AB 1193, a California bill which would prohibit insurance companies from canceling or failing to renew policies of religious organizations, educational institutions or nonprofit agencies simply due to losses from hate crimes, gained approval from legislators on Monday. The bill came as a result of an insurance company’s move not to renew the property policy of Sacramento’s Congregation B’nai Israel following a 1999 arson attack which resulted in more than $1 million in damage.
According to a report in The Sacramento Bee, the last legislative hurdle arrived Monday on the first day back from summer recess, when the Assembly voted 66-1 to approve small Senate amendments. The bill would become law on Jan 1, 2002, if it gets the signature of Gov. Gray Davis.
Winning nearly unanimous approval from lawmakers, the bill was narrowed earlier on to exclude homes and offices at request of insurance companies. Insurers have stated that including homes and offices could result in some policyholders inaccurately portraying their losses as hate crimes and put companies at risk for unwarranted, possibly major payoffs.
Under AB 1193, law enforcement would determine which attacks would fall under hate crimes, motivated by intolerance directed at race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, gender or sexual orientation.
Topics California
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