California legislators passed two bills Monday that would require insurance companies to follow new state rules for testing and cleaning homes contaminated by toxic smoke as the result of fires.<\/p>\n
Gov. Gavin Newsom has until the end of this month to sign the bills into law.<\/p>\n
Assembly Bills 1642 and 1795 would work in tandem to establish what Assemblymember John Harabedian, the author of one of the bills<\/a>, calls \u201cfirst-in-the-nation testing and remediation standards based on science.\u201d One change would require insurance companies to keep paying policyholders’ additional living expenses until their property has been restored to pre-fire condition and cleared for occupancy.<\/p>\n Harabedian, whose district includes Altadena, said a lack of clear, post-fire cleaning rules has left survivors of the Eaton and Palisades fires to battle with their insurers over testing for, and remediation of, harmful contaminants.<\/p>\n Keep up with LAist.<\/p>\n If you’re enjoying this article, you’ll love our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Each weekday, catch up on the 5 most pressing stories to start your morning in 3 minutes or less. <\/p>\n If such rules had been in place after last year\u2019s devastating L.A. fires, Harabedian said, \u201ca lot of the survivors now, who are dealing with smoke damage, would be back in their homes.\u201d<\/p>\n He said many of his constituents are now \u201ctrying to afford rent, trying to get the remediation and cleanup done to a satisfactory level.”<\/p>\n “And, frankly,” he added, “they’re spending a lot of the money they need to rebuild their lives in litigation and disputes with their insurance companies.\u201d<\/p>\n Their homes survived, but they still haven\u2019t returned<\/p>\n