I moved to West Maui in 2021. While my home survived the 2023 wildfires, the aftermath has been difficult in another way: insurance fallout.

Coverage was hard to find before the fires, but in the months after, my monthly housing costs increased by 130 percent, my insurer dropped me, and I was forced into a wildly expensive mainland policy after a dozen rejections.

This is not a functioning market and it’s baffling that this practice is not only legal, but commonplace. Navigating this broken system is overwhelming, frustrating, and demoralizing, and we are all paying the price.

SB3000 was the solution we needed, but it died after intense opposition from the American Petroleum Institute, the country’s largest fossil fuel lobbying group. The result is homeowners are paying the price for climate-driven disasters while fossil fuel companies profit. We need help and Hawaiʻi residents shouldn’t have to bear this burden alone.

Skyler Courter
Lahaina