Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger met Wednesday with President Donald Trump at the White House to lobby for federal support for wildfire survivors and insurance company accountability.
Bass and Barger released a joint statement following their afternoon meeting in the Oval Office:
“We met with President Trump and Administration officials to advocate for families who lost everything,” the mayor and District 3 supervisor said. “We had a very positive discussion about FEMA and other rebuilding funds, as well as the support of the President to continue joining us in pressuring the insurance companies to pay what they owe — and for the big banks to step up to ease the financial pressure on LA families.
“Our job is to fight for our communities,” the statement continued. “When it comes to this recovery, our federal partners are essential, and we are grateful for the support of the President.”
Bass and Barger’s meeting with Trump followed the president last month accused insurance companies of abandoning LA-area residents impacted by the devastating wildfires.
On his social media platform, Trump said State Farm and other insurance companies were “horrendous” for failing homeowners who had paid their premiums.
“Insurance companies, in particular, State Farm, have been absolutely horrible to people that have been paying them large premiums for years, only to find that when tragedy struck, these horrendous companies were not there to help!” Trump posted on Truth Social.
He ordered Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin to conduct a report on insurers that acted “swiftly, courageously and bravely” to respond to customers’ claims, and “those companies that were particularly bad” at meeting their legal obligations to pay out.
Trump directed Zeldin to visit Southern California earlier this year, when the EPA chief met with Bass, Barger and county Supervisor Lindsey Horvath. Barger’s 5th District contains Altadena and Eaton Fire-impacted areas, while Pacific Palisades in is in Horvath’s District 3.
Trump has criticized Gov. Gavin Newsom and Bass for their response to the January 2025 wildfires, blaming them for the disaster and the slow pace of recovery efforts.
According to the governor’s office, he “has taken unprecedented action to remove barriers that slow recovery and ensure bureaucracy does not stand between families and their return home.”
Altadena resident Aurora Barboza Flores received nine additional mortgage payments under the expanded CalAssist program, bringing total assistance to a full year.
“It’s a huge relief. If you ask any Altadena resident who’s rebuilding, any of us who have been displaced or lost our homes, the cost is really our biggest stressor,” she said in a statement from the governor’s office. “It’s what we carry on our shoulders, what we go to sleep with, what we wake up with. That this decision was made at the state level tells us there is a conscious effort to help us rebuild.”
The talks between local elected officials and the Trump administration indicate an official recognition of the challenges fire survivors face dealing with insurers. Fire survivors have said dealing with insurance companies to file claims is the biggest hurdle to recovery.
“We are so happy, after 15 months of survivor organizing and bringing forward our experiences with insurance, that our government leaders are coming together to address the urgent need for insurance accountability,” Joy Chen, executive director of Every Fire Survivor’s network, told HeySoCal.com.
Chen noted the forthcoming launch of “the first wildfire insurance survey, which will for the first time provide data on how insurers are actually performing in this recovery. We hope this data will empower the public response that’s urgently needed to move this recovery forward,” Chen said. “Insurers urgently need to be held accountable, and we very much welcome and will support any actions that our government leaders take to do that.”
Also Wednesday, fire survivors, consumer advocates and state legislators announced a package of insurance reforms bills.
State Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez, D-Pasadena, led a news conference to discuss the four bills that likely will go to the Senate Insurance Committee for consideration.
Senate Bill 877 aims to bring transparency to loss estimates, SB 878 aims to penalize insurers for making unnecessary delays in paying claims and SB 1076 aims to secure access to coverage for homeowners who make their homes fire-safe. The fourth bill, SB 1301, aims to give consumers more time to correct any problems before losing coverage.