Latest California Headlines

All the headlines from our California Topic Page, ordered by recency.

El Niño Could Signal Easing of California Drought, Says Official

Feb 4 2016 // In the strongest indication yet that the California drought could be easing, officials said strict water conservation orders could be dramatically scaled back or even ended if El Niño storms keep pummeling the state into...

Time Warner Cable Settles Lawsuits by California City for $5M

Feb 4 2016 // Time Warner Cable has agreed to pay $5 million to settle lawsuits that claimed it owed Los Angeles millions in city fees.Last week’s settlement was announced this week. The city filed two lawsuits that claimed Time...

Digital Benefit Advisors Acquires Hillenbrand in Northern California

Feb 4 2016 // Digital Benefit Advisors has acquired Hillenbrand Insurance Solutions of Roseville, Calif. Patric Hillenbrand and his team of nine have joined the Northern California office of DBA. The move expands Digital Benefit...

Hub Acquires California-Based Equity Risk Partners

Feb 3 2016 // Hub International Ltd. has acquired San Francisco, Calif.-based Equity Risk Partners Inc.Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Michael Marcon, CEO of Equity Risk, will join Hub and report to Roy Taylor, president of...

California City Misused Disaster Relief Funds, Audit Finds

Feb 3 2016 // A federal audit has found the city of San Diego, Calif. did not properly use $1. 2 million in disaster relief funds of the $6 million it received for damage from flooding and mudslides five years ago.The Jan. 25 report by...

Sempra’s ‘Don’t Worry’ Be Gassy View on Leak Not Going over

Feb 3 2016 // Ever since one of its wells in California started spewing natural gas in October, Sempra Energy’s message to residents has been the same: Don’t worry – the leak poses no public safety threat and won’t...

Hoverboard Found in Northern California County House Fire

Feb 2 2016 // Alameda County, Calif. fire officials say a hoverboard was found in the area where a fire sparked at a San Leandro home.KRON-TV reported that firefighters responded over the weekend to reports of a fire at a two-story...

Heffernan in California Names Dewey Vice President

Feb 2 2016 // Walnut Creek, Calif.-based Heffernan Insurance Brokers has named Christopher Dewey vice president. Dewey joined Heffernan in 2008 in the small business division, and was promoted to Heffernan’s large commercial...

Alliant Names Heffernan Executive Vice President in California

Feb 2 2016 // Alliant Insurance Services Inc. has named Michael Heffernan executive vice president in its construction services group.Heffernan will be responsible for Alliant’s construction operations in San Jose, Calif. He will...

Yahoo Hit with Suit Over Mass Firings, Performance Review Metrics

Feb 2 2016 // Yahoo! Inc. was accused in a lawsuit of manipulating employee performance evaluations to justify firing hundreds of workers in order to meet its financial targets.Gregory Anderson, who was an editor for some of...

California University Acknowledges Liability in Football Player Death

Feb 1 2016 // The University of California has acknowledged its negligence was a substantial factor in the death of former California football player Ted Agu.The 21-year-old defensive lineman from Bakersfield died nearly two years ago...

Uber’s Bid to Pause Suit by California Drivers Group Rejected

Jan 29 2016 // Uber Technologies Inc. lost its bid to pause a lawsuit by California drivers demanding to be treated as employees that has grown dramatically in both size and potential liability.The U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco...

JLT Specialty USA Names Taliaferro Senior Vice President in California

Jan 29 2016 // JLT Specialty USA has named Brian Taliaferro senior vice president of the entertainment and hospitality practice. Taliaferro, who will be based in JLT’s Los Angeles, Calif., office, will lead the company’s...

13 Indictments Handed Down in Massive Workers’ Comp Fraud Scam

Jan 28 2016 // An investigation into what’s being called one of the largest cases of workers’ compensation health care insurance fraud in California Department of Insurance history led to 13 indictments announced today...

California Regulator Looks to Open the FAIR Plan’s Floodgates

Jan 28 2016 // In those periods of respite when the State of California is not rocking and rolling atop its various fault lines, it’s often quite literally on fire. In fact, of the top 10 costliest wildfires in U.S. history,...

California State Fund to Roll out New Medical Provider Network

Jan 28 2016 // State Compensation Insurance Fund will soon transition to a new outcomes-based medical provider network following a California Division of Workers’ Compensation approval of the new MPN called the State Fund MPN by...

Record Western Wildfires a Contrast in Otherwise Quiet Year for U.S. Natural Disasters

Jan 28 2016 // It was a relatively quiet year for natural disasters – except for those living in the Western U.S.Property data provider CoreLogic today released its annual Natural Hazard Risk Summary and Analysis. The report shows...

Alteris to Offer Coverage for Mutual Water Companies in California

Jan 28 2016 // Alteris Insurance Services Inc. announced it will serve as insurance administrator for the newly formed CalMutuals Joint Powers Insurance Authority (JPIA) working with nonprofit water systems in California. The new program...

Class Action Follows California Commissioner’s Decision in Applied Dispute

Jan 27 2016 // A decision from the California Department of Insurance has workers’ compensation carrier Applied Underwriters and one of its companies on the defensive, and now a class action suit has been filed seeking to recover...

No Contest Plea from ‘Dancing Hamster’ in California Fraud Case

Jan 27 2016 // A man who played a dancing hamster in car commercials and was a backup dancer for Madonna, has pleaded no contest to single counts of insurance fraud and making a false statement.The Los Angeles County District...