Senator Speier has introduced legislation to address many of the issues those of us who lost homes in the 2003 Firestorm encountered.  Please circulate this important message.  Thank you.

Jimmy Jackson Jimmy.Jackson@asm.ca.gov

Cedar Fire Victim

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February 8, 2005

Dear Friends,

I am writing to you because the tragedy you have endured has also given you experience and knowledge that can help prevent others from facing the legal morass that fire survivors of 2003 have endured.

With your support, last year my Senate Bill 64, which created a mediation program for fire survivors and insurers, became law.  This bill’s success was a testament to the selflessness and dedication of fire survivors who put aside their own personal challenges to change a dysfunctional insurance system.  Whether by personal appearance or by your many moving letters and e-mails, your strength through adversity and willingness to change the status quo was an inspiration to many hardened veterans of the Sacramento scene.  Now, I ask for your assistance again.

As you may know, on November 15, 2004, I held a Senate Insurance Committee hearing in El Cajon.  Many of you came and shared your frustrations with an insurance system that seems to make you the enemy just for trying to recover the funds owed you, insurance which you have paid for over many, many years.  I want you to know that that testimony was not in vain.  From that hearing and contacts before and since, my office has been able to directly assist many fire survivors in San Diego and San Bernardino Counties with their insurance claims.

I listened to your stories and reviewed what we learned from assisting in these insurance cases, and came back to Sacramento determined to fix this dysfunctional system.  As a result of fire survivors’ testimony at public forums and during Insurance Committee hearings last year, I have introduced Senate Bill 2. 

In short, SB 2 eliminates the needs for contents lists (personal property inventory), guarantees personal property limits in the event of a total loss, extends Alternative Living Expenses (ALE) in cases of a “state of emergency” to 24 months, sets up oversight for the use of computer cost-evaluation software by the insurance industry, and ensures a minimum level of training for insurance agents so that they are better qualified to determine whether a policy is adequate for rebuilding costs.  You can view the text of the bill and check its status by going to this link:

www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=sb_2&sess=CUR&house=B&author=speier.

Our first hearing will be in the Senate Banking, Finance and Insurance Committee, which I chair.  Nonetheless, if we can show an overwhelming groundswell of support in this Committee, it will make it easier to encourage bipartisan cooperation on this important bill.  Please send letters of support for SB 2 to the Senate Banking, Finance, and Insurance Committee, State Capitol, Room 2032, Sacramento, CA, 95814, or you may e-mail the Chief Consultant to the Committee, Brian Perkins, at brian.perkins@sen.ca.gov. 

Again, please accept my heartfelt appreciation for all that you have already done, and for what you will do in the future, so that those who face this tragedy in the future will not have to endure what the survivors of the 2003 firestorms have had to live through.

All the best,

Senator Jackie Speier

Chair, Senate Banking, Finance & Insurance Committee

KJS/jj

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