California lawmakers start special session to prepare for Donald Trump

Assembly Republicans Call for A Wildfire Special Session

YouTube @ KTLA 5 California is facing serious wildfires, prompting Assembly Republicans to call for stronger prevention efforts and changes to the state’s insurance system.  They are calling for a special session. Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher is referring to a postponed special session that was initially focused on President-elect Donald Trump and protecting the state from potential legal fights with Trump and his administration.  …

California wildfires push insurance crisis to 'new level'

As the scope of the losses caused by the Los Angeles wildfires unfolds, experts say the blazes are likely to bring higher premiums and more coverage cuts.

M. Nolan Gray: California's wildfire crisis exposes policy missteps

Wildfires across Los Angeles have left at least 10 dead and thousands homeless, fueled in part by long-standing policies that unintentionally increased risks in fire-prone areas. M. Nolan Gray writes for The Atlantic. In short: Proposition 103, passed in 1988, capped insurance premiums, encouraging development in wildfire-prone regions by masking financial risk. Zoning laws have made it difficult to build affordable housing in safer, urban are…

After the fire, an insurance crisis awaits | Letters to the editor

Raging, out-of-control wildfires sadly have scorched tens of thousands of acres in Southern California, while forcing 180,000-plus residents to evacuate. But when the winds die down and the flames are extinguished, affected residents will face their next hurdle: navigating California’s already fragile home-insurance market. South Floridians, take note. While our natural disasters come in the form of hurricanes, our insurance industry also is sha…

Los Angeles wildfires spur California’s insurance crisis

Insurers’ failure to renew policies leaves homeowners without coverage - Anadolu Ajansı

Golden State loses its lustre amid fires, insurance crisis

The fires and the failure to manage them mean more Californians are heading for the exits, according to demographers. It might also spell trouble for the Olympics just three years away.