Nevada insurance regulator outlines AB 376 changes and market options for wildfire risk

Ned Gaines, Nevada’s commissioner of insurance, told the TRPA Oversight Committee that AB 376 (2025) created new, narrowly defined pathways for insurers to adjust homeowner wildfire coverage and for the division to encourage market innovation—but that the department has seen no filings to carve wildfire out of standard policies to date.

"To date, no insurer has done so," Gaines said, noting that while the statute allows a base-rate increase pathway (statutory 3 percent), the division is proposing a regulatory threshold around 5 percent on implementation and will continue public rulemaking to finalize details.

Gaines described three main features of AB 376: (1) an allowance for carriers to exclude wildfire peril from standard homeowner policies subject to a product filing and approval process; (2) a base‑rate increase pathway that would speed certain limited rate changes; and (3) a regulatory 'sandbox' allowing insurers to test new approaches for up to four years under division oversight.

Commissioner Gaines said the division has also received a filing proposing a wildfire deductible product and stressed work to ensure mapping and modeling that inform underwriting are accurate. “It is imperative that we get accurate mapping because if insurers are relying on faulty data to make their decisions, that is consumer harm,” he said.

Committee members pressed the commissioner on mitigation incentives and model oversight: members asked whether discounts tied to community certifications (Firewise or IBHS) can be required, how the division reviews insurer models, and whether a state fair-plan or parametric products should be considered. Gaines said discounting is currently variable by insurer and that the division can set parameters for model use and require disclosures, though disallowing broad models could prompt insurers to withdraw from markets.

The commissioner described ongoing outreach with industry trade groups, efforts to work with fire chiefs to collect mitigation data, and exploratory concepts for state-supported mechanisms that would not require state funding but could facilitate broader market participation. He said more filings could come once carriers see clearer market examples and guardrails in the sandbox program.

No formal committee action was taken; members signaled interest in legislative follow-up to explore data standards, mitigation incentives and potential regulatory tools to maintain coverage availability for Tahoe residents.