Why EFSN Keeps Winning + Could Your Fire Losses Mean an Income Tax Break?
Bring your tax questions this Thursday, 7–8 PM PT!
Dear friends,
I’m still glowing from THE LONGEST TABLE in the Palisades last Sunday! Thank you to Lee Ann Daly and Jimmy Dunne for so warmly inviting Palisades AND Eaton survivors. It was a very special break from recovery.
People often ask how EFSN so quickly emerged as a force in California policy and politics. How do survivors still struggling through our own recovery take on some of the most powerful interests in the state and win?
After all that’s been written about EFSN in the news, here’s my answer:
It’s YOU. And three irrefutable principles that guide everything we do:
Insurance companies should honor the contracts they sell.
Companies that cause catastrophic harm should be held accountable.
Government officials charged with regulating companies should not be captured by those companies.
These principles are not political or partisan. They are necessary to the security of every Californian, the health of our democracy, and the recovery of Los Angeles.
EFSN’s mission is to help unlock the funds families need to get home. And we know from previous California fires that insurance payouts, and when a utility caused the fire, utility payments, are critical to whether a family returns home.
But principles alone don’t move money or improve systems. YOU bring them to life.
Every story you document, every call you make, every survivor you invite into this community helps turn what’s right into what actually happens.
Together, we advance outstanding public policy. And we fight shenanigans that undermine these principles.
The biggest shenanigan so far? Governor Newsom’s audacious, ultra-secret, eleventh-hour utility bailout plan to take away victims’ rights to recover from utility-caused fires.
It attacked two of our core principles: companies that cause catastrophic harm should be held accountable, and government officials should not be captured by the companies they regulate.
So, with Consumer Watchdog, dozens of organizations and more than 4,900 of you, we shined a light on what was happening.
You signed. You called. You wrote. You traveled to Sacramento. You told legislators exactly what this would mean for your families and implored them to serve the people.
And in a rare move, both houses of the Legislature bucked the governor and rejected his utility bailout.
We stood on our principles. We got spicy. And, against all odds, we won.
Then Another Shenanigan: The Insurance Accountability Vetoes
We protected survivors’ rights. But it should not have cost us insurance accountability.
SB 877 and SB 878 advanced our first principle: insurance companies should honor the contracts they sell.
Both bills passed the Legislature with overwhelming bipartisan support and zero registered opposition.
Governor Newsom vetoed both.
CalMatters asked: “Newsom vetoes insurance-claim bills: Is it ‘petty’ politics?” The Sacramento Bee questioned whether the vetoes were payback. The Daily Journal and Law360 have covered the essential protections these bills would have provided.
These vetoes endanger the recovery of tens of thousands of L.A. fire survivors and leave tens of millions of Californians exposed to the same insurance failures.
Character counts in public office. Public office should be about service to the people.
But a governor’s veto does not change what is right:
Insurance companies should honor the contracts they sell.
Companies that cause catastrophic harm should be held accountable.
Government officials charged with regulating companies should not be captured by those companies.
This year, both houses of the Legislature stood with survivors, on a bipartisan basis, to defend all three principles.
Together, we built that remarkable show of unity. And that is power we can build on.
Why Not Get Spicy and Go for a Veto Override?
Several of you have asked: “Why not get spicy and go for a veto override?”
It’s a reasonable question. Both bills passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. An override takes two-thirds of both houses. So why not?
I asked our friends at Consumer Watchdog and their lobbyist.
Their answer: tempting, but not viable. California hasn’t overridden a governor’s veto since 1979. The Legislature is in final recess, and they cannot bring themselves back to session.
Meanwhile, Edison’s lobbyists have been running up and down California seeking a special session to revive the utility bailout. Politico reports that the governor’s office has kept trying and failing to secure the votes. A special session looks unlikely.
January begins a new legislative year, and we’ll be back, carrying the SB 877 and SB878 protections into what comes next.
This year, we built relationships, credibility and authority we didn’t have before. Together, we turned our three principles into a force Sacramento has to reckon with.
Our core principles, plus YOU. That’s why we keep winning.
Now we’re building the evidence to power our next steps.
More Than 1,500 Survivors Have Spoken Already!
More than 1,500 of you have taken the L.A. Fire Survivor Insurance Survey. Congratulations, friends! You’ve helped build an extraordinary body of evidence.
I’ve taken a peek at the results. They are astonishing. I can’t wait to share our insurer scorecard with you and the nation next month!
This is our first core principle in action: insurance companies should honor the contracts they sell. Together, we’re building the evidence to show which did, and which didn’t.
And we have one more week to add to it!
Many survivors have moved away or disconnected from recovery networks. And limited population data makes it hard to assess exactly how representative our sample is.
Before we close, it would be wonderful to hear from more Palisades survivors, renters, FAIR Plan policyholders, smoke-damage survivors, uninsured survivors, condo and mobile-home owners, Black and Latino households, and survivors less proficient in English.
You may know someone whose experience would help us see more clearly.
For example, some Palisadian friends have told me they were dumped onto the FAIR Plan just before the fire. Were these isolated anecdotes, or did some insurers systematically dump the more expensive Palisades homes?
How is each insurer handling smoke damage? How are renters, condo owners and mobile-home owners being treated?
Every additional response strengthens the evidence for investigations, enforcement and reform. Previous EFSN data collections helped build the evidence behind L.A. County’s State Farm investigation and lawsuit. Now we’re building it across EVERY insurer!
The survey closes next week. Please take it TODAY. Then text it to THREE survivors, especially from the groups above, and ask them to take it today, too.
Here’s a text you can send right now:
After the fire, did your insurance company help you or hurt you? Eaton and Palisades survivors and UCLA researchers are building the nation’s first public record of how insurers treated us. Every experience matters, including if your insurer did right by you.
Your identity stays private. The patterns become public evidence to hold insurers accountable, unlock funds and get survivors home.
1,500+ survivors have contributed. Takes 15 minutes. Closing soon!
Take it TODAY, then text it to THREE survivors and ask them to take it today, too: FireSurvey.org
Get ready-to-share images and messages for Palisades:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1p5kt49Y5SGcymt3sgaEngYIPhhvertYj?usp=sharing
Get ready-to-share images and messages for Eaton:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1IwVGs9Pkcb2Pex-1RdCrjcNz96PTgcQj?usp=drive_link
Read our news release: how survivor experiences become evidence to uncover insurer misconduct and unlock the funds families are owed.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-YM-0uPX0YIy3oadgcmV2NCuw6Ou8-RsVicYeR5EXes/edit?usp=sharing
A Frustrating Claim, or a Potential Lawsuit? Is January 7 Your Deadline?
Insurance companies should honor the contracts they sell. That’s our first core principle.
But having rights does little good if we don’t understand them, or miss the deadline to use them.
For some, the deadline to sue could be January 7, 2027. What warrants a lawsuit, and what’s just a frustrating insurance experience? How much time do you have? What should you do now?
Last Thursday, our new Beat the Clock series opened with a masterful discussion of these questions. The video, slides and fillable worksheet are already up.
Watch and work through what this means for your family:
This Thursday, October 8: Could Your Fire Losses Mean a Major Income Tax Break?
Could your fire losses qualify you for a major income tax deduction?
Even if you already filed your 2024 federal income tax return, you may be able to amend it to claim a fire loss, or defer a taxable gain.
But you may need to act by October 15.
Do you qualify? What if your insurance claim is still unresolved?
This Thursday, October 8, from 7–8 PM, CPAs Blake Christian and John Trapani will help us understand our tax options. Larry Midler is back to moderate!
Register now:
See the full free Beat the Clock series:
efsurvivors.net/beat-the-clock
Please share with every survivor and survivor group who could use a tax break. They might qualify!
Palibu Recovery Expo Is This Sunday
Come meet more than 150 exhibitors offering recovery resources from 11 AM–3 PM in downtown Pacific Palisades. I’ll be hosting an EFSN table, so please stop by!
Event info:
Better yet, come table with me! Take an hour out of your Expo visit to hang with me, share what EFSN offers and invite neighbors to take the insurance survey.
And I’ll give you a signature EFSN “DON’T MESS WITH FIRE SURVIVORS” tank or tee!
Sign up to table with Joy here:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F094DAEAC2DA20-66278168-efsn
Let’s Keep Going, Friends!
Three core principles. Thousands of us bringing them to life. And more than 1,500 survivor experiences ready to power what comes next.
Look what you’ve helped make possible.
Now let’s give this survey a fantastic final week. Take it today. Text three survivors.
Bring your tax questions on Thursday. And come say hello on Sunday!
efsurvivors.net/beat-the-clock
Thank you for the courage, love and spice you bring to our community. YOU give our principles power. Together, we’re putting that power to work to get families home.
I’m so grateful to be doing this with you.
Love,
Joy