Taxpayer Protection Amendment – Sample Text
<!-- excerpt --><p>Propose the TPA for adoption in your town - and ensure your tax dollars are spent in the public's interest and not to line a politician's pocketbook.</p>
Insurance
Insurance news, investigations, and reform — auto, home, and health insurance rates, claims denials, and industry accountability.
INSURANCE DEPT. REVAMPING TO BETTER HANDLE COMPLAINTS
<h3>EASIER GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES AND INCREASED STAFF ARE IN PLACE, BUT QUESTION REMAINS ABOUT IMPROVED SERVICE.</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p>
<p>After years of neglect, angry consumers are finally being heard at the state Department of Insurance.</p>
ZIP code OK in figuring insurance rate, court says
<p class="source">Sacramento Bee</p>
<p>Auto insurers can heavily weigh where a person lives in setting their insurance rates, a state appellate court said Friday in a decision that could mean differences of hundreds of dollars in yearly premiums.</p>
COURT SAYS INSURERS CAN USE ZIP CODES TO SET AUTO RATES
<h3>RULING SAYS WHERE A MOTORIST LIVES, NOT DRIVING RECORD, IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR IN GAUGING RISK OF LOSS.</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p>
<p>A state appeal court Friday upheld the right of insurers to use ZIP Codes to set auto insurance rates in California--dealing a setback to consumer advocates' hopes of lowering rates for urban motorists.</p>
Auto insurers may use customer’s address to calculate premiums
<p class="source">The Associated Press</p>
<p>A state appeals court ruled late Friday that auto insurers can calculate premiums based on where a customer lives, setting the stage for a potential California Supreme Court showdown.</p>
Ouster of PUC Official Sought — Attorney General Bill Lockyer approved the ‘quo warranto’ suit against PUC member Henry Duque.
<p class="source">San Francisco Daily Journal</p>
<p>SAN FRANCISCO - A state public utilities commissioner should be ousted because he bought stock in a company he regulates, a government watchdog group claims in a lawsuit filed Thursday. In a rare quo warranto lawsuit targeting a state official, t</p>
EDISON SEEKS OK FOR 2 YEARS OF RATE HIKES
<h3>THE COMPANY'S PROPOSAL WOULD ALLOW INCREASES EVERY SIX MONTHS. THE CUMULATIVE BOOST COULD BE AS HIGH AS 76%</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p>
<p>In addition to demanding an immediate 30% increase in electricity rates, Southern California Edison is asking the state Public Utilities Commission for the right to continue raising bills for the next two years, officials said Thursday.</p>
Energy Crisis Is Forcing Davis Into a Balancing Act
<p class="source">The San Francisco Chronicle</p>
<p>Gov. Gray Davis has received hundreds of thousands of dollars in political contributions from some of the very same energy companies he now says are gouging California consumers.</p>
California’s two largest utilities could lose credit rating on Wall St.
<p class="source">San Jose Mercury News</p>
<p>SAN JOSE, Calif._Intensifying pressure on state officials, a leading Wall Street rating firm said it will drastically lower the credit status of California's two largest electric utilities unless the state approves a consumer rate increase this week.</p>
Few taking advantage of new low-cost auto insurance program
<p class="source">The Associated Press</p>
<p>Five months after California launched its landmark program to provide auto insurance to low-income drivers, hardly anyone is taking advantage of it - and state officials want to know why.</p>
State Supreme Court declines to consider Northridge claims suit
<p class="source">The Associated Press</p>
<p>The California Supreme Court refused Wednesday to consider the insurance industry's challenge to a new state law that gives thousands of Northridge earthquake victims a year to refile their claims.</p>
State Farm Offers Big Discounts for Vans, SUVs
<p class="source">San Francisco Chronicle</p>
<p>State Farm, the nation's biggest automobile insurer, unveiled a new pricing policy yesterday that offers hefty discounts to drivers of sport utility vehicles, vans and luxury cars. The company maintains that those vehicles are the safest for their occupa</p>