By admin 
The California Assembly on Tuesday rejected a last-minute and controversial bill that would have brought changes to how the state responds to utility-caused wildfires, after criticism of the deal by Gov. Gavin Newsom and several legislators.
Read more Big-name NFL owner with championship pedigree buys MLB’s Los Angeles Angels
“The proposal before us does not yet deliver the relief, accountability or meaningful reform that Californians deserve,” said Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas in a statement. “So, we are going back to work — and we will not stop until we have done everything in our power to deliver real results.”
Senate Bill 492 was the result of weeks of negotiations between Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic leaders in the Senate and Assembly. But it was clear in recent days that the deal had fallen short of the governor’s expectations and left many legislators frustrated.
The agreement would have created a program to try and more quickly pay claims for damages, deny short-term bonuses for utility CEOs for a year if the company started a fire that killed at least one person and put requirements on attorneys seeking to represent victims.
Read more Shelton Yip says he doesn’t have all the answers, but is instead ‘a connector’
It also included preventing any attorney or company from selling the rights to recover a wildfire claim to a private equity group, a practice seen after the Eaton Fire. It would have also required the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection to submit reports annually to the Legislature on wildfire prevention and preparedness efforts. And state officials would have needed to come up with a wildfire preparedness strategy every five years.
The measure needed support from two-thirds of both the Assembly and Senate Tuesday because it came after the Legislature was supposed to end for the year.
Read more Franklin Boulevard got a $20M overhaul. What Sacramento businesses think so far