SACRAMENTO, California — Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Friday issued an administrative order to speed up his department’s review of insurers’ rate requests, reversing earlier plans to have the changes come through the California state Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The move comes amid a series of proposals by Lara to entice property insurers fleeing wildfire losses back to the state as political pressure mounts from angsty voters unable to find coverage.
Lara issued a bulletin Friday under his existing regulatory authority to keep the Insurance Department’s review of insurers’ rate requests to a stricter timeline. It mirrors a legislative proposal the Newsom administration published in late May that consumer advocates said would limit their ability to intervene.
“Consumers are hurting, businesses continue to lose coverage, wildfires are ravaging our state,” said Lara in a press release Friday. “I am ultimately responsible for fixing this crisis, and I am moving forward to meet my commitment to complete long-needed reforms this year.”
