News

Unlicensed California Insurance Agent Arraigned in $1.4M Workers’ Comp Fraud Scheme

Unlicensed insurance agent Karyl Lynn Reed, 57, formerly of Cosa Mesa, Calif., was arraigned this week on multiple felony counts of grand theft, forgery, embezzlement, and aggravated white-collar crime after allegedly defrauding three victims of over $1.4 million. Reed was …

California Labor Commissioner Cites Drywall Company $7.2M for Wage Theft

The California Labor Commissioner’s office cited NGC Construction Inc. $7.2 million for wage theft violations affecting 724 workers. An investigation reportedly showed that the Visalia-based drywall company paid workers a fixed amount per project known as “piece-rate.” The workers, who …

$5M in Grants Released to Help California Homeowners Prep for Quakes

California’s Earthquake Brace + Bolt grant program is expanding, and it now includes 395 ZIP Codes where qualifying homeowners can get up to $3,000 to offset the cost of completing a seismic retrofit, the California Earthquake Authority announced. The program …

Severe Storm Brings Tornado Watch to Texas, Louisiana

A severe storm generated thunderstorms and reports of tornados across southeastern Texas into Louisiana late morning Wednesday, Oct. 27. The National Weather Service put out severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings for much of the Houston-Galveston region. Most of those warnings …

People Moves: J.M. Wilson Adds Hotrum; Omaha National Names Four to Board of Directors

J.M. Wilson hires Hotrum as assistant brokerage underwriter J.M. Wilson has hired Amy Hotrum as assistant brokerage underwriter in their Portage, Michigan office. Hotrum is responsible for assisting underwriters with a wide variety of new and renewal brokerage risks, as …

Study: Indiana Workers’ Comp Average Medical Claims Higher than Most States

A recently published study from the Workers Compensation Research Institute found that the average medical payment for Indiana workers’ compensation claims with more than seven days of lost time was higher than the typical state. The study, CompScopeā„¢ Medical Benchmarks …

Arthur J. Gallagher Acquires Illinois’ The VanDyke Group

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has acquired Homer Glen, Illinois-based The VanDyke Group, Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Founded in 1984, The VanDyke Group offers employee benefits consulting and HR solutions, as well as commercial and personal …

Residents in 8 Mississippi Counties Can Now Try for FEMA Aid for Ida

Mississippi’s governor says residents in eight counties can now apply for federal help with Hurricane Ida expenses, and 19 counties can get public aid. Approval for help through the Federal Emergency Management Agency means “Mississippians will have access to the …

Big Tech Data Centers Generate Concern Over Scarce Western Water

Conflicts over water are as old as history itself, but the massive Google data centers on the edge of this Oregon town on the Columbia River represent an emerging 21st century concern. Now a critical part of modern computing, data …

Pair of Earthquakes Confirmed on California’s Central Coast

A pair of earthquakes rattled California’s central coast late Monday afternoon, the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed. A magnitude 4.7 quake hit at 4:42 p.m., centered about 11 miles northwest of San Simeon, according to. At 4:49 p.m., a 3.6 magnitude …

News Archives by Month