Wildfire Safety and Risk Mitigation Program.

Senator Cortese's proposal to establish a Wildfire Safety and Risk Mitigation Program centers on developing a public wildfire catastrophe model through university-based research centers. The program would fund computerized modeling systems to simulate potential property damage from major wildfires, with documentation and tools accessible to public agencies and individuals.

The Department of Insurance would administer competitive grants to universities for creating these research centers, with funding priorities focused on projects that serve disadvantaged communities, assist government planning efforts, and provide educational opportunities for students in risk analysis and actuarial sciences. Grant recipients must develop models that can inform emergency planning, aid wildfire safety initiatives, advance risk mitigation research, and support insurance regulation. The department must establish performance metrics and ensure funded projects align with existing insurance laws while complementing federal and private sector wildfire safety programs.

The legislation requires the department to create and publish a multi-year framework for developing and implementing the catastrophe model. A new Wildfire Safety and Risk Mitigation Account within the Insurance Fund would finance these activities upon legislative appropriation. The department must identify key implementation milestones after initial grants are awarded and provide budget recommendations to state leadership by September 2026.