The Brief

How do I get my insurance to pay for testing of my home for toxins after the fires that raged through L.A. neighborhoods in January?

What if my insurance adjuster says they won’t cover a long-term rental?

How can I get help navigating the claims process?

These are some of the questions popping up among people displaced or affected by the Eaton and Palisades fires. LAist talked with professionals in the insurance industry and individuals navigating the claims process to put together this guide to common questions and roadblocks.

Who does what?

Let’s start with the basic layout of the insurance ecosystem, as it relates to the L.A. fires:

Insurance adjuster: Adjusters investigate the damage to your property and injuries to determine how much your insurance company owes you based on your policy.

You are likely to deal with several adjusters as you navigate the claims process, including field adjusters, who actually visit your property to investigate the damage.

You are also likely to interact with independent adjusters, who are hired by insurance companies to help process claims. Because of the huge volume of claims from the SoCal fires, many insurance companies have had to hire independent adjusters from states across the country. They may be on the ground in L.A. for a month or several months, and then a different adjuster will take their place.

And then you have public adjusters, which are very different from the adjusters mentioned above. A public adjuster works on behalf of you, the insured, to help you navigate the claims process and negotiate a settlement. They typically get paid a percentage of the payout you receive from your insurer. Public insurance adjusters, like agents and brokers, are licensed by the state insurance department. (We’ll get back to when and how you might decide to hire a public adjuster.)

Tips on working with insurance adjusters

Make sure you know your policy. Read your policy thoroughly and make sure you understand what coverage you have in all areas, including for specific things like temporary living expenses and debris cleanup.

The nonprofit United Policyholders has an excellent guide on recovering from the 2025 wildfires, which you can download for free from their website. The group also holds online forums and FAQ sessions to help fire victims navigate recovery. (The next one is a survivor-to-survivor forum, at 7 p.m. tonight. Register on the group’s website.)

If you can’t find your policy or don’t remember what company you’re insured with, the state Department of Insurance has an online form you can fill out. Once you do, they’ll forward your information to insurance companies in California so they can search their records.

Know your rights

California law requires insurance companies to offer certain things to fire victims and adjacent communities, including:

• Four months advance payment for living expenses if your home was destroyed.
• Renewal of your insurance policy for a minimum of one year after an emergency declaration (Jan. 7) if you live within or adjacent to the fire perimeter.

Also, check out these tips for wildfire victims from the state Department of Insurance.

Keep up-to-date on public guidance

Pay attention to what public officials are saying, for example, about the cleanup process and related health concerns. You may have more information than your insurance adjuster and can use that to advocate for yourself.

You can sign up for updates from the county here.

Also check out all of LAist’s coverage of the fires and recovery.

Talk to your neighbors and other fire victims

You may be getting different answers about what your insurance company will and won’t cover from someone else in your community with the same insurance plan. That’s why it’s important to compare notes with fellow fire victims, said Kelsey Szamet, a lawyer whose home (which is still standing) is in the Eaton Fire burn area.

You can use that information to pressure your insurance company to offer you what they’re offering someone else.

Consider joining Facebook groups of fire victims and attending community forums.

Document, document, document

Since you may be working with multiple adjusters, it’s vital to document all of your interactions with them. “Because when the next set of adjusters come in, you want to make sure that any agreements that are made at the onset of the claim, they're still going to be an agreement throughout the whole process of the claim,” said Sydney Greenspan, a public adjuster with extensive experience in California wildfire claims.

Ask for names and call-back numbers, and save that information.

Greenspan suggests sending an email to the adjuster after each conversation recapping the topics discussed, any agreements made and asking for confirmation of receipt. And keep those records too.

Szamet said she and her husband are keeping a daily log of conversations with their insurance company in a Google doc and updating it in real time. Even though “we’re all overwhelmed,” Szamet said, “ you have to be your own friend and your own advocate in terms of documenting.”

Advocate for yourself

It may be exasperating and almost certainly is exhausting, but you have to constantly advocate for yourself throughout the claims and, if relevant, the rebuilding process.

And sometimes, if you’re not getting something you know you’re entitled to under your policy, you may need to escalate — but keep your cool. “Essentially, what I like to politely say is, ‘Can I have your manager please?’” Szamet said. “Can I talk to the next person? Can I talk to your supervisor? And just stay at it. Be pleasant, be calm, be friendly, and realize this person is probably just following orders.”

Likewise, if you are not satisfied with the adjuster assigned to work with you, you can ask to work with a different person. For Szamet, just asking the question removed a roadblock. “We had not had our adjuster come visit our property,” Szamet told LAist. “I called and said, ‘I would like a new adjuster’ via voicemail, and I also emailed that to my agent. I got a call back within an hour and someone was at my property within two hours to look at the damage to our house.”

Be proactive with the adjuster

Because you may be dealing with an adjuster from out of state, or with someone who isn't as familiar with your situation as you are, you have to be proactive, said Samuel Bruchey, an insurance lawyer whose home was damaged in the Eaton Fire.

“We have to remember that these adjusters, even if they're well meaning and reasonable, they are overloaded with claims,” Bruchey said. “And so you have to make sure that the details of your claim that you think are important are brought to the attention of the adjuster.”

Check your insurance company’s work

If your insurance company sends its own expert to your damaged home to estimate the cost of clean-up,  ”make sure you get a copy of whatever estimate the insurance company relies upon when it decides how much to pay,” Bruchey said.

When Bruchey did this himself, he found the report had vastly underestimated the square footage of his home. “If that estimate  is a lowball number, it's incumbent upon you to find somebody to prepare an estimate of your own, give it to the insurance company, and insist that the insurance company take it into consideration,” he said.

If your insurer declines, ask them to explain why, in writing. (Again, document everything!)

Don’t move too fast

People whose homes survived the Eaton and Palisades fires may be anxious to move back in, but Greenspan, the public adjuster, urged people to be patient. “Safety should be the most important thing in everybody's mind right now,” she said.

Greenspan said people should probably wait to have their homes cleaned until after debris cleanup in the burn areas is finished since that process could kick soot and toxins back up into the air and into your home.

“ What you don't want to happen is you don't want to move too fast, do the initial cleaning and then not remediate it the right way. And in the summertime, when it's a hundred degrees, all of a sudden your house is smelling like a campfire again,” she said.

Many fire victims who lost their homes have already gotten initial payouts. But rebuilding will take years, and insurance issues are likely to get thornier as people get further away from the initial disaster, experts told LAist.

Be patient, Greenspan said. Right now, we’re still in triage mode.

Feeling overwhelmed and in need of help?

You have options.

Public adjusters: If you just don’t have the substantial amount of time and energy it takes to deal with your insurance company, you could contact a licensed public adjuster.

Public adjusters will handle all the communication and logistics with your insurance company on your behalf. You retain “ the final say on everything,” Greenspan explained.

Check out these tips on hiring a public adjuster from the National Association of Public Insurance Adjusters.

Legal help: If you need help going over the nuances of your policy or have other fire-related legal concerns, many lawyers and groups are offering free legal assistance. Ask trusted neighbors and friends for referrals, or you can start with these well-established nonprofit groups:

• Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles
• Public Counsel
• Disaster Legal Assistance Collaborative
• Bet Tzedek

File a complaint: If you think your insurance company, or someone claiming to work on behalf of your insurance company, is acting unlawfully, you can file a complaint with the state Department of Insurance.

A coalition that advocates for renters and unhoused residents is demanding the city of Los Angeles halt its planned rollout of a new state law that gives local officials authority to dismantle more recreational vehicles the city deems a problem.

Assembly Bill 630 gave L.A. County authority to dispose of abandoned or inoperable RVs that have an estimated value of $4,000 or less, an increase over the previous $500 threshold.

Supporters of the new law argue that abandoned RVs often pose public safety, health and environmental hazards.

The law goes into effect in the new year. It was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October. That same month, L.A. City Councilmembers approved a motion instructing various city departments to “immediately implement” the new RV enforcement program.

The problem, according to attorneys representing the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles and the Western Center on Law and Poverty, is that the new law only authorizes L.A. County to launch the program, not the city of Los Angeles.

“The City's planned implementation of AB 630 is illegal,” attorneys wrote in a demand letter sent to L.A. City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto last week.

The lawyers who sent the letter represent the CD11 Coalition for Human Rights, an organization that includes individuals living in RVs in Los Angeles and advocates for renters and unhoused residents in the city’s Westside.

The letter gives L.A. city officials a deadline on Dec. 29 at 5 p.m. to confirm in writing that the city will not implement the new law, or at least that it will wait until the issue can be resolved in court.

No lawsuit has been filed yet.

L.A. City Attorney Hydee Feldstein-Soto did not immediately respond to LAist’s requests for comment on the demand letter.

Mayor Karen Bass proposed AB 630 in partnership with Assemblymember Mark González, who sponsored the California assembly bill.

Representatives from Bass' office told LAist Friday that the mayor is working with the state to "secure the authority necessary for the City to fully implement this landmark legislation."

They also said raising the threshold to $4,000 allows "local jurisdictions to dismantle more of these dangerous, inoperable RVs and get them off the street for good."

City vs. county authority

Councilmember Traci Park, who represents westside communities including Venice and Culver City, sponsored the City Council motion to “immediately implement” the new RV law.

It instructed the city administrative officer to work with the city’s Department of Transportation, city attorney and Police Department to start enforcing AB 630 on L.A.'s streets.

Park told LAist that the city needs to be able remove unsafe vehicles from public roads.

“These vehicles create unacceptable health, environmental, and safety risks, putting entire neighborhoods, critical infrastructure, and sensitive environmental areas at risk,” Park said in a statement. “Residents want solutions, not ideological wars, delay tactics, and frivolous lawsuits.”

The City Council approved an amended motion this month, instructing city staff to move forward with implementing the new law as they prepared informational reports for various City Council committees.

The attorneys challenging L.A.’s actions say the City Council moved too quickly, without realizing the legal limitations of the new statute.

“The City Council passed this motion without really fully understanding the consequences of it or even what it said it all,” said Shayla Myers, an attorney with Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles told LAist.

“As a result of that, it’s a policy that could really harm Angelenos, but also could result in costly litigation,” she continued.

The legal challenge centers on the language stating that the “Counties of Alameda and Los Angeles may implement a program” to dispose of recreational vehicles. The statute makes no mention of cities having this authority.

Lawyers for the coalition warn that if the city proceeds with implementation, it would be acting beyond its legal authority under state law.

Thousands of RV dwellers 

There are nearly 6,500 people living in more than 4,000 RVs parked across the city of L.A., according to last year’s homeless count estimates.

L.A’s city administrative officer is involved in coordinating and managing the removal of RVs from city streets, along with LAPD and the city’s Transportation Department.

It oversaw more than 370 RV clearing operations between May 2022 and June 2024, according to a CAO report. As part of those operations, the city issued more than 1,000 citations, towed more than 600 vehicles and moved nearly 200 people into housing, the report said.

City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo did not respond to LAist’s request for comment on AB 630.

Three L.A. City Council members voted against the city’s AB 630 implementation plan: Hugo Soto-Martinez, Isabel Jurado and Eunises Hernandez.

Hernandez’ communications director Naomi Villagomez Roochnik told LAist the councilmember remains opposed to the city-led effort.

“Moving forward without clear legal authority exposes the City to unnecessary litigation and cost during an already severe budget crisis,” she said. “It is imperative we get that clear legal analysis before the city moves forward in any way.”

The state law goes into effect Jan. 1.

President Donald Trump's long-anticipated executive order to loosen U.S. restrictions on marijuana promises to bring immediate relief for cannabis businesses — but only in some respects. And although rescheduling it as a lower-risk drug is touted as opening a new era for cannabis research, experts say it's not as simple as flipping a light switch.

"It's hard to see the big headlines of, 'Marijuana rescheduled to [Schedule] III; marijuana research will open,'" says Gillian Schauer, executive director of the nonpartisan Cannabis Regulators Association, which includes agencies from 46 states. "You know, those things are not true as of now."

That's because on its own, Trump's Dec. 18 order isn't enough to rewrite federal drug policy that has stood for more than 50 years.

"The Controlled Substances Act [of 1970] does not grant any president the authority to unilaterally reschedule a drug," Schauer says. Such changes are historically made through either a rulemaking process, or an act of Congress.

Many details will shape how the administration enacts Trump's order, affecting the timeline and scope for easing marijuana restrictions. But when it does happen, rescheduling won't automatically revoke federal laws targeting marijuana, and interstate marijuana commerce would remain illegal, Schauer says.

It's not yet known how other policies might change.

"We don't know what will happen to federal drug testing requirements," Schauer says, until agencies issue guidance.

Here's a rundown of other key questions raised by the rescheduling order:

The time frame depends on which path the DOJ takes

Trump's order directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to "take all necessary steps to complete the rulemaking process related to rescheduling marijuana to Schedule III" of the Controlled Substances Act "in the most expeditious manner in accordance with Federal law … "

The directive evokes the process that started under former President Joe Biden. Under his administration, both the Department of Health and Human Services and the Justice Department advanced a proposal to reclassify pot from Schedule I, meaning it has no medical use and a high potential for abuse, to the lower-risk Schedule III, which includes ketamine, Tylenol with codeine, and anabolic steroids.

The Trump administration could resume the process that was already underway under Biden. But the new executive order's mention of the Controlled Substances Act's Section 811 hints at a potential shortcut.

"That allows the attorney general to move a drug to whatever schedule they deem is best, without going through the usual steps that are needed to reschedule a drug," Schauer says.

The streamlined process was meant to ensure the U.S. can do things such as complying with international drug treaty obligations. But a historic precedent also links it to cannabis: In 2018, it was used to schedule the CBD epilepsy drug Epidiolex, months after it became the first U.S.-authorized purified medicine derived from marijuana. The drug was placed in Schedule V, the least restrictive schedule.

President Donald Trump displays an executive order reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug in the Oval Office on Dec. 18.

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Evan Vucci

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AP

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Will the DOJ call for public comment?

The Trump administration's approach to administrative hearings and public comment periods would also help determine the pace of rescheduling.

"I would anticipate, if they use that [expedited] option, that we would not see a comment period," shortening the process, Schauer explains.

But rescheduling could take longer if the Justice Department follows the traditional, and lengthy, notice-and-comment process.

Again, Bondi has options that could speed things up. She could choose to issue a final rule after a public comment period, for instance, or do so without a comment period.

"Some of the calculation for that may be on the legal end," Schauer says. Noting that some anti-marijuana groups are vowing to file legal challenges to block rescheduling, she adds that the DOJ will likely have to balance Trump's call for expedience with the need to defend its actions in court.

If the rule is published for comment, interest would likely be intense: In 2024, the DEA's earlier proposed rescheduling rule for marijuana attracted more than 43,000 comments.

Cannabis firms would get tax relief, but credit cards remain forbidden

Sam Brill, CEO of Ascend Wellness Holdings, a multistate dispensary company, says rescheduling could bring a cascade of positive changes to his industry. But one benefit could come immediately, he says.

"The biggest thing that happens overnight is the 280E, the restrictive punitive tax code that is set on us," would no longer apply to marijuana businesses, he says.

Like other businesses, Brill's company is obligated to pay taxes on income. But because their core product is a Schedule I drug, the IRS says that under Internal Revenue Code Section 280E, they're blocked from claiming common tax deductions, exposing them to a higher effective tax rate.

Section 280E "does not allow us to basically deduct normal expenses that everyone else can deduct," Brill says. "I can't deduct the rent for my stores, the cost of my employees in those stores, my interest expense."

Brill says that some cannabis companies, including his, say 280E should not apply to them — but the IRS disagrees. As a result, Brill says, his company sets aside a large reserve fund in case the IRS comes after them.

"For 2024 alone, the value of this reserve" was about $38 million, Brill says, "which includes interest and penalties."

Brill hopes marijuana's changing status might also eventually lead to other restrictions falling, especially the inability of cannabis operations to accept credit cards. Most financial institutions refuse to provide basic banking services to state-authorized marijuana businesses, due to potential liability.

"The lack of the use of a credit card is really one of the biggest challenges for customers," he says. Citing the importance of payday, Brill says: "For us, Friday by far is the biggest day every single week because this is a cash business."

Medical research 

Scientists welcomed news in 2023 that the Biden administration was moving toward reclassifying marijuana, and Trump says his move will boost medical research. But both then and now, there are caveats.

One benefit of the new rules is that they wouldn't require marijuana researchers to go through the onerous process of obtaining a Schedule I license, and they would also ease rigorous laboratory regulations.

"You have very stringent requirements, for example, for storage and security and reporting all of these things," neuroscientist Staci Gruber, of McLean Hospital in Massachusetts and Harvard Medical School, told NPR last year.

But another obstacle promises to be more stubborn: finding marijuana to study. The U.S. requires researchers to obtain marijuana from a handful of sources, which is itself an improvement over decades in which they were compelled to use one facility based at the University of Mississippi.

And, as Schauer notes, federal rules about sourcing marijuana have been decided separately from the controlled substances schedule.

"This does a little to make research easier," Schauer says of the current rescheduling effort. "But there's a lot that will still be challenging in researching cannabis unless we see a lot of agency policies change and adjust."
Copyright 2025 NPR

Tortillas sold in California are going to have a new ingredient, one that’s intended to help nurture healthy infants.

Starting Jan. 1, a new law will take effect requiring most tortillas and corn masa products sold in the state to contain folic acid, a vitamin that’s important to infant health.

Latinas in California are far less likely than other women to get enough folic acid early in pregnancy — a gap that can lead to life-altering birth defects.

State data show that, between 2017 and 2019 – the latest years for which state data is available – about 28% of Latinas reported taking folic acid the month before becoming pregnant. White women took the vitamin at a higher rate, with 46% of them reporting consuming folic acid, according to the California Department of Public Health.

This puts Latinas at higher risk of having a baby born with neural tube defects — defects of the brain and spinal cord. Some examples of that are conditions like spina bifida and anencephaly.

Research has shown that folic acid can reduce birth defects by up to 70%. That’s why it’s found in prenatal vitamins. But because women may not find out they are pregnant until weeks or months after, public health has long recommended that folic acid also be added to staple foods.

In 1998, the U.S. required manufacturers to fortify certain grain products with folic acid, such as pasta, rice, and cereals, to help women of reproductive age get the necessary amounts. Since that rule took effect, the rate of babies born with neural tube defects dropped by about a third, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But even with the addition to these foods, birth defect rates among babies born to Latinas have been consistently higher. In search of a more culturally appropriate addition, in 2016, the federal government allowed makers of corn masa to add folic acid to their foods – but didn’t require it.

Joaquin Arambula, a Democrat from Fresno, who authored the law said leaving folic acid out of corn masa products, used in many Latino staple foods, was a “real oversight.”

Now, with the implementation of Assembly Bill 1830, California is the first state to require folic acid in corn masa products. The law requires manufacturers that do business in the state to add 0.7 milligrams of folic acid to every pound of flour and to list the addition in their nutrition labels. The law makes exemptions for small batch producers like restaurants and markets that might make their own tortillas from scratch.

Months after California’s law was signed, Alabama passed its own version. Its law goes into effect in June 2026.

Some large manufacturers have already been adding folic acid to their products for years. Gruma, the parent company of Mission Foods, said it started fortifying its foods back in 2016, when the federal government first allowed it. A company spokesperson said Gruma “has a longstanding commitment to supporting legislative fortification initiatives” and supports the new laws in California and Alabama.

Supported by the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF), which works to ensure that people have access to the care they need, when they need it, at a price they can afford. Visit www.chcf.org to learn more.

A new year means a new parade of classic characters and works entering the public domain.

Under U.S. law, the copyright on thousands of creations from 1930 — including films, books, musical compositions and more — will expire at the stroke of midnight on Jan. 1, 2026, meaning they will be free to use, share and adapt after nearly a century.

"I think this is my favorite crop of works yet, which is saying a lot," says Jennifer Jenkins, the director of Duke University Law School's Center for the Study of the Public Domain, who has compiled an annual list of public domain entrants for over a decade.

This year's treasure trove features famous faces like the original Betty Boop — whose iconic hoop earrings originally took the form of floppy dog ears — and the initial version of Disney's Pluto, who first went by the name Rover.

"That's not only exciting in itself, but it's really an opportunity to look back at the history of these two incredible animation studios, Fleischer and Disney, and how their styles are imprinted in the DNA of today's cartoons," Jenkins says. "That's just a fun rabbit hole."

Literary highlights include William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying, the full version of Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon, Watty Piper's The Little Engine that Could, the first four books of the Nancy Drew detective series and The Murder at the Vicarage, Agatha Christie's first Miss Marple mystery.

The movie selection spans war stories, musicals, thrillers, Westerns, comedies and more, coming from directors including Alfred Hitchcock, Howard Hughes and Salvador Dalí. Among them are All Quiet on the Western Front, Animal Crackers starring the Marx Brothers, 1931 best picture winner Cimarron, and two Marlene Dietrich films, Morocco and The Blue Angel.

Several movies on the list feature future stars in their early days: Bing Crosby's first feature-film appearance in King of Jazz, Greta Garbo's first talkie Anna Christie and The Big Trail, John Wayne's first leading role.

Notably, Jenkins says, the films on this year's list all predate the Hays Code, a set of self-imposed studio guidelines that banned subjects from profanity, violence and nudity to interracial relationships and "lustful kissing" in movies from 1934 to 1968.

The musical compositions include "Georgia on my Mind," "Dream a Little Dream of Me" and four songs by Ira and George Gershwin: "I Got Rhythm," "I've Got a Crush on You," "But Not for Me" and "Embraceable You." Among the artworks are Piet Mondrian's "Composition with Red, Blue and Yellow" and the Jules Rimet Cup by Abel Lafleur — the original trophy of the FIFA World Cup from 1930 to 1970.

Jenkins says her four-person team spent well over 80 hours poring through the archives to compile this year's list. Writing the online summary was another feat, one she says kept her busy from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. over the course of two weeks.

But she thinks the crick in her neck is a small price to pay for shining a light on the value of public domain in "nurturing creativity and enabling access."

"What's really fun is that people are excited about it — people well beyond our world of copyright lawyers — especially when they start recognizing these works," she says. "And for me, one of the most exciting things is when you revisit a work that you loved in a different period of your life and get to look at it again."

The public domain unleashes new possibilities 

You may be wondering: Isn't there already a pretty famous Nancy Drew movie from 2007, and a cult-favorite Betty Boop musical on Broadway now?

Yes. But those productions had to get permission and pay money to adapt those characters at the time, Jenkins explains.

"What's different now is if you and me are really good at choreographing dance moves and writing lyrics for songs, we could make our own musical featuring Betty Boop 1.0 and we can go in whatever crazy directions we want," she says.

As a matter of fact, a Betty Boop horror movie is already in the works, following a string of 2025 scary movies starring villainous versions of the freshly non-copyrighted Peter Pan, Bambi and Popeye. Also, a Minnie Mouse slasher is due for release in 2026.

Not all adaptations have to be dark: Think West Side Story drawn from Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet, Percival Everett's reimagining of Huckleberry Finn in the 2024 book James and, of course, the Wizard of Oz-inspired Wicked movies.

And public domain isn't just good news for those who want to create art, but also for those who simply want to consume it.

"It goes well beyond creativity to availability, to preservation, to being able to use things freely in school," Jenkins explains.

For example, Jenkins says, books tend to become cheaper — and available in more editions — once they enter the public domain.

A lot of creative works from the 1930s haven't been in print for decades, and ownership questions have kept many from being available online at all — at least while they were under copyright.

"Publishing houses go out of business, people die, ownership changes hands," Jenkins adds. "I mean, who on Earth owns the copyright to those random works from … almost a century ago? And when they go into the public domain, you don't have to worry about that."

Another benefit is that third parties can now digitize old films and sound recordings that have physically deteriorated over the decades — allowing for their preservation and wider distribution.

Jenkins says that's especially exciting for teachers, who can make use of these resources for free at a time when school budgets are shrinking. And even those who are not regularly in a classroom can learn a lot from this sampling of works.

"Now we're all having these conversations with our chatbots and wondering what it means that we're reacting to artistic work or to words that are generated by a machine, it was just really striking to feel the humanity behind all these works from 1930," Jenkins says, explaining that they were all created by people living in the shadow of World War I.

While there are many unresolved questions around AI and intellectual property, Jenkins says one thing is clear: "Human authorship is a requisite for copyright." So if a bot writes your Boop musical, don't expect it to be protected.

Copyright 2025 NPR