California Insurance Commissioner Candidate Forum

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

The California Department of Insurance regulates the insurance industry, with consumer protection as its core tenet. The insurance commissioner heads the Department of Insurance, managing more than 1,400 employees and overseeing 1,600 insurance companies. The current commissioner, Ricardo Lara, has faced increasingly challenging circumstances, including devastating wildfires and the financial insolvency of the state-run public home insurance program, the California FAIR Plan. This public forum will provide voters with an opportunity to hear directly from candidates for insurance commissioner on key issues affecting Californians.

Why it matters

The next insurance commissioner will inherit a growing crisis in the California insurance market, with higher premiums, fewer insurer choices, stricter underwriting standards, and an inability for some homeowners to obtain comprehensive coverage. Voters need to understand the candidates' plans to address these challenges and protect consumers.

The details

The California Department of Insurance regulates the insurance industry, with consumer protection as its core tenet. The insurance commissioner heads the Department of Insurance, managing more than 1,400 employees and overseeing 1,600 insurance companies. Devastating wildfires in recent years have burned tens of thousands of homes, leading 7 of California's 12 top insurers to pull back from the California market since the current commissioner, Ricardo Lara, took office in 2019. As a result, the California FAIR Plan—the state-run public home insurance program designed to be the 'insurer of last resort'—has more than doubled its policyholders between 2019 and 2023, facing financial insolvency in 2023 and 2025 and requiring a $1 billion bailout from private insurers.

• In 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2025, devastating wildfires burned tens of thousands of homes in California.
• Since 2019, when Ricardo Lara took office as insurance commissioner, 7 of California's 12 top insurers have pulled back from the California market.
• Between 2019 and 2023, the number of policyholders in the California FAIR Plan has more than doubled.
• In 2023 and 2025, the California FAIR Plan faced financial insolvency, resulting in a $1 billion bailout from private insurers.
• In March 2025, the California insurance commissioner approved emergency, interim rate hikes designed to stabilize State Farm after immense financial strain from the LA wildfires.