CAL.Regulation
Newsom signs wildfire recovery package: smoke-damage insurance rules and permanent mortgage forbearance
Governor Gavin Newsom signed four wildfire-recovery bills in Altadena on September 15, 2026. Assembly Bills 1642 and 1795 direct state agencies to set standards for testing and remediating lead and asbestos contamination from wildfire smoke, require insurers to cover qualifying testing, cleanup and restoration, and bar cutoff of living-expense coverage until homes are safe. Assembly Bills 1842 and 1847 create permanent mortgage-forbearance protections and double the forbearance window for Los Angeles fire survivors from 12 to 24 months.
Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California, Desert Sun, Los Angeles Issue
Key points
- The Department of Insurance estimates more than 13,000 of roughly 40,000 claims after the January 2025 fires involve smoke damage to unburned homes.Governor of CaliforniaLos Angeles Issue
- AB 1795 creates a rebuttable presumption that smoke, ash, soot or char in a surviving home in the wildfire impact zone came from that fire.California Legislative InformationDesert Sun
- Insurers must pay for lead and asbestos testing and remediation, restore pre-loss condition, and keep paying additional living expenses until homes are safe.California Legislative InformationGovernor of CaliforniaLos Angeles Issue
- AB 1842: servicers must offer up to 12 months of no-late-fee forbearance after a declared disaster; AB 1847 gives 2025 fire survivors 24 months.California Legislative InformationGovernor of California
- The governor's office says no state had enforceable smoke-damage testing standards; the Desert Sun calls them the nation's first statewide standards.Governor of CaliforniaDesert Sun
- Chapters 239 (AB 1642), 240 (AB 1795), 241 (AB 1842) and 242 (AB 1847), Statutes of 2026; all four take effect January 1, 2027.California Legislative InformationCalifornia Legislative InformationCalifornia Legislative InformationCalifornia Legislative Information
Sources7 articles across 4 outlets
California Legislative Information
Desert Sun
Governor of California
Los Angeles Issue