiums for wildfire risk, combined
with subsidized premiums for lower-income
homeowners; and
(v) taking a last-loss position in
reinsuring wildfire risk;
(G) the available policy responses if private
insurers exit the wildfire coverage market and the
advantages and disadvantages of each such response;
(H) the effects of lack of wildfire coverage or
more expensive wildfire coverage rates, cost-sharing,
or both--
(i) on local communities, including on low-
or moderate-income property owners and small
businesses;
(ii) by race and ethnicity;
(iii) on rebuilding in communities
previously damaged by wildfires; and
(iv) on the demand for wildfire coverage by
property owners;
(I) the effects of potential State prohibitions on
termination of policies due to wildfire claims on
insurer solvency; and
(J) the manner in which private insurers are
modeling or estimating future wildfire risk.
(b) Report.--Not later than the expiration of the 24-month period
beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller
General shall submit to the Congress a report identifying the findings
and conclusions of the study conducted pursuant to subsection (a).
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