Circling The News

Lee Zeldin (black shirt) met with Palisades resident on February 4. He also met with residents at the portable library on March 1.

When U.S. President Donald Trump sent Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin to Pacific Palisades at the beginning of February, the President said it was to accelerate the rebuilding process after the Palisades and Eaton 2025 Fires: specifically to speed up permit processing.

Then, L.A. County Supervisor Kathyn Barger said in a statement to The L.A. Times “I emphasized that 53% of impacted residents have taken no action to rebuild, not because of permitting delays, but because they lack the capital to move forward — an issue exacerbated by delayed insurance payouts. Many families have not submitted plans or entered the County’s rebuilding pipeline and are now facing a serious financial crisis.”

L.A. Mayor Karen Bass asked that Trump “…issue a new Executive Order to demand the insurance industry pay people for their losses so that survivors can afford to rebuild, push the banking industry to extend mortgage forbearance by three years, tacking them on to the end of a 30-year mortgage.”

Zeldin took the insurance message Trump, and he acted.

In a Truth Social post on April 1, “Trump singled out State Farm, calling the company and others like it ‘horrendous’ for failing homeowners who had faithfully paid premiums for years.

“People have been paying them large premiums for years, only to find that when tragedy struck, these horrendous companies were not there to help!” the president wrote and said the government was “looking into this matter as we speak” and that “State Farm, and others, should get their act together, and treat people fairly.”

Trump said he has tasked Zeldin with producing a report that lists which companies acted “swiftly, courageously, and bravely” to honor their legal obligations, and which ones fell short.

“The names of some surprise me, but in the world in which we live, nothing really surprises me!” he added.

Trump added that the government was “looking into this matter as we speak.”

“State Farm, and others, should get their act together, and treat people fairly,” he wrote.

According to Carrier Management click here. “State Farm reported an underwriting gain of $1.5 billion for its property/casualty businesses in 2025, representing a turnaround from an underwriting loss of more than $6 billion in 2024—and more than $10 billion of underwriting losses in each of the two prior years.

Mayor Karen Bass said in an April 1 statement “We thank the President who yesterday called on the insurance industry to pay what is rightfully owed to Palisades residents.”

Recovery of insurance money has been a major issue for people who lost everything in the 2025 Fires. The Fair Plan doesn’t cover the cost of homes in Pacific Palisades and those residents who have private insurance, such as State Farm, were not immediately paid policy limits.

Residents reached out to the California State Insurance Commission, who “helped” by writing letters to insurance companies. But the State Commission but did not require the companies to pay residents.

After receiving the letters, those companies wrote back and told the State that everything was “under examination.” Residents wrote to their State Senator Ben Allen and asked him to do something. Nothing moved forward.

State Farm applied for 17% insurance premium raise ($1.19 billion rate increase), which the current Commissioner Ricardo Lara approved in May 2025, without a public hearing nor  an outcry from legislators. The company had previously received a 20 percent increase in 2024.

Merritt Farren

Palisadian Merritt Farren who lost his home in the fire, and is now running for insurance commission, initially was part of the case that opposed that rate hike, asking for detailed information about how State Farm has managed wildfire-related claims, including payout timelines, estimator training, rebuild cost assessments and personal property policies. (Once he started his campaign, he had to pull out of the lawsuit.)

In the now proposed settlement, State Farm will not pursue a 30 % hike, but the 17% emergency hike that was approved will stand. That agreement will be reviewed by an administrative law judge, who will rule by April 7 and then Lara will review it and have final say.

As of today, nearly 16 months after the fire, there are still residents who have not been paid out completely by State Farm.

This was one of the many poles that burned during the Palisades Fire.

The Pacific Palisades Community Council’s infrastructure committee headed by Reza Akef invited Los Angeles Department of Power and Water to present the next steps needed to be taken to underground electrical power lines in Pacific Palisades.

At a  Zoom meeting held March 26, Dave Hansen, who was newly appointed as the interim director (replacing Janiesse Quinones) laid out the plans and timing.

There is already 27 miles of existing underground electrical service and 45 miles of existing overhead in Pacific Palisades.  DWP plans to underground the overhead lines where feasible.

The cost of putting electrical wires underground in the Palisades is expected to exceed $760 million, and estimates for that cost are still being developed. DWP had reached out to FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) for funds.

At the Community Council meeting, residents were told that DWP had been denied funds the prior week, but an appeal had been immediately filed by the utility company, the largest municipal utility in the United States. Residents were told it could take up to 90 days for an answer.

CTN reached out to DWP to find out why undergrounding had been denied. Community Initiatives Manager Christy Holland said, “FEMA’s initial denial was based on their interpretation that the temporary power initially put up to quickly provide power to the Palisades for public safety, and help support the community rebuild process, was permanent.”

Because the new work was considered permanent, LADWP would not be eligible for funding of the undergrounding work.

“LADWP is working closely with FEMA during the appeal process,” Holland said and added that “LADWP is prepared to go to arbitration if the appeal process is not successful.”

She said that the City and DWP were working on the federal level to receive FEMA funding.