An intervenor under Ins. Code § 1861.10 files testimony in a CDI homeowners-rate hearing that persuades the Commissioner to reduce the filed rate increase from 14% to 8%. The intervenor seeks reimbursement of advocacy and witness costs. Who pays the awarded fees?

Why this is the answer

Ins. Code § 1861.10(b) directs the Commissioner to award reasonable advocacy and witness fees to a consumer-representative intervenor who has made a substantial contribution to the agency's order. Those fees are paid by the filing insurer whose proceeding the intervenor participated in — not by the CDI or by the State General Fund. Successfully reducing a filed rate increase is the paradigm 'substantial contribution.' The award is processed under 10 CCR §§ 2662.1-2662.6, which set rate caps and procedural deadlines for the fee application. See Ins. Code § 1861.10.