California Bans Insurers From Dropping Customers Because of Wildfire Risks

Insurance companies in California have increasingly been dropping people who live in fire-damaged areas from home insurance policies, a practice that state regulators have now temporarily banned. The new state policy creates a one-year moratorium on the practice that will cover at least 800,000 homes across the state located in zipcodes that have been affected by wildfires. Ricardo Lara, California’s insurance commissioner, said the state has also asked insurance companies to voluntarily stop dropping customers anywhere in the state because of fire risks for at least one year. “In parts of the state where no insurance company will even return your call, I don’t see how the situation can get worse for residents. People are losing insurance even after decades with the same company and no history of filing claims. Hitting the pause button on issuing non-renewals due to wildfire risk will help California’s insurance market stabilize and give us time to work together on lasting solutions,” Lara said. California forbids insurance companies from setting rates based on anticipated future damages, which experts say will make it difficult for insurers to set rates that account for climate change. “Is our business model going to keep working in the face of this kind of change? If our insurers are in trouble, that jeopardizes people’s recovery,” said Carolyn Kousky, executive director of the Wharton Risk Center at the University of Pennsylvania. Rex Frazier, president of the Personal Insurance Federation of California, said that insurance companies should be allowed to base their rates on more than just past losses. “There’s just the shock of companies waking up to the liability that’s on their books. There are a lot of people scrambling to really understand the nature of this catastrophic risk … We’re still going to have to figure out how to update our rules to make sure that we can address the impact of climate change and adapt accordingly,” he said. [Los Angeles Times; New York Times]

VIRGINIA GUN DEBATE | A Virginia sheriff said that he would deputize residents in his county if the state enacts gun control measures, a possibility now that Democrats have taken control of the legislature. Culpeper County Sheriff Scott Jenkins, whose county is a “second amendment sanctuary,” said he would screen and deputize thousands of residents so that they would still be able to possess a firearm if gun regulations are tightened. "Every Sheriff and Commonwealth Attorney in Virginia will see the consequences if our General Assembly passes further unnecessary gun restrictions. 'Red Flag' laws without due process will create enormous conflict as well. My office will always encourage and support our citizens in firearms training, concealed carry permits, and the ability to defend themselves and their families,” he said. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said that the assertion there won’t be due process or that gun laws are unconstitutional is unfounded. “I hear people out there saying that they don’t want law enforcement to enforce unconstitutional laws. Well we’re not going to propose or pass any unconstitutional laws. So that’s something we should all agree on,” he said. [WHSV; Virginia Mercury]

TRUCK TOLLS | Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont proposed a plan to implement commercial truck tolls in 12 places throughout the state, a system he said is in line with surrounding states. The plan would bring in around $197 million in revenue, which Lamont said adequately focuses the state’s revenue generation on the vehicles that do the most damage to state roads. But state Senate Republican Leader Len Fasano said that a recent federal appeals court decision would make the policy difficult to implement. In that case, the trucking industry sued Rhode Island over their truck-tolling system, calling it discriminatory. “Tolling trucks puts Connecticut taxpayers at risk of a lawsuit, damages, and money to be paid back to truckers," Fasano said. Lamont was unconcerned. “Look, the truckers will put up every roadblock they possibly can. But we have a plan where they’re going to pay a little bit more to keep up our roads and bridges. ... I think this is something we’re going to get done,” he said. Rick Pomp, a tax law professor at the University of Connecticut, agreed with the governor. “The argument is this discriminates against interstate commerce. But when you look at hotel taxes, rent-a-car taxes, taxes on oil in Alaska, taxes by Delaware on corporations and taxes by Nevada on gambling, they are all imposed on what can be viewed as interstate commerce. This is the bedrock of the American tax system,” he said. [NBC Connecticut; Hartford Courant]

ONE VOTE | A Boston City Council candidate has won her election after a three-day recount that put her ahead by a single vote. The Board of Elections spent hours hearing arguments from both candidates’ lawyers over several contested votes. Julia Mejia and Alejandra St. Guillen were locked in a tie as the city considered how to count two votes, one cast by a voter who had moved to a nearby suburb, and the other from a Boston resident who voted in the wrong precinct. The commission tossed the vote for the suburban voter and counted the other, which put Mejia ahead when the vote was certified on Monday. She will now become the city’s first Latina council member. Boston elections commissioner Eneida Tavares said the process was exciting. “This is what democracy looks like ... and it just goes to show that every vote counts—and the importance of actually turning out,” Tavares said. [WGBH; WBUR]

STOCKTON BEATING | A man in Stockton, California is accusing the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office of being unnecessarily violent while booking him at the local jail over charges of public drunkenness. Jacob Angelo Servin said that deputies held him down and beat him while yelling racial slurs. Pictures he posted on Instagram show his eyes swollen shut and his face covered in blood. "They left me to die with my face disfigured a broken nose, lacerations in my face and head … It's sad that we as a people have to fear for our safety from the ones that have sworn to protect and serve," he said. San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office released a statement that Servin refused to cooperate with deputies and kicked them. "Correctional officers were forced to react to his aggressiveness in order to protect themselves and maintain the safety and security of others in the facility," the statement said. Servin denied that he provoked officers, and said he would still be in jail for assault if he had attempted to hurt them. Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs promised to look into the incident, although the county sheriff is “not under [his] jurisdiction or authority.” [Buzzfeed News; FOX 40]