An Oregon bill aimed at lowering wildfire insurance rates by rewarding homeowners for taking safety measures has stalled in the state legislature. Despite support from both sides of the aisle, the proposed Senate Bill 1540 faced last-minute pushback from the insurance industry, ultimately preventing it from moving forward this session.
The legislation, sponsored by Senator Jeff Golden, would have required insurance companies to reveal the models and scoring methods they use for wildfire coverage. Insurers would also need to explain how these tools affect their decisions on accepting risks and setting premiums. The bill made it through the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Wildfire unanimously. However, it got stuck in the Senate Rules Committee and never reached a full vote before the legislature ended its session on March 6.
The insurance industry expressed concerns about the bill’s timing and feasibility. Kenton Brine, president of the Northwest Insurance Council, described the bill as "too much, too soon" for a short 35-day legislative session. He pointed out that the bill would have forced state agencies to produce wildfire risk data for insurers and modelers, and required insurers to use that information before it was guaranteed to be ready or accurate. Brine said this demand could create costly problems for insurance companies.
Another issue raised by insurers involved a provision that would give the state insurance commissioner the power to reject wildfire risk models used by insurers. Brine argued that the bill assumed insurers have full control over the content of these models, which isn’t the case.
Oregon lawmakers crafted Senate Bill 1540 based on a similar law passed in Colorado last year. Colorado’s House Bill 1182, signed by Governor Jared Polis in May 2025, requires insurance providers to factor in property and community wildfire mitigation efforts when creating their models or offer discounts to homeowners who take such steps. That law goes into effect in July 2026. Unlike in Oregon, the Rocky Mountain Insurance Association did not oppose Colorado’s bill and even called it a positive move toward expanding insurance in wildfire-prone mountain areas.
Oregon faces growing wildfire risk concerns. The 2025 Cotality Wildfire Risk Report shows nearly 128,000 Oregon homes are at moderate or higher risk of wildfire—placing the state among the top five in the western U.S. for wildfire exposure. The report also highlighted insurers pulling back from several Oregon counties, leaving many residents struggling to find coverage or facing sharply increased premiums. Across the western U.S., over 2.6 million homes are under similar threat, representing $1.3 trillion in potential rebuilding costs.
With this legislation now dead for the 2026 session, the Northwest Insurance Council has suggested turning the bill into a working group for the much longer 2027 session. Senator Golden, who is not running for reelection, won’t be around to push the effort. Still, Brine expressed confidence that other lawmakers will continue addressing wildfire insurance challenges. He added that insurers, modelers, and various agencies can work together with homeowners and officials to find solutions.