Insurance commissioner proposes $1 million Granite State home mitigation fund to help lower homeowners premiums

Insurance Commissioner D.J. Bettencourt told the House Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee that the New Hampshire Insurance Department will seek a non‑germane amendment to House Bill 2 97 to create a Granite State Home Mitigation and Resiliency Program funded by the first $1 million of annual insurance premium‑tax revenue.

Bettencourt said the program would offer grants of up to $10,000 on a first‑come, first‑served basis to help homeowners undertake mitigation work such as roof fortification, exterior improvements, foundation work to reduce flood risk, or removal of large hazardous trees. “This is a proactive program. I wanna be very clear about that,” Bettencourt said, adding the intent is to reduce premiums and keep more homeowners in the admitted market.

The program design and legislative approach

Bettencourt told members the department chose to include the program in the House Bill 2 budget process because of the budgetary impact and to give legislators full statutory detail up front instead of relying primarily on later rulemaking. He said leadership advised the department to staff the proposal with as much specificity as possible and to take the proposal through committee vetting. The draft would put the first $1 million…