Insuring the Climate Crisis: New York Bill

This research paper analyzes a proposed bill in the New York State Legislature, the "Insuring Our Future Act," which seeks to use state regulatory authority to address rising insurance costs and coverage gaps caused by climate change. The authors argue that insurance companies are hypocritically citing climate-driven disasters to raise premiums while continuing to finance and underwrite the fossil fuel projects that drive the climate crisis.

• The "Insuring Our Future Act" (Assembly Bill A9905A/Senate Bill S9435) proposes that insurance companies phase out existing investments in and underwriting of fossil fuel companies within five years, prohibits new investments or underwriting in the fossil fuel sector, and establishes reporting requirements for such activities.
• The proposed New York legislation includes protections for customers against sudden non-renewals and certain premium increases, and aims to counter "bluelining," which is the practice of financial institutions increasing prices or withdrawing services from regions perceived as high environmental risk.
• Between 2019 and 2024, home insurance rates in the United States rose by a cumulative 37.8 percent, with the highest increase occurring in Arizona (62.1 percent) and the lowest in Alaska (6.8 percent). Only three out of fifty states did not see rate hikes of 15 percent or more during the last five years.
• US insurance companies are estimated to hold over $500 billion in fossil fuel-related assets, including gas, oil, and coal. In 2022, global insurers provided approximately $21 billion in underwriting for fossil fuel projects.

APA

Fenlock, L., Slidders, C., & Reisch, N. (2024). Insuring the Climate Crisis: New York Bill. Center for International Environmental Law. https://www.ciel.org/insuring-the-climate-crisis-new-york-bill/

Chicago

Fenlock, Lindsay, Charles Slidders, and Nikki Reisch. Insuring the Climate Crisis: New York Bill. Center for International Environmental Law, 2024. https://www.ciel.org/insuring-the-climate-crisis-new-york-bill/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Fenlock |first1=Lindsay |last2=Slidders |first2=Charles |last3=Reisch |first3=Nikki |title=Insuring the Climate Crisis: New York Bill |publisher=Center for International Environmental Law |date=26 June 2024 |url=https://www.ciel.org/insuring-the-climate-crisis-new-york-bill/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fenlock2024insuring, author = {Fenlock, Lindsay and Slidders, Charles and Reisch, Nikki}, title = {{Insuring the Climate Crisis: New York Bill}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2024}, month = jun, url = {https://www.ciel.org/insuring-the-climate-crisis-new-york-bill/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }