The Brief

Jen Egan is still dealing with the aftermath of the Palisades Fire that damaged the home of her 83-year-old father, Paul, last January.

That has meant more than a year of going back and forth with State Farm, which has assigned three different claims adjusters to their case. Egan also hired a public adjuster to help her navigate the process, who she says has been a “saving grace.”

Egan and her father have received some payouts and are preparing to make repairs to the home. But this week, they received an estimate for compensation that falls tens of thousands of dollars short of what Egan said they have already paid out of pocket to address a brush violation issued by the fire department, and to conduct soil testing.

She is growing more frustrated. “No one’s asking for a new jacuzzi,” Egan said. “We want my father to be able to return to a safe and habitable home.”

Stories like the Egans’ are all too common after last year’s deadly Los Angeles County fires. State Farm says it has paid $5 billion so far on more than 13,500 claims. But survivors express frustration over insurers’ poor and delayed communication.

State Farm customer Rebecca McGrew has no outstanding complaints about her claims after her Altadena home burned down — except that she was “drastically under-insured by hundreds of thousands of dollars.” Many others like her have realized — too late — that their insurance payouts won’t cover all of their rebuilding costs.

Survivors and community organizations that have formed after the fires have asked their local and state elected officials for help in dealing with these varied issues. Some of the bills introduced in response to survivors’ experiences include attempts to address the transparency and timeliness related to insurers’ handling of fire claims.

More stringent requirements for insurers

Senate Bill 876 is a wide-ranging bill that seeks to make various amendments to the state’s insurance code. They include getting insurance companies to share their disaster-recovery plans with the insurance department; doubling penalties from $5,000 to $10,000 for each violation of fair claims practices during declared emergencies; and requiring insurers to notify policyholders within five days when they’re assigned a new adjuster.

In addition, the legislation, proposed by new Senate Insurance Committee Chair Steve Padilla and sponsored by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara:

• Expands policy limits for required payments for additional living expenses by 100% in case of a total loss. 
• Requires upfront, cash-value payments be made within 30 days of a contract to buy or rebuild a home. 
• Requires insurers to offer extended and guaranteed replacement cost coverage when writing policies.
• Applies building-code upgrade coverage at the time of a rebuild.  

“People need a sense, particularly when they face tragedy, that the underwriters they’ve relied on and paid into for decades, will want to help and not get in the way (of recovery),” said Padilla, a Democrat from Chula Vista, in an interview with CalMatters.

He acknowledged that the insurance industry will have objections to his bill, but said the companies know that they need to provide adequate coverage for the health of the insurance market.

Padilla is right about the industry’s opposition. “It appears these measures would worsen the current affordability and availability crisis for Californians just as we are starting to implement the Commissioner’s Sustainable Insurance Strategy to restore a healthy and competitive market,” said Seren Taylor, vice president at Personal Insurance Federation of California, in an email.

Lara’s strategy, which went into effect last January just days before the L.A.-area fires, aims to get insurance companies to start writing policies in the state again, especially in areas at high risk of fires. Many insurers had pulled back from the state in the past few years, complaining of increasing fire risks and state regulations that they said slowed down their ability to match prices to those risks.

Tornadoes and drones

Meanwhile, Senate Bill 877 would require insurance companies to provide claims-related documents to policyholders within 15 days. Co-authored by Democratic Sens. Sasha Renée Pérez of Pasadena and Ben Allen of El Segundo, the legislation would also require insurers to disclose changes to repair estimates, who approved them and why.

Senate Bill 878 would require insurers to pay interest of 20% annually if they fail to meet deadlines for claims payments. The bill, also written by Pérez and Allen, will compel companies to submit to the state’s insurance department a report, signed by a corporate officer under penalty of perjury, that shows the company’s compliance with prompt payments requirements.

In the Assembly, lawmakers plan to introduce bills that will “continue to make sure we have oversight (of insurers),” said Assemblymember Lisa Calderon, the Los Angeles-area Democrat who also chairs the Assembly Insurance Committee, in an interview. She said she expects bills to address strengthening and modernizing the FAIR Plan, as well as mitigation efforts for natural disasters.

She mentioned that California has to deal with fires, floods, earthquakes and, last year, something rare: “Last year, we had two small tornadoes in urban Los Angeles. I can’t remember another year when it’s happened.”

A large housing development near Pittsburg on Sept, 2, 2021.

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Anne Wernikoff

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CalMatters

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Calderon is trying again to regulate insurers’ use of drone images by introducing Assembly Bill 1559. Her similar effort last year passed the Assembly and made it through some Senate committees but ultimately didn’t advance. This year’s bill would require companies to notify consumers about when they plan to take aerial images of their properties; ban insurers from ending coverage based on drone images taken more than 180 days before sending notice of that decision to policyholders; and require companies to provide the images to policyholders, allowing them to dispute accuracy and to take action if needed before having their policies terminated.

“We’ve been hearing from consumers that they’ve been blindsided by these images that were inaccurate,” she said. “I believe homeowners should have the right to request an in-person inspection.”

She also intends to introduce legislation to implement recommendations from a forthcoming report about the California Wildfire Fund that she expects to include provisions related to the availability and affordability of property insurance in the state.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

Some government funding streams for L.A. County’s public health system are drying up, and officials are turning to private philanthropy to fill the gap.

A new privately funded foundation launched Thursday to strengthen public health services after $50 million in federal, state and local funding cuts to the county’s Department of Public Health since early last year.

“It is really a hard day for our community when we have to ask for private donations to fund a public good, but unfortunately, we've lost too much money to not take this important step,” said Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.

In February, the county’s Public Health Department closed seven clinics, with six remaining open. About half of the patients seen in those clinics are uninsured, according to county officials. The department also cut hundreds of staff positions.

Ferrer is on the board of the new foundation, The Fund for Advancing Public Health LA, which held its first meeting Thursday.

She said the fund will help the county maintain its basic public health infrastructure, including disease prevention, health promotion, environmental health, and emergency response efforts.

Other board members include several health insurance executives, as well as actors Sean Penn and Danny Trejo. Board member Saree Kayne of the R&S Kayne Foundation pledged $150,000 to the fund Thursday. Kayne said she hopes the donation encourages others to give.

The foundation aims to raise $2 million this year.

More cuts expected

L.A. County Supervisor Holly Mitchell said it’s crucial to have an alternative funding stream to protect services for the county's most vulnerable residents.

“We are saving public health,” Mitchell said. “This fund represents a new approach, one that brings together government philanthropy in the private sector to invest in community-based solutions, protect vulnerable populations, and strengthen our public health infrastructure.”

Officials say more public health cuts are coming, through the federal budget law known as the "Big Beautiful Bill," which slashes funding for Medi-Cal.

The county Department of Public Health anticipates losing up to $300 million in revenue over the next three years because of the federal budget bill and other potential funding freezes. Federal funding accounts for almost 50% of the public health budget, according to county officials.

Mitchell also led an effort to put a half-percent county sales tax increase to fund public health on the June ballot.

If approved by voters, that proposal, known as Measure ER, is expected to raise about $1 billion a year for county safety net health services, including about $100 million for the public health department.

Board members

The Fund for Advancing Public Health LA announced its founding board of directors, which includes:

• Dr. Barbara Ferrer, LA County Department of Public Health director
• Debbie I. Chang, Blue Shield of California Foundation CEO
• Sean Penn, actor and co-founder of Community Organized Relief Effort (CORE)
• Martha Santana-Chin, LA Care Health Plan CEO
• Saree Kayne, R&S Kayne Foundation CEO
• Danny Trejo, actor and restaurateur
• Jarrett Barrios, an executive at the American Red Cross
• Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith, Charles R. Drew University College of Medicine Dean
• Kristin McCowan, an executive at the Los Angeles Dodgers

The Rose Bowl in Pasadena may be a centenarian, but it’s holding up pretty well as it continues to host events on its way to a starring role in the LA28 Olympics.

But before it can host the soccer final, it needs fixes, especially to the infrastructure serving the bathrooms and drinking fountains. Fears of a toilet backup while in the world’s spotlight led Rep. Laura Friedman to seek federal funds for upgrades. On Thursday she announced she secured just over $1 million.

“Two years from now, athletes around the world are going to compete for gold right where we are standing. This is not the time to find out whether or not these pipes are up to the task,” Friedman said.

The planned work, she added, will lead to improved water flow capacity and water drainage, eliminating the risk of backups and emergency maintenance.

The funds came from the House of Representatives Interior and Environment subcommittee. The fixes, an official said, will be completed by the LA28 Olympics.

The funds, however, are a drop in the bucket when it comes to what’s needed to make needed improvements to the Pasadena venue.

Officials, including (left to right) Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation President Dedan Brozino, Deputy Fire Chief of the City of Pasadena Tim Sell, Congresswoman Laura Friedman, and Rose Bowl Stadium CEO Jens Weiden announced infrastructure funding for the 103-year old Rose Bowl.

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“Over the  next 20 years there's about $200 million that we need to put in and that's everything from updating light fixtures to updating gas, water, wastewater lines, etc.,” said Dedan Brozino,  president of the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation, the nonprofit that supports the Rose Bowl stadium's preservation and enhancement.

Getting venues ready will be expensive

The money is a much-needed win at a time when elected officials in city, county, state and federal offices have been struggling to find the funds to get L.A.-area venues ready for the global Olympic stage in two years.

The entrance to a men's bathroom at the Rose Bowl.

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A $360 million proposal to spruce up asphalt in parking lots around Exposition Park won’t be done in time for the Olympics, as originally planned. Meanwhile, just up the street, there’s concern that a $2.6 billion expansion of the L.A. Convention Center, which is hosting Olympic wrestling, fencing and judo in 2028 won’t be ready for the Olympics.

Additionally, to save money, LA28 organizers moved Olympic diving to the Rose Bowl complex last year because it has two Olympic-sized pools, while the Exposition Park complex doesn't and would need expensive upgrades.

Topline:

About the chick: The chick hatched March 14. The zoo opened its Cape vulture enclosure in February 2025 after years of planning to encourage the birds to roost and nest, welcoming a new breeding pair that year. When it grows to be an adult, it’ll have a wingspan of 8 1/2 feet.

About the enclosure: The L.A. Zoo said it spent years developing the vulture habitat, which was designed to mimic the vultures’ natural environment in South Africa and nearby countries. Dominick Dorsa II, the zoo’s director of animal care, said in a statement the successful hatching is “a testament to the design and construction” of the habitat.

How to see the chick: You can’t for the time being. Zoo officials are keeping it away from visitors until the chick matures, though you can still see adult Cape vultures at the zoo’s enclosure.

Though visitors will have to wait until the chick matures to see it in the enclosure, you can still take in the impressive eight and a half foot wingspan of the adult Cape vultures.

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Courtesy Jamie Pham/L.A. Zoo

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What zoo officials are saying: “Welcoming a Cape vulture chick is a thrilling moment for our team and a beacon of hope for African vultures,” the L.A. Zoo’s curator of birds Rose Legato said in a statement. “Vultures are one of nature's most misunderstood marvels, and I cannot wait for our guests to eventually watch this chick grow and learn just how vital they are to our ecosystems.”

About the species: Cape vultures are listed as a vulnerable species due to human activities and encroachment. According to the L.A. Zoo, African vultures are more closely related to eagles and hawks than vultures native to the Americas, like the zoo's California condors that hatched last year.

This story first appeared on The LA Local.

What should have been a celebration for formerly incarcerated youth completing a reentry program at the Boyle Heights Arts Conservatory (BHAC) last week instead ended with seven students and two staff members detained by the Los Angeles Police Department, according to witnesses. 

Now, nearly a week later, BHAC staff and city officials are demanding answers from the LAPD, with some accusing officers of racial profiling. 

According to the LAPD, officers observed a large group gathered on the corner of Cesar E. Chavez Avenue and Mott Street around 4:16 p.m. on March 26. Authorities then requested backup for what they described as “a large group surrounding officers,” LAPD Public Information Officer Tony Im said. 

The group, classified by police as an “aggressive gang group,” consisted of seven 18-year-old students from the BHAC’s Bridge Academy Movement (BAM) program and two BHAC staff members.

The BAM program pays formerly incarcerated youth to complete 200-250 hours in media and visual arts training to prepare them for creative careers. That day, students were set to showcase their work at the BAM program graduation for families and community members. 

Rene Weber, a teaching artist at the BHAC, had been with the students setting up for the ceremony minutes before the incident occurred. 

According to Weber, the students had gone to coffee across the street at Milpa Kitchen as they often did, when staff were alerted that they were being detained. 

Weber said he arrived to find students and a staff member pressed against the wall in handcuffs. 

Video from the scene, taken by a staff member at the BHAC, shows multiple officers surrounding the group. At one point, an officer orders a person to “get on the wall” and displays a stun gun.  

“No, none of that, these are kids right here,” the staff member replies.

Another staff member, Teotl Veliz, recorded a large police response.  

“I counted 12 cop cars, that’s at least 25 cops, and they had a helicopter,” Veliz said. “It was just so comedic, tragically comedic, that it was on their graduation day too.”

Officers established a perimeter with yellow tape along the side of Ashley’s Beauty Salon as local business owners and witnesses gathered around the students. 

“I was just incredibly disappointed in LAPD… because it became so apparent to everybody, all at the same time, that it was racial profiling and nothing else,” Veliz said.

Weber said officers gave shifting explanations for the stop at the scene, including blocking the sidewalk and possible underage vaping. After Weber told the officers that all of the students were 18, they said they would investigate whether the group had any gang affiliation. 

Police have not responded to questions about what led officers to believe that the group was gang-affiliated. 

Weber recalled pleading with the officers to let the group go and explaining to them that they worked across the street. Community members and local business owners also stepped in to vouch for the students. 

“Our job is to help them gain a new perspective on life,” Weber said. “They’re coming out of juvenile detention and they’re turning their lives around. We can do our part in keeping them off the streets and keeping them doing better but what does it mean if they’re going to be profiled and treated exactly the same way?” 

In total, seven 18-year-old students and two staff members were detained. BHAC staff said one student and one staff member were taken to Hollenbeck Community Police Station and released less than two hours later after advocacy from community members and Councilmember Ysabel Jurado.

The incident ultimately resulted in an infraction for smoking a cannabis e-vape on a public sidewalk, according to a photo of the infraction shared with the Beat. LAPD did not provide details about the people taken to Hollenbeck Station or the infraction. 

The graduation ceremony was cancelled that night and is expected to be rescheduled in April. 

“Graduation should be a moment of pride and possibility — not fear,” Jurado said in a statement. “I’m seeking answers about what occurred, and this underscores the need for stronger relationships between law enforcement and community organizations so moments like these are protected, not disrupted.”

Carmelita Ramirez‑Sanchez, the conservatory’s executive director, said she was grateful to the community and Jurado for advocating for the students’ release. Jurado met her at Hollenbeck Station within 20 minutes of being alerted to the incident, she said. 

“They had store owners, señoras, barbers, that ran out and were trying to explain to the police who our kids were,” Ramirez‑Sanchez said. 

Still, she said the incident tarnished what should have been a joyous celebration.

“I imagine that what this does is derail this entire idea that you can be an active participant in your own restorative growth,” she said.