All rights reserved. As part of a settlement, the Fire Victim Trust received half of an expected $13.5 billion payout in stock and the rest in cash. (2020, December 19). (1,2,5,13), The Sting - The PG&E U.S. Bankruptcy and PG&E Fire Victim Trust, This petition addresses how the unbridled power of the U.S. Bankruptcy system and its Judge (Dennis Montali), Wall Streets Hedge Fund Managers, Pacific Gas & Electric corporation (the largest U.S. public utility) and its lawyers, insurance companies and governments and victims lawyers worked together and/or independently to financially dominate and become the largest beneficiaries of the $55 billion PG&E wildfire bankruptcy payouts. Accordingly, it is important to understand the full scope of your legal damages, how to properly document your losses, how to complete the claim form process, and how to ensure a fair amount is allocated to your claim. However, we encourage all potential claimants to discuss their case with an attorney in a timely manner to begin the process. (18), (1) Jamali, L. J. Congressman LaMalfa says that gives them through the end of the year to get the legislation passed. On November 14, 2022, the Trust sent letters in support of H.R. So, out of the gate our settlement went from $13.5 billion to $12 billion, and today the stock is about $1.1 billion underwater and victims have experienced a $212 million dollar loss in their Trust funds because Trustee Trotter chose to sell 100 million of victims' shares at $12.04 per share. In a bankruptcy settlement, claimants may not ultimately receive the full value of their claims, but they must all receive the same proportionate pro rata value. With $2.82 billion in additional liquidity from our recent stock sales, we were confident we could safely increase the pro rata payment percentage for all Fire Victims, said Cathy Yanni. In that rubble Internicola says he found the only item that survived, a ring his father gave him. The number of claimants, variety of claims, quantity of claims, and size of the multi-billion dollar fund make this one of the largest and most complex mass tort settlements in California history. It is surprising to me that the enormous task managing a $13.5 billion trust would go to an octogenarian in the twilight years of his life, let alone his professional career, addressing the adjudication of settlements for 68,870 victim families and businesses. They should not have to pay taxes on these payouts. hbbd```b``3@$SXd:L|:TJ D2E,yd2c4(SGX&>`YZL L`]df|0 ` ), Trustee of the Fire Victims Trust, announced in a letter to fire victims Tuesday that he will be retiring effective June 30. PARADISE, Calif. - There is a new Happy New Year. In the meantime, between attorney's fees and taxes, fire victims are watching what settlement payments they do receive get smaller, along with their dreams of rebuilding anytime soon. The FVT laid the groundwork for releasing pro rata payments in mid-February when it began sending Claims Determination Notices to Fire Victims whose claims had been fully processed and evaluated. Every day we are forced to hold the stock, leads to more costs and more taken away from victims, for sure, said Will Abrams, who lost his home in the 2017 Tubbs fire in Santa Rosa. In the first pro rata payment, each claimant will receive 30% of the value assigned to their claims. As noted, Judge Montali is also an octogenarian at 81 years of age and was recently appointed again for another 14-year term as a U.S. bankruptcy judge in April of 2021, meaning hell be 95 when this term of service expires. 10/31/22 . North Bay Wildfires (includes 22 major fires), Cathy Yanni appointed Administrator of Wildfire Assistance Program, PG&E and Tort Claimants Committee reached $13.5 billion settlement, Hon. Insurance Journal. endstream endobj 116 0 obj <. Read the responses here. If you have previously retained an attorney for your wildfire claim, you do not need to take any further action. Rather, each wildfire claimant (or unsecured creditor) must file a separate claim in the bankruptcy court to safeguard their right to compensation. Accordingly, if you or a loved one experienced personal injury, property loss, business losses, or other damages, you should consult a lawyer in a timely manner. He said that they ended up hiring 500 people along with a processing firm BrownGreer that was in charge of receiving, reviewing, and valuing the claims. (2021a, May 17). "We remain right on the exact same spot with the identical house we replaced," said Internicola. This increase was made possible by the Trusts recent sales of Pacific Gas & Electric stock. No victims are on the committee. 52. Who may act as Legal Representative for a Minor Claimant, and what According to claims data as of September 30th from the Fire Victim Trust, nearly half of the close to 70-thousand claimants are still waiting to receive a 45% partial payment from the trust. hb```e"B eap@a~il=6Q,NwkGFGRWTl%Xl) c$sAf>OL2aT`fafa? "Down to about two feet of rubble," said Internicola. He approved the deal crafted largely favoring the interests of PG&E, Wall Street Hedge Fund investors that owned approximately 10% of PG&Es stock, and a small group of victims law firms that represented large groups of wildfire victims. Without all your input I have no idea how we could have recovered. Under the direction of Cathy Yanni (Trustee), the Fire Victim Trust is ever-focused on resolving Fire Victims claims to help them recover and move on successfully with their lives. But it didnt. My goal from day one has been to put money into the pockets of wildfire survivors as quickly as possible, while ensuring we follow the letter of the law and treat every single claimant fairly and with compassion, said Justice Trotter. WebIt appears the Fire Victims Trust will end up owning more than 20.9% of PG&E because the stock value is so low and it will take more shares to reach $6.75 billion in value. The investigation by KQED found that in its first year of operation, the trust spent nearly 90% of its funds on overhead while fire victims, many of whom lost their homes, waited for reimbursement. Because of errors in the setup of how the trust was established, the tax issue was left unresolved, he said, triggering unnecessary delays that hindered victim compensation. "What's the biggest hold up here," asked ABC7 News I-Team Reporter Melanie Woodrow. Most fire victims are still waiting to be paid by PG&Es Fire Victim Fund, investigation finds. Retrieved June 5, 2022, from https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/west/2022/05/06/666497.htm, (3) Allyn, J. If you're on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live, Videos show parade of storms toppling trees across SF Bay Area, The warning signs your tree may fall during next storm, 18 killed in helicopter crash near Kyiv, Ukraine, including children. At the time of that delivery, the stock was trading at approximately $9 per share, he wrote. The court-ordered trust of over $13 billion was established for survivors of devastating Northern California wildfires including the 2015 Butte Fire, the 2017 North Bay Fires and the 2018 Camp Fire. As part of the bankruptcy proceedings, the U.S. Give the people you love peace of mind by helping them be financially resilient and prepared.ThisGive Peace of Mind Gift Catalogis full of free tips to help spark important discussions and actions around disaster preparedness. This petition focuses on the victims of the Northern California wildfires between 2015 and 2018, including all wildfires in this period for which PGE was held legally responsible for victims losses in their 2019 U.S. Bankruptcy filing and proceedings and codified in their exit from their bankruptcy process, resulting in the creation of the PGE Fire Victim Trust. She added: We will continue to monitor the markets in collaboration with our financial advisors to monetize the remaining shares as quickly as we can, but in a responsible manner, taking into account price, market conditions and the needs of fire survivors.. Hedge Funds Cash Out Billions in PG&E Stock. The trust initially received around 480 million shares at $9 each. That voicemail was widely criticized by local politicians and inspired another letter from the board. Https://Inthesetimes.Com/Article/California-Fire-Victims-Awaiting-Payment-from-Utility-Company Retrieved June 5, 2022, from https://inthesetimes.com/article/california-fire-victims-awaiting-payment-from-utility-company, (11) Morris, J. M. (2021, August 23). "Fire victims have lost homes, belongings, and for some, even their loved ones," said LaMalfa (R-Richvale), who co-introduced the bipartisan legislation. (9) The deal was forged by this cast of players, i.e., Judge Montali, the Hedge Fund managers, the PG&E and Victims attorneys, and other large creditors and received the stamp-of-approval by Gov. There are eight categories of claims types. Https://Www.Pbs.Org/Newshour/Show/Most-Fire-Victims-Are-Still-Waiting-to-Be-Paid-by-Pges-Fire-Victim-Fund-Investigation-Finds Retrieved June 5, 2022, from https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/most-fire-victims-are-still-waiting-to-be-paid-by-pges-fire-victim-fund-investigation-finds, (9) Trust Distributed $1.69B to PG&E California Fire Victims in 2021. opt-out claim, and issuance 90% of all Determination Notices. We are in good hands! In November 2020, the FVT decided to begin providing claimants who had submitted the required Claims Questionnaires with preliminary payments of up to $25,000. "You know if the state can get it done, why can't the federal government," said LaMalfa. Gov. (4), And the legions of lawyers and consultants from the Greenberg law firm in North Carolina (who Trustee Trotter hired) are surely making handsome consulting fees, though the Trustee keeps these fees close to his chest wonder why? PG&E filed for bankruptcy voluntarily, and the company is not insolvent. Read the letters. And Trustee Trotter, in his not-so-infinite wisdom, has already sold 100 million shares of the victims PGE stock at $12.04 per share for a $212 million loss. The TCC and its attorneys have a fiduciary duty to advocate for the interests of all fire and other tort claimants in the bankruptcy proceeding. The Trust issues Determination Notices daily and issues payments twice a month. Please fix it. - The company filed for bankruptcy in January 2019 following a series of wildfires in 2015, 2017 and 2018. He noted that the bankruptcy court created two pots of money, one for the insurance companies and another for fire victims, including federal and state agency claimants. On September 29th, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill which will make PG&E wildfire victims' settlement payments state tax-free, but as of right now fire victims must still pay federal taxes on the award money. The court-ordered trust of over $13 billion was established for survivors of devastating Northern California wildfires including the 2015 Butte Fire, the 2017 North Bay Trotter said there had been significant progress in paying out claims. 4955). The Tort Claimants Committee (or TCC) is designed to give the individuals and families most affected by the 2017 and 2018 fires an independent and official voice throughout the bankruptcy case. The PGE 2020 Bankruptcy and PGE Fire Victim Trust. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the worlds largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Many, many thanks., The disaster recovery resources you provided helped many individuals and families., Certificate of Appreciation in recognition of your outstanding contributions to the Third Supervisorial District and the County of San Diego., (United Policyholders) provided helpful insights into the state of the current insurance market for earthquake, fire and flood coverage, and the critical rile insurance plays in the ability of our communities recover from such catastrophic events. 153 0 obj <>stream KQED. If a Disaster Declaration is issued, it can be either a Emergency Declaration (to supplement state, local, and tribal government efforts to provide debris removal and emergency protective measures or to lessen/avert, Need a last minute holiday gift? With such financial leverage, certainly Trustee Trotter could (and still could) have found a way to leverage our position by borrowing against our stock and preserving our position rather than squandering it away. On the surface, that has potential to be a good thing. "Did they provide any explanation as to why it took them 5 months to get back to you," asked Woodrow? Many, if not all the victims lawyers, surely wanted the clock to start as soon as possible. And we certainly should not be asking them to pay taxes on funds that are going to their lawyers this would be double taxing the settlement dollars. They now collectively own almost a quarter of the companys shares. As of January 12, 2023, the FVT had issued determination notices to 91% of all claimants and paid claimants over $5.93 billion. Paradise mayor Steve Crowder welcomed the news of Trotters retirement. "It was really disappointing that many members of Congress signed a letter asking for clarification and they took five months fooling around getting back to us," said LaMalfa. In addition to the program statistics below, you can access Trust information using the Information and FAQs menu tabs above. (1,2) Instead, the facts show that payments to victims have been pro rata at 45% of victims' losses, and again, this is 45% of a 60% average settlement offer (and 33%-plus of this goes to the victims attorneys fees and costs). In his letter to victims, Trotter recounted the creation of the trust and its recent history. Rick Silva has been with the Paradise Post since June 1994 as sports editor. "We don't have enough to rebuild and we're just essentially stuck," Camp Fire Survivor David Breed recently told ABC7 News. The material on this site is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for legal advice. Michael Internicola and his family lost everything in the 2017 Tubbs Fire. They were just asking legitimate questions on behalf of their constituents. Furthermore, Gov. As of March 15, PG&E had paid out $3.04 billion in preliminary and pro-rata payments and awarded another $7.04 billion in determination notices. The company may have to spend $20 billion burying power lines, and while it might like to pass those costs on to customers, its rates are already among the highest in the nation. Prior Trustee updates are included on the Documents page here. Their millions upon millions of dollars from their 33% contingency fees from hundreds/thousands of wildfire victim clients they represent (plus costs) were in the balance and the sooner PG&E came out of bankruptcy, the sooner theyd start to get paid as the PG&E Fire Victim Trust excruciatingly slowly started to make pro rata (that is, partial) payments to some of their clients. (2021, October 11). VIDEO: PG&E stock sale may mean more cash for California wildfire victims. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Montali, a 23-year veteran of the U.S. Bankruptcy system (now 81 years of age) was chosen by the system to preside over the largest bankruptcy in U.S. legal history which concluded in July 2020. Your attorney will continue to represent you throughout the remainder of the proceedings until your case is resolved. Republican Assembly Leader James Gallagher (R-Yuba City) said there had been many challenges with the trusts administration. https://www.cityandstatefl.com/podcast/2022/12/episode-21-how-will-changes-floridas-insurance-laws-affect-homeowners/381003/, This group provided valuable information and support for those who lost their homes in the Fourmile Fire two years ago and they have worked in many other communities that have suffered property damaging disasters. As part of a settlement, the Fire Victim Trust received half of an expected $13.5 billion payout in stock and the rest in cash. Theyre paying themselves very well," Cook said of the overhead costs. (2022, May 6). The news that PG&E agreed to a $13.5 billion fire settlement with lawyers for victims means that plaintiffs are a step closer to getting compensated. Bill Cook, a retired U.S. foreign service officer, lost his Paradise home in the Camp Fire, which was the deadliest and most destructive fire in California history. Newsom correct the inequities in the PGE wildfire victims' settlement awards that are being adjudicated by the PGE Fire Victim Trust and fully compensate the victims of the 2015, 2017 and 2018 Northern California wildfires as required by California's "inverse condemnation" law which says "if you broke it, you fix it" (which applies to public utilities) and, more importantly, by doing what's morally right. In January, PG&E made the final installment on its promised trust fund contribution, adding $592 million to the fund. The PGE Fire Victim Trust was created by Judge Dennis Montali to manage the adjudication and distribution of the wildfire victims' $13.5 billion settlement from PGE that was awarded to the victims' by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Today, the Fire Victim Trust holds almost a quarter of PG&E shares. The shares have lost 15% of their value in a month. Congressman LaMalfa says the IRS took 5 months to get back to lawmakers about how fire victims who received PG&E settlement money should file their taxes so they wouldn't overpay or underpay and be facing penalties or fines. The victims stake has fallen in value to around $4 billion. The Trust reviews claims and issues Determination Notices daily and disburses payments twice monthly, compensating Fire Victims for economic and non-economic damages caused by the 2015 Butte, 2017 North Bay, and 2018 Camp Fires, including destruction or damage to real estate and personal property, additional living expenses, lost wages, business losses, emotional distress, personal injury or death and related medical expenses. On January 9 and 10, 2023, FVT sold 60 million shares of PG&E stock. And, to date 35% of the 68,870 of the wildfire victims still wait for what bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali proclaimed would be quick and fair settlement payments to all victims. PGE's bankruptcy workout plan to pay for victims' losses from the 2015, 2017 and 2018 Northern California wildfires was approved by California Gov. 15, 2022,the %%EOF We are looking for a Governor to vote for that can help us get "fair" compensation as promised by PGE bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali. On June 28th, the Commissioner of the IRS responded to a request by Congressman Mike Thompson and Congressman Doug LaMalfa requesting guidance on the taxability of the settlement funds received from the Fire Victims Trust (FVT). One of the hallmarks of trust administration is transparency. While the TCC acts in the collective interest of all tort claimants, the committee does not represent any individual homeowners, renters, businesses, or other wildfire victims in their damage claims against PG&E. 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