Like other myths and fairy-tales meant to conceal and excite, California’s school children are taught to believe that there are three branches of government. In fact, there clearly are four. Though a putative part of the executive branch, agencies are …

Federal disaster aid granted to communities hit by natural catastrophes causes demand for property insurance to fall by six times as much, according to a new issue briefing from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Risk Management and Decision Processes Center. …

When Utah’s brief legislative session came to a close in March, proponents of ridesharing services offered by transportation network companies rejoiced. The state had passed S.B. 294, sponsored by state Sen. Stuart Adams, R–Layton, which created a regulatory framework within …

I hate to say I told you so. Actually, scratch that. I love to say I told you so. I just wish it weren’t necessary in this case. Back in January, when Congress passed a six-year extension of the federal …

The California Earthquake Authority long has had trouble getting Golden Staters to buy protection for the most devastating natural disaster most of them face. Indeed, if anything, California’s earthquake insurance market is more a story of regress than progress. While …

The federal excise tax does not apply to reinsurance or retrocession transactions between foreign insurers, even if the transaction covers U.S. risks, according to a May 26 decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. At …

It has been a big week for earthquake news in California. Hollywood gave us “San Andreas,” a thrill a minute dystopian drama starring Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) as a heroic flying firefighter and Paul Giamatti as a jittery professor-like creature. …

Uber is operating legally in Portland, for now. A pilot program adopted by the Portland City Council has given transportation network companies the green light to operate for four months, at which time the city council will need to revisit …

The Hill is reporting that the Senate Banking Committee’s more moderate Democrats intend to vote against the financial services reform package put together by Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., at this morning’s mark-up session. The news won’t have immediate impact, as …

A proposal to bar insurers from claiming a tax deduction for premiums ceded to offshore affiliates would cost the U.S. economy $1.35 billion in gross domestic product, with private sector losses estimated to run roughly four times as great as …