On June 24, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced guidance issued by NYDFS in Circular Letter No. 6 (2024) informing insurers and related parties that, under the new Insurance Law § 3462, making coverage decisions based on a property’s status as an affordable housing development or on the amount or source of a tenant’s income will be prohibited. According to the Circular Letter, the recently enacted law came in response to a “hardening” insurance market that has resulted in increased premiums and reduced coverage options for affordable housing developments. Under the law, insurers cannot base decisions such as issuing, renewing, or increasing premiums for policies on whether a property was an affordable housing development or if tenants received government assistance. The guidance noted that “excess line insurers, and the New York Property Insurance Underwriting Association (NYPIUA) must comply with Insurance Law § 3462 and can no longer request information about government-subsidized housing units or tenants paying rent with housing assistance or use this information for underwriting purposes,” and were required to update their insurance applications and underwriting guidelines accordingly. If insurance rates were previously based on these factors, insurers must revise their rates and submit them to NYDFS.