WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) today introduced legislation intended to require insurance companies to disclose investments and underwriting of fossil fuels companies. The Polluter Portfolio Disclosure Act aims to increase transparency around how insurance companies worsen the climate crisis, particularly as they abandon insurance customers in states that find themselves on the front lines of the climate crisis. Carly Fabian, climate insurance advocate with Public Citizen, issued the following statement:
“Mitigating the physical and financial risks from climate change requires reducing the insurance industry’s financing and insurance of the fossil fuel industry. While insurance companies flee states that face the most harm from the climate crisis, they continue to hold tight to their investments in fossil fuels. The combination of a planet on fire and an insurance industry underwriting and investing in the accelerant is not sustainable.
“There is no solution to address the crisis in insurance markets that can succeed without reducing emissions. As some of Congressman Schiff’s constituents confront a new uninsurable climate nightmare, this proposal will be an important first step toward accountability for an industry currently doing more to protect fossil fuels than individuals.”
