California 2019-2020 Regular Session Status: Passed Assembly 2 D cosponsors

AB 1552 — Commercial insurance: business interruption: coverage for COVID-19.

Last action — Re-referred to Com. on INS.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Assembly
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 2019-2020 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Assembly” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

Existing law creates the Department of Insurance, headed by the Insurance Commissioner, and generally regulates the business of insurance in the state. Existing law authorizes the issuance of commercial insurance, which may cover, among other things, business interruption. Other existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, authorizes the Governor to declare a state of emergency during conditions of disaster or extreme peril to persons or property, including epidemics. Pursuant to this authority, on March 4, 2020, the Governor declared a state of emergency relating to the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This bill, with respect to a policy of commercial insurance that provides coverage for business interruption, would create specified rebuttable presumptions affecting the burden of proof in a case in which the insured alleges that the business interruption was due to the COVID-19 pandemic and occurred during the period of the state of emergency declared by the Governor due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, the bill would create certain rebuttable presumptions that COVID-19 was present on specified property and caused physical damage to that property which was the direct cause of the business interruption. Among other things, the bill would provide that with respect to coverage for business interruption due to an order of civil authority, a rebuttable presumption applies that COVID-19 was present on property located within the geographical location covered by the order of civil authority and caused physical damage to that property which was the direct cause of the insured's business. The bill would define "civil authority" for these purposes to include any federal, state, or local government, or the governing body or duly constituted agencies of any federally recognized Indian tribe, and their instrumentalities, divisions, political subdivisions, enterprise boards, and business entities. The bill would prohibit COVID-19 from being construed as a pollutant or contaminant for purposes of any exclusion within a commercial insurance policy unless viruses are expressly included in that exclusion policy language. The bill would provide that it applies retroactively to all commercial insurance policies that provide coverage for business interruption that were in full force and effect on and after March 4, 2020. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Re-referred to Com. on INS.

  2. Re-referred to Com. on RLS.

  3. Withdrawn from committee.

  4. From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on ED.

  5. Referred to Com. on ED.

  6. In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.

  7. Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 78. Noes 0. Page 3898.)

  8. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  9. From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 18. Noes 0.) (January 23).

  10. Coauthors revised.

  11. In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.

  12. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (January 15). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  13. Re-referred to Com. on ED.

  14. From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on ED. Read second time and amended.

  15. In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.

  16. Referred to Com. on ED.

  17. Read first time.

  18. From printer. May be heard in committee March 25.

  19. Introduced. To print.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 1 co-sponsors · 120 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (1)

Not signed on (120)

120 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 120 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

AB 1552 Limón Assembly Third Reading

Passed 78 Yea · 0 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 51001
Democratic 21001
Republican 6000
Total 78002
% of votes cast 98%0%0%3%
How each member voted (80)
Member Party Vote
Mathis — Yea
Cooley — Yea
Diep — Yea
Chau — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Low — Yea
Burke — Yea
Cooper — Yea
Smith — Yea
Cunningham — Yea
Gonzalez — Yea
Bloom — Yea
Voepel — Yea
Rodriguez — Yea
Chiu — Yea
Gray — Yea
Maienschein — Yea
Mullin — Yea
Medina — Yea
Kamlager — Yea
Chu — Yea
Ting — Yea
McCarty — Yea
O'Donnell — Yea
Waldron — Yea
Salas — Yea
Brough — Yea
Gloria — Yea
Obernolte — Yea
Holden — Yea
Daly — Yea
Jones-Sawyer — Yea
Friedman — Yea
Nazarian — Yea
Weber — Yea
Fong — Yea
Kiley — Yea
Mayes — Yea
Frazier — Yea
Bigelow — Yea
Santiago — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Levine — Yea
Wood — Yea
Melendez — Yea
Rendon — Not Voting
Cristina Garcia — Yea
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Jim Patterson — Yea
Luz Rivas — Yea
Mark Stone — Yea
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Aguiar-Curry, Cecilia M. Democratic Yea
Arambula, Joaquin Democratic Yea
Bauer-Kahan, Rebecca Democratic Yea
Berman, Marc Democratic Yea
Boerner, Tasha Democratic Yea
Bonta, Mia Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Cervantes, Sabrina Democratic Not Voting
Gabriel, Jesse Democratic Yea
Gipson, Mike A. Democratic Yea
Grayson, Timothy S. Democratic Yea
Irwin, Jacqui Democratic Yea
Kalra, Ash Democratic Yea
Limón, Monique Democratic Yea
Muratsuchi, Al Democratic Yea
Petrie-Norris, Cottie Democratic Yea
Quirk-Silva, Sharon Democratic Yea
Ramos, James C. Democratic Yea
Reyes, Eloise Gómez Democratic Yea
Rivas, Robert Democratic Yea
Rubio, Blanca E. Democratic Yea
Wicks, Buffy Democratic Yea
Chen, Phillip Republican Yea
Choi, Steven S. Republican Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Yea
Flora, Heath Republican Yea
Gallagher, James Republican Yea
Lackey, Tom Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass.

Passed 18 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 5000
Unaffiliated 12000
Republican 1000
Total 18000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (18)
Member Party Vote
Bloom — Yea
Fong — Yea
Brough — Yea
Maienschein — Yea
Bigelow — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Gonzalez — Yea
Diep — Yea
Chau — Yea
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Bonta, Mia Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Gabriel, Jesse Democratic Yea
Petrie-Norris, Cottie Democratic Yea
Rivas, Robert Democratic Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Set, [First] hearing. Referred to suspense file.

Passed 18 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 5000
Unaffiliated 12000
Republican 1000
Total 18000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (18)
Member Party Vote
Bloom — Yea
Fong — Yea
Brough — Yea
Maienschein — Yea
Bigelow — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Gonzalez — Yea
Diep — Yea
Chau — Yea
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Bonta, Mia Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Gabriel, Jesse Democratic Yea
Petrie-Norris, Cottie Democratic Yea
Rivas, Robert Democratic Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

finance health-insurance
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Frequently asked questions

What does AB 1552 do?
Existing law creates the Department of Insurance, headed by the Insurance Commissioner, and generally regulates the business of insurance in the state. Existing law authorizes the issuance of commercial insurance, which may cover, among other things, business interruption. Other existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, authorizes the Governor to declare a state of emergency during conditions of disaster or extreme peril to persons or property, including epidemics. Pursuant to this authority, on March 4, 2020, the Governor declared a state of emergency relating to the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This bill, with respect to a policy of commercial insurance that provides coverage for business interruption, would create specified rebuttable presumptions affecting the burden of proof in a case in which the insured alleges that the business interruption was due to the COVID-19 pandemic and occurred during the period of the state of emergency declared by the Governor due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, the bill would create certain rebuttable presumptions that COVID-19 was present on specified property and caused physical damage to that property which was the direct cause of the business interruption. Among other things, the bill would provide that with respect to coverage for business interruption due to an order of civil authority, a rebuttable presumption applies that COVID-19 was present on property located within the geographical location covered by the order of civil authority and caused physical damage to that property which was the direct cause of the insured's business. The bill would define "civil authority" for these purposes to include any federal, state, or local government, or the governing body or duly constituted agencies of any federally recognized Indian tribe, and their instrumentalities, divisions, political subdivisions, enterprise boards, and business entities. The bill would prohibit COVID-19 from being construed as a pollutant or contaminant for purposes of any exclusion within a commercial insurance policy unless viruses are expressly included in that exclusion policy language. The bill would provide that it applies retroactively to all commercial insurance policies that provide coverage for business interruption that were in full force and effect on and after March 4, 2020. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Who sponsors AB 1552?
AB 1552 is sponsored by Ramos, James C. (Democratic) and Limón, Monique (Democratic).
What is the current status of AB 1552?
This bill died with 2019-2020 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Assembly” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track AB 1552?
Track AB 1552 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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