Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse’s final hearing as chair of the Senate Budget Committee could mark the culmination of a monthslong, multipart inquiry into how homeowners insurance companies are responding to the mounting threats of climate change.
And as his party prepares to turn over the reins of power to Republicans next year, it will also mark the Rhode Island Democrat’s last opportunity to use his gavel to make the case that climate inaction will result in catastrophe across all sectors of the global economy.
The hearing scheduled for Wednesday — titled “Next to Fall: The Climate-Driven Insurance Crisis Is Here — And Getting Worse” — will be the 22nd hearing Whitehouse has convened this Congress that has focused on the effects of climate change on everything from the rising costs of health care to the decline of certain tourism industries.
It will be his third hearing training a lens directly onto the crisis around homeowners insurance and the industry’s instability amid worsening extreme weather events.
