Jon Bon Jovi, State Farm… and FIVE insurance reform bills

Feb 14

Written By Every Fire Survivor's Network

Feb 13, 2025

Dear friend,

Did you see State Farm's Super Bowl ad?

Hailee Steinfeld strolls into a fictional insurance office. The agents joke that with the wrong company you would be “livin' on a prayer” as Jon Bon Jovi's iconic anthem blares. Suddenly, Jon Bon Jovi himself appears on the scene to whisk her away.

Tagline: Stop livin' on a prayer. Get State Farm.

How fun! Seeing Jon pop up on Super Bowl Sunday brought back memories of the dreamy, sensitive bad boy drifting through our favorite shows. Ally McBeal. Sex and the City. West Wing. 30 Rock.

You still got it, Jon Bon Jovi!

Just one problem with State Farm slamming its rivals as livin' on a prayer:

Living on a prayer is exactly what 4 out of 5 L.A. fire survivors insured with State Farm have been doing for the past year.

According to Department of Angels research, a staggering 82% of State Farm policyholders report trouble accessing the coverage they're owed.

By now, we've spent a year together. We compiled nearly 500 firsthand accounts from Eaton and Palisades survivors, mapped them to California laws being violated, and published them as The State Farm Files.

Press conference after press conference. Letter after letter. 1,500 postcards. Countless news articles. Steadily growing our coalition and calling for accountability.

Together we unlocked more than $100 million in delayed insurance payments sent directly into survivor bank accounts.

But tens of billions are still delayed across multiple insurers.

And here is where the stakes get real.

Recovery Follows the Money

Across the Eaton and Palisades fires, the Department of Angels reports that the median gap between rebuilding costs and insurance payouts is $300,000. The average gap is $1,070,000.

Philanthropy has been extraordinary in this recovery.

So many families are standing because a nonprofit, or a neighbor stepped in at exactly the right moment. I feel honored to be working alongside so many organizations carrying families through every day.

But philanthropy cannot possibly cover the scale of the gaps being left by insurers refusing to pay what they owe.

What makes this fight even harder is that even as we're going up against one of Sacramento's most powerful industries, we've been unsuccessful in getting the funding needed to sustain EFSN.

Most funders we've spoken with tell us they do not fund advocacy.

I get it. Advocacy can sound uncomfortable. Risky.

But the biggest risk facing the Los Angeles recovery is not advocacy.
It is silence.

Silence is what ensures that 70% of insured L.A. fire survivors cannot access the insurance payments they are owed. (Department of Angeles research.)

The $100 million we unlocked happened because survivors built coalitions, documented misconduct, engaged the media, partnered with lawmakers, and forced accountability.

In other words: advocacy.

If EFSN ceases operations and insurers continue illegal delays and underpayments, recovery in Los Angeles will be increasingly reserved for the wealthy.

And that's not a world we want to live in. So even though we are unfunded for now, we are persisting for now.

If you feel moved to help us support this work, please donate here.

For every $1 invested in EFSN, more than $1,000 has flowed directly into survivor bank accounts. That is catalytic.

If you know of philanthropic partners who would be open to supporting catalytic work that unlocks the resources survivors need to recover, I'd be grateful for an introduction. You can find me at joy.chen@efsurvivors.net\

Audacious Insurance Reform Underway in 2026

I want to let you in on incredible news.

For the past six months, I've been working with my good friend and yours, Consumer Watchdog Executive Director Carmen Balber, on a project as audacious as it is secret: to build a 2026 legislative package to address the two converging insurance crises impeding the Los Angeles recovery.

1. Families cannot be assured we'll be able to buy or maintain insurance, even after we rebuild.
2. Families who still have insurance cannot reliably access the benefits we already paid for.

We've been working in secret because for years, the insurance industry has created an environment in Sacramento that makes these problems feel normal or unsolvable.

Dumping families from coverage and illegally delaying and underpaying have been highly profitable, and they've successfully blocked the reforms we need.

So for months, Carmen and I studied what California has tried in the past. We looked at other states. And most importantly, we analyzed the thousands of stories you submitted through EFSN surveys and forms.

Your lived experience became policy design.
Out of that work we wrote eight major legislative reforms:

1. Guarantee Insurance Coverage for Fire-Safe Homes

2. Stronger Pathways to Staying Insured

3. Stop Insurers From Punishing Families for Using the Insurance They Paid For

4. Curb Illegal Delays by Insurers

5. Require Full Transparency in Loss Estimates to Stop Hidden Lowballing

6. Enforce Additional Living Expense Protections and Stop Unlawful Cutoffs

7. Secure Smoke Damage Coverage for Toxic Contamination Inside Homes

8. Require the California Department of Insurance to Enforce the Law and End the Black Box Complaint System

Behind each of these is a full policy blueprint.

Then we brought these ideas to friendly lawmakers.

Now, one week before the February 20 bill introduction deadline in Sacramento, we have an incredible milestone to report:

FIVE of our eight reforms are reflected in bills that have been or are about to be introduced.

Senator Sasha Renée Pérez is advancing:

• Curb Illegal Delays by Insurers, SB 878

• Require Full Transparency in Loss Estimates to Stop Hidden Lowballing, SB 877

Assemblymember John Harabedian is advancing:

• Smoke Damage Coverage for Toxic Contamination, AB 1642

And shhh not yet public:
Between today and February 20, two bills will be introduced to help us buy and maintain coverage:

• Guaranteed Insurance Coverage for Fire-Safe Homes

• Stronger Pathways to Staying Insured

That's FIVE insurance bills!

Out of thousands of survivor stories. Out of late nights. Out of relentless collaboration.
Huge credit goes to Carmen Balber. I've never met anyone as skilled in both policy and politics as she is. I up my game every time I work with her.

Kudos to Carmen.
Kudos to our lawmakers who are fighting for survivors when it matters most.
And kudos to the thousands of you who shared your story on our website, with the media, in our Discord, and with one another.

This milestone belongs to every survivor who spoke up.

AND: the industry will mobilize hard when they see this package.

That means getting these bills across the finish line will take all of us.

That's why I'm thrilled to invite you to a very special event, free for survivors…

Survivor Advocacy Summit 2026
Saturday, February 28

10a to 1p PT: National advocacy skills building
1 to 2p PT: California advocacy priorities and statewide planning

This summit will be in two parts.
If you join us for just one, come to our California session.

From 10a to 1p PT, My dear friend Chris Kocher, founder of the Everytown Survivor Network and co-founder of Extreme Weather Survivors, will lead three powerful hours of advocacy training.

Power mapping
Effective storytelling.
How legislation actually moves.
Interactive breakout rooms with survivors from disasters across the United States.
This is our chance to sharpen our skills and build alliances with disaster survivors across America who face many of the same challenges as us.

Then from 1 to 2p PT, Chris, Carmen, and I will walk through the 2026 California legislative landscape after the February 20 bill introduction deadline.

We'll review the bills we're supporting, answer your questions, and map next steps together. This hour will bring together survivor groups across California to build coalition and kick off the legislative season.

If all this sounds super exciting, well it is!
I can't wait to spend half a day with survivors, building a better America and a better California.

If you attend the full four-hour event, you'll even get a $35 digital gift certificate, courtesy of Extreme Weather Survivors.

Registration link:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfzVl8ESKVqZt942R5_DvVzxVezFsoBLph1pQd1kSsC-qgtqA/viewform?usp=dialog

Rally for Recovery Pickleball Event
Now Saturday May 16

Thank you for the incredible interest in Rally for Recovery!

To give us more time to make the day truly special, we've shifted the date to May 16.

For one day, more than 1,000 fire survivors and allies will fill 52 pickleball courts. Survivors. Families. Neighbors. A day built around laughter, joy, healing, and connection.

Center Court is where recovery becomes visible. Pro athletes. Movie stars. Business leaders. Loud crowds. Music. Announcers who make every whiff look intentional.

It'll be a very L.A. kind of day, designed to generate earned and social media that keeps survivors at the center of the story long after the day ends.

Here are great ways for you to support EFSN: sign up to be an event ambassador or volunteer, or sponsor a team. And if you know brands, athletes, movie stars, teams, or partners who love Los Angeles and would want to show up in a visible, human way for survivors, please introduce us.

Our event website is underway. Meantime, help us log your interest:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd9mJgjbyPU1CTEomiqhOsrgBj5Xk6a-0DrGphpmch3e_TWyA/viewform

Upcoming Events

Fire Recovery and Taxes: What Survivors Need to Know
Wednesday, February 18, 2026 | 7 to 8 PM | Zoom

Small tax decisions now can cost you thousands later.

Join us for a webinar with Public Counsel to give survivors clear, practical guidance on what must be reported, what may be excluded, and how to protect yourself long term.

We'll cover:

Whether insurance proceeds are taxable, including ALE
Federal and state disaster related exclusions
Casualty loss vs involuntary conversion
Rebuilding vs buying replacement property
Capital gains exclusions
Timing, extensions, audits, and how settlements affect taxes

All Eaton, Palisades, and Malibu fire survivors are welcome. Please share with anyone who needs this info.

LA Soil Summit
Live in Altadena on Saturday February 21
Online on Sunday February 22

Community-based event on environmental safety, soil testing, and what safe return truly requires. I will be speaking Saturday afternoon and hope to see you there.
https://community30x.com/lasoilsummit

Practical Resources for Survivors

Cal Assist Mortgage Relief | Homeowners
Major expansion: Income limit now up to $281,400. Wow! Up to 3 months of mortgage assistance, max $20,000. $105 million still available. Designed to create short-term breathing room during displacement. https://www.calassistmortgagefund.org/

Katz YMCA (Palisades) is offering free memberships and sleepaway summer camp to wildfire victims. https://www.ymcala.org/locations/collins-katz-family-ymca/

We're In This Together.

I know we're exhausted.

To recover, we need the insurance benefits we already paid for.
Smoke damage covered.
Insurance policies we can buy and maintain.

Instead, we're up against a lavishly funded insurance lobby, with billion-dollar ad budgets, million-dollar lobbyists, and rate hikes to match.

And yet:
$100 million unlocked.
Five bills introduced.

Because survivors cannot afford to live on a prayer.

Year Two will be harder. Public attention will drift just as our bills hit the docket.

It will be hard. I don't know if we will win.

Here is what is certain:
If we don't work together, we will lose.

Together, we're fighting to unlock the money that's needed to get families home.
To build an insurance system that works for Californians, not against us.

I am proud of you.
And grateful for us.

If you'd like to help sustain this work, please donate here.
And if you're a survivor, I hope to see you at Survivor Advocacy Summit 2026 on Saturday 2/28.

With love and hope,

Joy

The Eaton Fire Survivors Network (EFSN) is the nation's largest survivor recovery hub, connecting more than 10,000 Eaton, Palisades, and Malibu fire survivors and allies. Through survivor leadership and coordination, we work to remove barriers and unlock resources so that recovery is accessible to everyone. Learn more: efsurvivors.net.

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