Assembly committee advances AB 888 to fund home-hardening grants for wildfire mitigation

Assemblymember Luz Rivas Calderon’s AB 888, the California Safe Homes Act, was moved out of the Assembly Insurance Committee Monday and ordered to the Appropriations Committee after supporters said the bill would create a state grant program to help homeowners pay for home-hardening measures aimed at reducing wildfire risk.

Proponents told the committee the program would fund work such as reinforcing roofs and clearing the first five feet around homes to create a noncombustible zone. California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, who is the bill’s sponsor, said the grant program addresses an upfront-cost barrier to mitigation that current insurer discount programs do not overcome. “We must empower consumers with the resources needed to undertake vital work,” Lara said.

The bill’s backers framed AB 888 as an evidence-based, market-stabilizing intervention. Lara cited mitigation programs in other states, including Alabama’s Strengthen Alabama Homes and Louisiana’s Fortified Homes program, and said a March 2025 audit of Louisiana’s program showed recipients saw an average 22% decrease in annual premiums and measurable reductions in uninsured losses. Alabama Insurance Commissioner Mark Fowler, who testified in support, described Alabama’s program history: his department has issued grants since 2016, fortified more than 8,700 homes, and worked with the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) standards to certify fortified homes. “When you align public funding with clear science-based risk reduction standards, you can influence the broader market,” Fowler said.

Multiple industry and local-government groups registered support in the hearing, including the Personal Insurance Federation of California, the American Property Casualty Insurance Association, Rebuild Paradise Foundation and the League of California Cities. Committee members from fire-prone and rural districts expressed support, and several asked that the program account for rural communities’ needs. Lara said the program would be data-driven and prioritize wildfire-distress areas.

The committee record shows a motion by Assemblymember Harabedian, seconded by Assemblymember Gibson, to move the bill to Appropriations. The committee clerk called the roll and recorded aye votes from the members present; the bill was referred to the Appropriations Committee with the committee noting the bill as fiscal.

AB 888 would create a new grant program in the Department of Insurance to subsidize specified home-hardening actions. The bill text in committee and witnesses emphasized alignment with science-based mitigation standards (for example, IBHS Fortified standards) and with existing insurer discount incentives under the department’s Safer from Wildfires regulations. The bill’s authors and witnesses described the program as a multi-year commitment intended to shift private-sector practices and expand the number of homes meeting fortified standards.

The measure will now be considered by the Assembly Appropriations Committee, where its fiscal implications will be reviewed.