Insurance regulator to retire

HARTFORD -- Insurance Commissioner Andrew N. Mais will be retiring Nov. 28 after nearly seven years as the state's top insurance regulator, the governor's office announced Friday.

Gov. Ned Lamont is nominating Josh Hershman, CEO of the Immigrant Life Insurance Company of America, a Connecticut-domiciled and wholly owned subsidiary of IDT Corp., to replace Mais, the governor's office also announced.

"Josh Hershman's experience and broad understanding of the insurance industry and the regulatory framework that it operates within will serve him well as commissioner," Lamont said in a statement.

Hershman, a Guilford resident, will begin serving interim insurance commissioner on Dec. 12, the governor's office said. Lamont will formally submit his nomination to the General Assembly at the start of the 2026 legislative session in February.

From 2019 to 2022, Hershman was deputy commissioner and chief operating officer of the state Department of Insurance.

"I am honored to lead the Connecticut Insurance Department at this pivotal moment," Hershman said in statement. "Commissioner Andy Mais has set a strong foundation of consumer protection and industry stewardship, and I look forward to building on that progress. Our focus will be protecting consumers, strengthening market stability and supporting a vibrant, forward-looking insurance industry that delivers real value for the people of Connecticut."

The Mais retirement is the second departure from the Lamont administration announced in as many days.

On Thursday, Lamont reported that Jeffrey Beckham was stepping down as secretary of the state Office of Policy and Management after serving as the governor's budget chief for nearly four years. Lamont said he plans to nominate Beckham to be a judge of the state Superior Court.

Mais has served as insurance commissioner since February 2019. Lamont took office a month earlier after winning the open election for governor in 2018.

"Connecticut has one of the largest insurance industries of any state in the nation, and Commissioner Mais has actively worked to achieve the crucial balance necessary to ensure that consumers are protected and have access to affordable and reliable insurance coverage, while at the same time supporting the continued growth of this sector of our economy," Lamont said.

In a statement, Mais called his tenure as insurance commissioner the highlight of his professional career.

"I have had the privilege of working with some of the best regulators in the world here at the Connecticut Insurance Department, who have all dedicated themselves to protecting the consumers in this state," he said.