AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 5, 2025
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JULY 10, 2025
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
96
Introduced by Senators Rubio, Cortese, and Stern
(Coauthor: Senator Laird)
February 20, 2025
An act to add Section 8654.11 to, and to add Chapter 16.5 (commencing with Section 8899.80) to Division 1 of Title 2 of, the Government Code, relating to state government.
Vote: majority Appropriation: no Fiscal committee: yes Local program: yes
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST
(1) Existing law requires the Office of Emergency Services to enter into a joint powers agreement, as specified, with the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection to develop and administer a comprehensive wildfire mitigation program, known as the California wildfire mitigation financial assistance program, that, among other things, encourages cost-effective structure hardening and retrofitting that creates fire-resistant homes, businesses, and public buildings.
This bill would require the joint powers authority to consider revising the wildfire mitigation program in accordance with prescribed community hardening standards and guidelines developed pursuant to the bill’s provisions, as specified below.
(2) Existing law establishes the Department of Insurance, headed by the Insurance Commissioner, which regulates insurers and insurance practices. Existing law generally regulates classes of insurance, including fire insurance.
This bill would establish the Community Hardening Commission as an independent unit within the Department of Insurance, to be composed of specified members, including, among others, the Insurance Commissioner and the State Fire Marshal or their designee. The bill would require the Insurance Commissioner to be the chair of the commission. The bill would also require the commission to be advised by an advisory council consisting of specified members, including, among others, a local representative on behalf of a city or county, or association representing cities and counties, and a representative of the California Fire Chiefs Association. By imposing additional duties on local representatives of a city or county, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
This bill would also require the Insurance Commissioner, beginning January 1, 2026, and at least quarterly thereafter, to convene the commission to perform specified duties, including developing new wildfire community hardening standards to reduce fire risk and improve access to fire insurance. The bill would require the commission to make certain recommendations to the Insurance Commissioner, the Office of Emergency Services, and the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection in accordance with specified standards. The bill would require the commission to consult with specified stakeholders, including those from public safety districts and the insurance industry, in performing the duties described above.
The bill would require the commission, on or before July 1, 2027, to complete the new standards described above and submit a report to the Legislature on additional actions needed to support cities, counties, and members of those communities in home hardening and wildfire mitigation. The bill would also require the commission to periodically review and update those standards, as specified. The bill would further authorize the commission to take various other related actions, including entering into confidential data sharing agreements and coordinating with the relevant legislative committees to secure documentation or specified information.
This bill would also require the Department of Insurance, on or before July 1, 2027, in consultation with the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Office of Emergency Services, and the commission, to develop guidelines for state and local agencies to aggregate and make available data related to wildfire risk for purposes of a data sharing platform.
(3) Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest.
This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.
(4) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 8654.11 is added to the Government Code, to read:
8654.11.
(a) The joint powers authority shall consider revising the wildfire mitigation program in accordance with the community hardening standards and home hardening guidelines developed pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 8899.82.
(b) Additional moneys to fund the wildfire mitigation program, in accordance with subdivision (a) of Section 8899.82, shall be subject to appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another statute.
SEC. 2.
Chapter 16.5 (commencing with Section 8899.80) is added to Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code, to read:
Chapter 16.5. Community Hardening Commission
(a) There is created in the state government the Community Hardening Commission as an independent unit within the Department of Insurance.
(b) The commission exists as a separate unit within the Department of Insurance, and has the functions of prescribing policy, holding meetings and setting dates of the meetings, and holding hearings insofar as those powers are given by statute to the commission.
(c) The decisions and actions of the commission, with respect to exercising its authority and carrying out its duties under this chapter or any other applicable law, are not subject to review by the Insurance Commissioner, but are final within the limits provided by this chapter.
(a) The commission shall consist of the following seven members:
(1) The Insurance Commissioner or their designee.
(2) The State Fire Marshal or their designee.
(3) The Director of Housing and Community Development or their designee.
(4) The Director of Emergency Services or their designee.
(5) The Director of the Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety or their designee.
(6) A member of the public appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly.
(7) A member of the public appointed by the Senate President pro Tempore.
(b) The Insurance Commissioner shall be the chair of the commission.
(c) The commission shall be advised by an advisory council, consisting of the following members:
(1) Three representatives from scientific research institutions with expertise in wildfire science, as appointed by the Insurance Commissioner.
(2) A representative on behalf of the insurance industry, as appointed by the Insurance Commissioner.
(3) A representative on behalf of the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety, as appointed by the Insurance Commissioner.
(4) A representative on behalf of consumers and policyholders, as appointed by the Insurance Commissioner.
(5) A local representative on behalf of a city or county, or association representing cities or counties, as appointed by the Insurance Commissioner.
(6) A representative on behalf of the business community, as appointed by the Insurance Commissioner.
(7) A representative of the California Building Industry Association, as appointed by the Insurance Commissioner.
(8) A representative of the California Fire Chiefs Association, as appointed by the Insurance Commissioner.
(9) A public member appointed by the Governor.
(a) Beginning January 1, 2026, and at least quarterly thereafter, the Insurance Commissioner shall convene the commission to perform all of the following duties:
(1) Develop new wildfire community hardening standards to reduce fire risk and improve access to fire insurance that address all of the following:
(A) Guidelines and best practices for home hardening. The commission shall consult existing home hardening regulations adopted by the Insurance Commissioner, the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), and the California wildfire mitigation financial assistance program described in Article 16.5 (commencing with Section 8654.2) of Chapter 7.
(B) Guidelines and best practices for community wildfire mitigation for cities, counties, and members of those communities, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
(i) Risk mitigation specific to water service reliability consistent with Section 53750.5, and risk mitigation specific to the delivery of electrical service.
(ii) Enhanced ingress and egress routes, mandating primary and secondary access roads, along with mandated public safety vehicle access.
(iii) Mandated funding mechanisms for defensible space maintenance, fire breaks, and vegetation management.
(iv) Risk mitigation specific to farm and agricultural land management.
(C) Means of reducing barriers for cities, counties, and members of those communities in home hardening and wildfire mitigation.
(2) Review existing home hardening regulations adopted by the Insurance Commissioner, CAL FIRE, and the California wildfire mitigation financial assistance program described in Article 16.5 (commencing with Section 8654.2) of Chapter 7, and provide recommendations to the Office of Emergency Services, CAL FIRE, and the Insurance Commissioner for changes to their regulations and programs to reduce fire risk and improve access to fire insurance, including outlining the most cost-effective strategies that will lower the risk for loss in a community in a useful manner insurers are able to reflect in underwriting.
(3) Make recommendations to expedite proven and cost-effective community hardening practices that reduce fire risk and improve insurability, including recommendations for reducing barriers for cities, counties, and members of those communities to invest in effective home hardening and wildfire mitigation strategies.
(4) Make recommendations to increase the pace and scale of forest health and landscape management projects with priority for mitigation near vulnerable communities.
(5) Oversee and facilitate state and local agency participation in a wildfire data sharing platform.
(b) The commission shall consult with stakeholders from public safety districts, including fire and police protection districts, water and electric utilities, the insurance industry, the building trades industry, planning associations, utilities, and cities and counties in performing the duties described in subdivision (a).
(c) The commission shall make recommendations to do both of the following:
(1) Promote alignment of programs, inspections, and regulations across state departments and agencies, including, but not limited to, the Insurance Commissioner, the Office of Emergency Services, and CAL FIRE in accordance with the standards developed in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a).
(2) (A) Revise the home inspection program developed by CAL FIRE to more directly align with the home hardening regulations adopted by the Insurance Commissioner, CAL FIRE, and the California wildfire mitigation financial assistance program described in Article 16.5 (commencing with Section 8654.2) of Chapter 7.
(B) CAL FIRE shall consider revising their program to align with these recommendations.
(d) The recommendations specified in subdivision (c) shall include both of the following:
(1) Proposed local and state funding mechanisms.
(2) Certification processes that property owners can use or access to demonstrate to an insurer that a home hardening action has been achieved to meet relevant home hardening regulations.
(e) (1) On or before July 1, 2027, the commission shall complete the new standards outlined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) and shall submit a report to the Legislature on additional actions needed to support cities, counties, and members of those communities in home hardening and wildfire mitigation described in paragraph (3) of subdivision (a). The commission shall periodically review and update the standards described in subdivision (a), incorporating the best available science, and findings informed by the wildfire risk data sharing platform specified in paragraph (4) of subdivision (a).
(2) A report to be submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795.
(3) Pursuant to Section 10231.5, this subdivision becomes inoperative on January 1, 2032.
(f) The commission shall identify specific wildfire catastrophe events, and for those events, the commission shall complete an after-action investigation and report. To prepare the report, the commission shall assemble relevant and standardized postdisaster data, analyze the effectiveness of the wildfire community hardening measures in place in impacted communities, and issue recommendations to update future wildfire community hardening standards developed by the commission.
(1) The chair of the commission may enter into data sharing agreements, including confidential data sharing agreements with commission and advisory group members, as well as relevant catastrophe modelers, actuaries, research organizations, federal agencies, and state and local agencies as necessary, to assemble, evaluate, and standardize the information needed for analysis.
(2) The after-action report shall include recommendations on improved and standardized collection of future predisaster and postdisaster data to inform comprehensive recommendations for reducing the severity of future events.
(3) The after-action report shall include a review of the lessons learned regarding the performance of mitigation strategies, including, but not limited to, the standards developed in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a), mitigation actions in existing regulations by the Insurance Commissioner, and risk mitigation at landscape scales, such as forest and watershed management.
(4) The commission may coordinate with the relevant legislative committees to secure documentation or specific information to assemble relevant postdisaster data where it applies to future home and community standards aligned with paragraph (1) of subdivision (a).
(g) For any standard, recommendation, or requirement in this section that is intended to be a regulation and would be a building standard as defined by Section 18909 of the Health and Safety Code, the commission shall propose the recommendation to CAL FIRE for consideration in CAL FIRE’S recommendations to the California Building Standards Commission pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 18935) of Part 2.5 of Division 13 of the Health and Safety Code.
(a) On or before July 1, 2027, the Department of Insurance, in consultation with the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Office of Emergency Services, and the commission established pursuant to Section 8899.80, shall develop guidelines for state and local agencies to aggregate and make available data related to parcel-, neighborhood-, and community-level wildfire risk for the purpose of enabling a wildfire data sharing platform. The purpose of this wildfire data sharing platform is to accurately measure, monitor, and enable targeted mitigation of wildfire risk in wildland-urban interface communities.
(b) In developing guidelines for participation in a wildfire data sharing platform, the department shall consider all of the following:
(1) Data collection standards and data specifications.
(2) Data synthesis and aggregation standards that allow progression of mitigation efforts to be tracked over time and available for reporting at appropriate levels.
(3) Data access standards for state and local agencies and homeowners.
(4) Verification measures to ensure data integrity.
(5) Consumer protection and appropriate equity and privacy measures.
(6) Geographic and topographic diversity.
(c) (1) On or before July 1, 2027, and on or before January 1 thereafter through January 1, 2032, the commission shall report to the Legislature its assessment of any statutory changes or budgetary resources needed to facilitate the optimal participation of state and local agencies in a wildfire data sharing platform.
(2) A report submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795.
(d) The commission shall appoint from within its membership a governing board to provide oversight of state and local agency participation in a wildfire data sharing platform.
(e) This chapter does not prohibit a state or local agency from participating in a public-private partnership to establish a wildfire data sharing platform before the completion of guidelines developed by the department.
(f) The department may enter into data sharing agreements with participating insurers, modelers, actuaries, and state and local agencies as necessary to enable a wildfire data sharing platform, subject to the oversight of the commission.
(g) This chapter shall not be construed to require participation of a person or entity in a wildfire data sharing platform. A person or policyholder subject to the data collection efforts initiated under the wildfire data sharing platform may opt out in writing by notifying the department.
SEC. 3.
The Legislature finds and declares that Section 2 of this act, which adds Section 8899.82 to the Government Code, imposes a limitation on the public’s right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that interest:
In order to protect the privacy of California residents while also gathering useful data related to wildfire mitigation, it is necessary to allow the Community Hardening Commission to enter into confidential data sharing agreements for purposes of reviewing information to help protect the public from wildfires.
SEC. 4.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.