The insurance industry plays a significant role in California’s economy, employing hundreds of thousands of workers, investing billions of dollars in state and local governments and paying the fourth largest amount in taxes to the state’s General Fund, according to a 2009 report released today by insurers.

The report, “The Insurance Industry’s Impact on California’s Economy 2009,” demonstrates that:

Insurers doing business in California employ 244,000 Californians.
Insurers invest $723 billion in California’s economy, including $29.2 billion in state and municipal bonds. Insurers’ bond investments finance the construction of schools, roads, water and sewer systems, low-cost housing and other projects that support the state’s economy.
Insurance companies will generate $2.1 billion in premium taxes this fiscal year, the fourth largest source of revenue for the state’s General Fund. California’s premium tax rate is the highest among the ten largest states.

Health plans spend more than $79 billion on medical care for their California members.

Insurers have invested $14.3 billion through the California Organized Investment Network (COIN), which encourages sound investments by insurers in underserved communities. Another $1.4 billion has been invested by insurers in low-income communities through the IMPACT Community Capital program.

The report was published by trade associations representing all lines of insurance — life, auto, homeowners, health, commercial and workers’ compensation. The sponsoring organizations’ leaders are Brad Wenger, president of the Association of California Life and Health Insurance Companies (ACLHIC); Sam Sorich, president of the Association of California Insurance Companies (ACIC); Rex Frazier, president of the Personal Insurance Federation of California (PIFC); Ken Gibson, vice president of the American Insurance Association (AIA); Charles Bacchi, interim president and CEO of the California Association of Health Plans (CAHP); and John Mangan, regional vice president of the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI).