Fires in Southern California: One Year Later

One year ago today, the Palisades and Eaton wildfires broke out in Los Angeles County. Together, they burned more than 58 square miles of land – destroying more than 16,000 structures, displacing thousands of households and claiming at least 31 lives. As one of the costliest wildfires in history, the estimated economic losses caused by the fires range from 65 billion dollars as much as 275 billion dollars.

Most residents still struggling to piece together their lives: A survey by the nonprofit Department of Angels found that about 90 percent of Pacific Palisades residents and 80 percent of Altadena residents remain shifted from October.

Survivors also continue to face frustrations with insurance companies — including delayed or denied claims — highlighting how California’s property insurance market remains full of problemswrites CalMatters’ Levi Sumagasai.

Premiums are likely to rise for policyholders across the state, and customers of California’s two largest insurers, State Farm and FAIR Plan of Last Resort, were the most unhappy with their insurers’ response, according to the Department of Angels.

• Angela Jacchettispokesman for the nonprofit whose Altadena home was damaged in the Eaton fire: “We paid almost $200,000 out of pocket to repair our home due to the complete denial of the FAIR plan for our recovery.”

But there were some victories. Last year, California passed a law requiring insurers to pay claims without seeing each other first detailed inventories from policyholders. On Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom also issued an executive order extending protection against price gouging for people recovering from the fires.

Permits have also been issued for new homes in the affected regions at a relatively fast clip compared to historical state standards, CalMatters’ Ben Christopher reports. More than 2,600 residence permits have been issued since this week, a rate that is “three times faster” than in the five years leading up to the fires, the Newsom administration noted.

Read more about insurance failures and recovery process in Palisades and Altadena one year after the fires.

After being rushed to a hospital in Chico the night before, U.S. Rep. Doug LaMalfa died Tuesday at age 65. For more than a decade, the Republican represented California’s 1st Congressional District, which stretches from the Oregon-California border through Shasta and Sutter counties, CalMatters’ Maya C. Miller writes.

LaMalfa died in emergency surgery after receiving a “medical emergency” at his home, according to the Butte County Sheriff’s Office. LaMalfa was known as a pragmatic member of Congress who was committed to issues affecting his rural Northern California district, including water access and forest management.

His death narrows the slim GOP majority in the House, which now stands at 218. Under state law, Gov. Newsom has 14 days to call a special election to fill the remainder of LaMalfa’s term, which would be held under the existing district boundaries, instead of the new lines approved by voters through Proposition 50.

Read more here.

More on LaMalfa: CalMatters’ Ryan Sabalow, who grew up in the LaMalfa area, covers the career of a politician over the past two decades. Although Ryan had encouraged LeMalfa on environmental issues, federal subsidies and more, Ryan wrote that he “spoke his mind no matter who was in the room.” Read more here.

Seven months after being elected Senate President Pro Tem in June, Democratic Sen. Monique Lemon of Santa Barbara begins his term as leader of the California Senate — the first Latina to ever do so, Maya reports.

Backed by labor unions, the 46-year-old progressive’s House career has included successfully pushing legislation that workers’ pay is more transparent, protect medical debt from credit reports and require failures around new oil and gas wells. Limon previously served as an assemblyman for four years and served on the Santa Barbara Unified School District board of trustees for six years.

As Senate Pro Tem, Lemon faces the state’s $18 billion budget deficit and deep federal cuts under President Donald Trump. While she did not reveal many details about how she will lead the group through the budget talks, she told CalMatters that the group “will continue to prioritize issues that our communities prioritize.” She also declined to name any specific legislative measures the group would prioritize.

Read more here.

The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office released a report Tuesday examining whether California’s K-12 school funding formula should shift from attendance to enrollment, which could bring billions more dollars to schools. Read what LAO recommends by Carolyn Jones of CalMatters.