Legislation would repeal State Area fire fee and tax property insurance
SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember Mark Stone (D-Monterey Bay) has joined Assemblymember Wesley Chesbro (D – North Coast) in calling for a new Disaster Management, Preparedness and Assistance Fund to provide funding for several state emergency response agencies. Assembly Bill 468 would establish the fund and would also repeal the State Responsibility Area (SRA) fire fee.
“I’m pleased to co-author this critical measure, which will secure necessary resources for our communities to respond to disasters like fires, floods, earthquakes, and tsunamis. These funds will directly help keep Californians and their property safe,” said Stone.
Specifically, AB 468 would establish a statewide 4.8 percent surcharge on all property insurance policies written in California. The revenue would be placed in the Disaster Management, Preparedness and Assistance Fund, and would pay for disaster planning, response, training and equipment for the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire), the California Emergency Management Agency, the Military Department, and local first response agencies.
The average residential surcharge would be about $48 per policy, which would generate an estimated $480 million per year for the Disaster Management Fund. Florida has a similar disaster fund surcharge on property insurance, and twenty-one other states have some type of disaster fund.
The federal sequestration standoff has already cost CalEMA and the California National Guard millions in funding this year, making this legislation especially urgent. A property insurance surcharge would ensure a stable source of funding for the sole purpose of planning and response to disasters.
Assemblymember Stone’s website: www.asmdc.org/stone