SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – California state regulators announced on Monday a step toward creating incentives to retrofit older homes to make them more resilient to fires as consecutive years of catastrophic wildfires in the state drive up the cost of insuring homes. Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said his office will work with four state agencies charged with wildfire response and prevention to establish statewide standards for home hardening that he hopes will reduce wildfire risks and make insurance more affordable and available in California. The move comes as insurance providers increasingly drop coverage in fire-prone regions of the state due to heavy losses incurred from some of the most destructive wildfires in the state’s history.