The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has named Jeffrey C. Johnston as its permanent chief executive officer, effective June 1, 2026. Johnston transitions from his role as interim CEO, a position he held while demonstrating the steady leadership that earned him a permanent appointment from the organization's 56 Members — the chief insurance regulators from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and five U.S. territories.
Who Is Jeffrey Johnston?
Johnston brings over 30 years of experience across insurance regulation, financial solvency oversight, and association management. He began his career at the Kansas Insurance Department, where he held senior analytical and supervisory roles overseeing insurers across all major lines of business. At the NAIC, he previously served as chief financial officer and chief of regulatory affairs, working closely with Members on financial solvency issues, accreditation, and regulatory coordination.
His background spans life actuarial modernization, capital markets and debt securities, accreditation, and international regulatory engagement — a broad foundation for leading an organization whose priorities in 2026 include AI governance, climate resilience, and capital framework reform.
What NAIC Leadership Said
Virginia Insurance Commissioner and NAIC President Scott A. White announced the appointment at the 2026 NAIC International Insurance Forum in Washington, D.C. — an event that drew a record 300 registrants from 20 jurisdictions. White described Johnston as having earned the confidence of NAIC Members through his steady, thoughtful leadership during the interim period.
Johnston characterized the NAIC's strength as rooted in collaboration between its Members and staff, and committed to continuing the work of supporting state insurance regulators and the consumers they serve.
Why Leadership Continuity Matters for Consumers
The NAIC does not sell insurance or directly regulate individual policies — that authority rests with each state. But the standards, model laws, and data systems the NAIC develops have direct downstream effects on every insurance policy sold in the United States. Leadership stability at the NAIC supports consistent progress on several active initiatives that affect consumers:
- AI fairness in underwriting: Regulators are actively examining whether AI-driven pricing models create discriminatory outcomes for protected classes of consumers.
- Capital framework reform: New rules governing how insurers can invest in private credit and alternative assets are intended to protect policyholders from insolvency risk.
- Climate resilience: Work is ongoing to close coverage gaps in disaster-prone markets where private carriers have pulled back.
- Data modernization: Expanded regulatory data capabilities are designed to provide earlier warning signals when insurers face financial stress.
The 2026 NAIC International Insurance Forum
The forum at which Johnston's appointment was announced drew participants from 20 jurisdictions — a record — and addressed topics including consumer education, closing protection gaps, political risk, cybersecurity, changing business models, and the role of technology in reducing health risk. The 2027 forum is already scheduled for May 27–28 in Washington, D.C.
What the NAIC Actually Does — and Why It Matters
The NAIC is not a federal agency and does not have the power to issue binding regulations on its own. Its authority comes through influence: the model laws, data standards, and regulatory frameworks it develops are routinely adopted by individual states, giving the NAIC outsized practical impact on the insurance market even without formal rulemaking power.
When the NAIC develops a model regulation on, say, AI transparency in underwriting or climate risk disclosure, that model can move through dozens of state legislatures and insurance departments over the following years. A new CEO who prioritizes certain issues — or who builds better relationships with state commissioners — can meaningfully accelerate or slow that process.
For consumers, that translates into practical outcomes: whether your insurer must explain why your rate increased, whether algorithmic pricing decisions are subject to review, and whether coverage remains available in disaster-prone areas are all questions shaped in part by the NAIC's regulatory agenda.
Johnston's Immediate Priorities
Based on the 2026 NAIC strategic priorities adopted before Johnston's formal appointment, his agenda includes four major workstreams that will define his early tenure:
- Capital and investment framework reform: Finalizing new rules for how insurers can invest in private credit, alternative assets, and non-traditional securities — a priority driven by the significant shift in insurer investment portfolios toward higher-yield but less liquid assets since 2020.
- Data and market analysis modernization: Building out the NAIC's capacity to detect financial stress in insurers earlier, using more granular data reporting from carriers across all lines of business.
- Climate and catastrophe resilience: Working with states and federal partners to address the growing availability and affordability crisis in homeowners insurance in wildfire, hurricane, and flood-prone markets.
- AI governance: Developing a framework for how artificial intelligence can — and cannot — be used in insurance underwriting, claims handling, and pricing, with particular attention to preventing discriminatory outcomes.
The Bigger Picture: State-Based Regulation Under Pressure
Johnston takes the helm at a moment when the state-based insurance regulatory model faces unusual external pressure. Climate losses are straining state FAIR plans that were designed as last-resort markets, not primary carriers for hundreds of thousands of homeowners. AI is moving faster than any regulatory framework. Private equity's growing footprint in the insurance industry is raising questions about long-term policyholder security that existing capital rules were not designed to address.
The case for state-based regulation — flexibility, local accountability, 56 sets of eyes on different markets — is also its limitation when problems become nationwide. Johnston's ability to coordinate 56 state commissioners around shared standards on AI, climate, and capital will be a defining test of his leadership.
For consumers watching their insurance costs rise and coverage options narrow in some markets, Johnston's appointment represents both continuity and a question: whether the NAIC's regulatory agenda can move fast enough to address structural problems that are accelerating faster than the model law adoption cycle traditionally allows.
How Consumers Can Engage With the Regulatory Process
Most consumers are unaware that insurance regulation is participatory. When states consider adopting NAIC model regulations — on AI transparency, climate disclosure, or capital standards — they typically hold public comment periods. State insurance departments publish proposed rules in state registers and often hold public hearings. Consumer advocacy groups, trade associations, and individual policyholders all have standing to submit comments that can influence final regulatory language.
If you have experienced a situation where you felt an insurer's AI-driven decision was unfair — an unexplained rate increase, an adverse underwriting decision without clear justification, a claims denial that seemed inconsistent — documenting and reporting it to your state insurance commissioner creates a data point that regulators use when assessing whether new rules are needed. Johnston's NAIC inherits an organization that is increasingly data-driven in its regulatory approach; consumer input feeds that data.
The NAIC's consumer resources at naic.org include a consumer insurance search tool, a complaint filing guide, and state-specific insurance department directories. If you have an insurance dispute, your state department is the first point of contact; if you're concerned about a broader pattern, the NAIC's consumer information resources can help you understand your rights and reporting channels.
The NAIC's 2026 agenda under Johnston is broad and consequential. Its success will be measured not just by model laws adopted, but by whether American consumers see more transparent pricing, more stable coverage availability, and better protection against financial failure of the insurers they depend on.