Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Releases New Report on Solutions to the Home Insurance Crisis
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), the lead Democrat on the Senate Housing Subcommittee, released a new report, Bold Solutions to the Home Insurance Crisis. It examines the nationwide crisis of rising home insurance costs, the role of climate-change-driven extreme weather events, and policy solutions that would tackle this affordability crisis. Across the country, Americans are increasingly facing unaffordable home insurance bills or aren’t able to access coverage at all. Insurers have significantly increased their rates, pushing up home insurance premiums an average of 45% since 2019. Sixteen years ago, home insurance was much more affordable and cost only 5% of the typical monthly mortgage payment. But these costs have now more than doubled to more than 10% of a typical mortgage payment, even as mortgage costs have also surged. Former Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell emphasized the risk we face in response to Sen. Smith’s questioning during a Senate Banking Committee hearing, saying that “If you fast-forward 10 or 15 years, there are going to be regions of the country where you can’t get a mortgage” due to insurance companies pulling out of high-risk areas. Minnesotans have been particularly hit hard by rate increases. Last year, Minnesota home insurance rates increased 34%, which was the largest increase of any state, according to reports. These problems, Sen. Smith argues, are driven by the growing strength and severity of disasters due to climate change and an insurance industry motivated more by profits than protecting its customers. To address the problem, Sen. Smith lays out more than two dozen policy options that Washington can consider, ranging from those that lower physical risks for homeowners and communities, to wholesale alternatives to our current, private home insurance system. You can read the full report HERE: · Senator Smith’s opening letter here · An executive summary here “Owning a home has always been part of the American dream. But for too many families today, that dream feels further out of reach than ever before. Without affordable insurance, mortgages may become harder to get, home values
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Dave McCormick, Ruben Gallego and Thom Tillis Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Extend the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program for Seven Years
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), Dave McCormick (R-PA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), and Thom Tillis (R-NC) introduced the bipartisan Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2026, which is essential to economic security by safeguarding the availability of terrorism risk coverage. This legislation is also cosponsored by Senators Britt (R-AL), Van Hollen (D-MD), Crapo (R-ID), Cortez Masto (D-NV), Kennedy (R-LA), Schumer (D-NY), Moreno (R-OH), Kim (D-NJ), Ricketts (R-NE), Alsobrooks (D-MD), Warnock (D-GA) and Blunt-Rochester (D-DE). Following the attacks on September 11, 2001, most states began allowing terrorism risk to be excluded from commercial insurance policies, leaving businesses and industries without access to coverage. Since insurance is a precondition for commercial lending and real estate transactions, this gap in coverage threatened broad economic damage across real estate, construction, energy, transportation, and related industries. Congress responded by passing the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 (TRIA), creating a federal reinsurance backstop to stabilize the private market and ensure that commercial policyholders could continue to obtain terrorism risk coverage. The private insurance market has relied on the TRIA backstop ever since. When TRIA briefly lapsed in December 2014, terrorism exclusions that insurers had pre-filed with state regulators took effect automatically, making terrorism coverage effectively unavailable across commercial policies nationwide. As a result, terrorism risk coverage was removed from policyholders immediately and without notice. Given that the current threat landscape remains elevated, allowing a similar lapse in terrorism coverage would expose policy holders to unnecessary financial risk and uncertainty. “The Terrorism Risk Insurance Program is critical to keeping insurance available and affordable to businesses in Minnesota and across the country so they can grow and create jobs,” said Senator Smith. “Without this bill, a potential terrorism event would mean a financial catastrophe for many businesses and would be extremely costly to taxpayers.
U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on President Trump’s Threats to Commit War Crimes in Iran
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement after President Trump posted on Truth Social threatening “a whole civilization will die tonight” if Iran’s leadership doesn’t strike a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz: “America’s moral leadership and rule of law is what sets us apart from our adversaries in the world. President Trump’s threats this morning to destroy an entire civilization and commit the United States to another endless war in the Middle East are completely wrong. Threatening war crimes undermines our nation’s leadership in the world and opens U.S. servicemembers and civilians to reprisals
Klobuchar, Smith Call on Federal Highway Administration to Allow St. Louis County to Use Project Labor Agreements
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) are calling on the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) at the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to approve the use of Project Labor Agreements for five projects that have been awarded federal funds to St. Louis County. “We write to request your prompt approval of the use of Project Labor Agreements (PLA) for five projects for which St. Louis County, Minnesota has been awarded federal funds,” wrote the Senators. “These funds will improve the County’s roadways and provide good-paying construction jobs.” “St. Louis County has a longstanding policy that requires PLAs on
U.S. Senator Smith, Rep. Davids Reintroduce Legislation to Tackle Maternal Mortality Crisis Through Improved Data, Research
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) and Representative Sharice Davids (D-KS-03) re-introduced legislation to address America’s worsening maternal mortality crisis through expanding research and improving maternal health care. The Data to Save Moms Act aims to better understand the root causes of the maternal mortality crisis by improving data collection on maternal mortality and morbidity. “It’s not radical to believe that every pregnant woman should be able to get high-quality health care, and that we should focus on areas where we see the biggest disparities in health outcomes,” said Senator Smith. “By funding research on maternal health, this legislation will help to understand the root causes of health complications from pregnancy and
Statement from U.S. Senator Tina Smith After Voting Against Markwayne Mullin for Secretary of Homeland Security
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement after voting against confirming U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) to lead the Department of Homeland Security after the firing of Former Secretary Kristi Noem. “Tonight I voted against the confirmation of Senator Mullin to lead the Department of Homeland Security because I do not have confidence that Senator Mullin will change the Trump Administration’s reckless, dangerous and illegal immigration enforcement activity,” said Senator Smith. “Minnesota has paid a heavy price from Operation Metro Surge, and it will take us a long time to recover. Two of our citizens, Alex Pretti and
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