Deadlines for 3 LA County wildfire relief grants are just hours away. Here's how to apply
Los Angeles County wildfire survivors have until Wednesday evening to apply for three relief grants offering between $2,000 and $25,000 for immediate assistance.
The three grants offer aid to residents, business owners and workers impacted by the devastating firestorm in January, including the deadly wildfires that tore through the communities of Altadena, Pacific Palisades and areas of neighboring communities such as Pasadena and Malibu. Twenty-nine people were killed and thousands of homes and other structures left damaged and destroyed as hurricane-force winds swept the flames forward for days and complicated firefighting efforts.
The grants all have deadlines of March 12, Wednesday at 5 p.m. PST.
Los Angeles County Household Relief Grant
This grant offers immediate assistance until insurance coverage or other government aid, such as FEMA grants, come through for wildfire survivors. Grants of $6,000 are available for households of one to two people, $12,000 for households with at least three people (where at least one person is a minor or dependent adult), and $18,000 for households with at least four people — including minors or dependent adults and at least three separate generations.
Homeowners and tenants displaced by the Palisades and Eaton Fires and other events in the devastating windstorm that hit the region in early January may be eligible for this if they meet the following criteria.
Their primary home was completely destroyed Eaton or Palisades fires and windstorm events in January 2025.
Their primary home was within the impacted zones for the fires or and windstorm events and was either "partially destroyed or severely damaged as a result" and left "uninhabitable," according to the LA County website.
Their household experienced a death related to the two wildfires or windstorm events.
To apply, or find more information, visit here.
Small Business Relief Fund
The new LA Region Small Business Relief Fund, launched by the city and county of Los Angeles, offers cash assistance grants to small businesses and nonprofit organizations that were affected by the windstorm and wildfires in early January. Businesses and nonprofits with a revenue of up to $6 million and less than 100 employees are eligible for the grants — which are available in amounts of between $2,000 to $25,000 depending on the level of impact from the disasters.
Brick-and-mortar businesses can receive $15,000 for loss of revenue while grants of up to $25,000 are available to those which have had their locations completely destroyed. Independent contractors and home-based businesses may be eligible for smaller grants of between $2,000 for revenue loss and $5,000 for loss of revenue as well as loss of equipment and inventory.
To apply, or find more information, visit here.
The new LA Region Worker Relief Fund, also launched by the city and county of LA, is offering cash assistance grants of $2,000 for those who lost work or experience some other employment-related financial loss to the fires and windstorm. Applicants must meet certain requirements such as being a resident of LA County and over the age of 18, among other qualification.
visit here.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Saving for a storm while it's already raining: Florida readies budget fund to offset federal cuts
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WFLA) — With growing signs of a financial squeeze from Washington, including potential cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, and FEMA, Florida lawmakers are preparing not just for state budget cuts but also for uncertainty in D.C. The state relies on federal dollars for nearly one-third of its budget and any disruptions from D.C. could have a ripple effect here on the state level. So, the question is, are lawmakers doing enough to protect Floridians from the unexpected?'I do not believe in raising taxes. We agree in the opposite. Cutting taxes, cutting spending, wasteful spending,' said House Speaker Danny Perez (R-Miami). 'What we're doing is, we are putting the state in a position that, god forbid, we are in a recession, we are in the 2000s all over again, we have a budget stabilization fund that would be able to backstop and protect Floridians from having to be in an uncomfortable position.' Senate and House leadership say they are leaning on the budget stabilization fund, the state's rainy day reserve, in case of a recession, rising costs, or federal pull-back. 'We're doing things to make Florida's balance sheet more durable and difficult times, and we're setting more money aside to have as rainy-day reserves if things get difficult, that's a win that's a win,' said Senate President Ben Albritton (R-Wauchula). But not everyone at the statehouse agrees that leadership's strategy is hitting the right mark.'You don't get to talk about saving money for a rainy day when it's still raining, when it's already raining on the people of Florida,' said State Rep. Fentrice Driskell (D-Tampa). House Minority Leader Driskell said we shouldn't be cutting funding, we should be expanding the budget. 'It seems to me there's a lot of hot air about this Budget Stabilization Fund. There's a lot of hot air about saving money for a rainy day. But guess what? You only get to do that after you've met all of your other obligations,' said Driskell. 'The question is, do I believe this budget prepares Florida for what could be coming out of the DOGE cuts or just the changes that come out of Washington, D.C? And I would say yes,' said Senate President Albritton. It's now day 102 of the 60-day session, and Budget Chairs have been working all week, racing to finalize the final spending plan, which is now expected for a Monday vote. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Great Lakes Stock Trading at a Discount: Is It Buy Time Now?
Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's GLDD current valuation is enticing for investors. Currently, the stock is trading below its industry peers with a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 12.43X, as evidenced by the chart below. Moreover, the discounted valuation of GLDD compares favorably with a few of the other market players, including Orion Group Holdings, Inc. ORN, Quanta Services, Inc. PWR and Granite Construction Incorporated GVA. The 12-month P/E ratios of Orion Group, Quanta and Granite Construction are 31.69X, 32.73X and 13.98X, respectively. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research The discounted valuation of GLDD stock, compared with its peers, advocates for an attractive entry point for investors. That said, in the long term, the valuation could move toward a premium, given the strong market fundamentals backing the company's revenue visibility and Texas-based dredging services provider is mainly gaining from large-scale capital and coastal protection projects compared with mainstream maintenance dredging. Thanks to its resilience in offering such services, it enjoys a competitive edge in the market. Moreover, its new build program, proposed in 2020, catalyzes its ability to offer such services efficiently and expand the margins in the process. With such favorable market fundamentals and its in-house capabilities, the company is consistently able to enhance its liquidity position, thus increasing space for strategic long-term investments and shareholder GLDD's shares have soared 34.6% in the past three months, outperforming the Zacks Building Products - Heavy Construction industry, the broader Zacks Construction sector and the S&P 500 index. The detailed price performance can be studied from the chart below. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Let's delve deeper into understanding the factors driving GLDD's momentum. Great Lakes is significantly benefiting from the robust demand trends for large-scale capital and coastal protection projects. This is because it houses the specifications that are required to offer these services, differing from maintenance dredging, allowing it a competitive advantage over other market players like Orion Group, which mainly offers mainstream dredging services. As of March 31, 2025, GLDD's substantial dredging backlog was $1 billion compared with $879.4 million as of last year's first quarter, with capital and coastal protection projects accounting for 95% of the total dredging main driver for coastal restoration projects is the increased government funding for infrastructure projects, at the state and federal levels, due to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers or FEMA-backed initiatives backed by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). These projects being government-funded, reduce payment failure risks, and with being larger in scale and having longer duration, it also ensures efficient asset utilization. Such characteristics of these projects not only boost the company's revenue visibility but also foster its margin growth. Tailwinds from public infrastructure spending are also aiding other market players like Quanta and Granite Construction. Proposed in 2020, the new build program was approved and rolled out to renew and modernize GLDD's fleet. Through this program, the company mainly aims to stand tall for offering services in coastal restoration and shoreline protection, establishing a resilient business model. As part of this program, the company is currently undergoing construction of Acadia, the first U.S.-flagged Jones Act-compliant subsea rock installation vessel, which is expected to be delivered by the first quarter of 2026. Acadia will be considered for domestic and international offshore wind projects alongside critical subsea infrastructure protection the newest hopper dredge, the Amelia Island (expected delivery in the third quarter of 2025) and the Galveston Island have been designed specifically by GLDD to work efficiently in shallow and narrow waters along the U.S. coastlines, specifically for coastal protection projects such as beach restoration, wetlands improvements and Barrier Island construction. With the program wrapping up by the end of 2025 or the beginning of 2026, the company expects to witness incremental revenue trends and increased free cash flow thereafter. Given the current market uncertainties and an inflationary scenario, maintaining a substantial liquidity position alongside making strategic business investments is a strenuous task. Great Lakes is managing this job just fine by leveraging its increasing top line and almost concluding its investment of March 31, 2025, GLDD had cash and cash equivalents of $11.3 million, up from $10.2 million at 2024-end. Net cash from operating activities, as of the same period, was $60.9 million, up year over year from $38.4 million, attributable to higher earnings in the period and an increase in billings above contract revenues. With no debt maturities until 2029 and liquidity of more than $300 million, the company has a stable liquidity position to function in an uncertain market scenario. GLDD's earnings estimates for 2025 and 2026 have trended upward in the past 60 days by 39.1% to 96 cents per share and 11.8% to 95 cents, respectively. The estimated figure for 2025 reflects 14.3% year-over-year growth, with the same for 2026 indicating a 0.4% inch-down. EPS Trend Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Technical indicators suggest a continued strong performance for Great Lakes. From the graphical representation given below, it can be observed that GLDD stock is riding above both the 50-day simple moving average (SMA) and the 200-day SMA, signaling a bullish trend. The technical strength underscores positive market sentiment and confidence in GLDD's financial health and prospects. 50 & 200-Day Moving Averages Image Source: Zacks Investment Research As discussed above, strong demand trends for large-scale capital and coastal protection projects, backed by a favorable government funding scenario in the US, are the main driving factors for Great Lakes' revenues and margins. The company's competitive edge over its peers for offering these services, thanks to its multi-year new build program, is an added catalyst amid the favorable market optimism regarding GLDD stock is reflected in three of the three recommendations pointing at a "Strong Buy'. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Thus, based on the above discussion and trends of the technical indicators, this Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stock is a decent choice to be added to the portfolio for now. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Quanta Services, Inc. (PWR) : Free Stock Analysis Report Orion Group Holdings, Inc. (ORN) : Free Stock Analysis Report Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) : Free Stock Analysis Report Granite Construction Incorporated (GVA) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
Newsweek
a day ago
- Newsweek
California To Investigate State Farm's Wildfire Insurance Claims
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. California regulators have launched an investigation into State Farm's handling of thousands of damage claims from policyholders affected by the devastating wildfires that ravaged Los Angeles County in January. Ricardo Lara, the state's insurance commissioner, said the inquiry was prompted by a growing number of complaints against the company in the wake of the deadly blazes. "Californians deserve to return to homes that are truly safe, not forced to handle smoke, soot, and ash on their own," Lara said in a news release. "Our goal is to close the protection gap and make sure insurance works the way it is supposed to, especially in the face of climate-intensified disasters." What Happened? The catastrophic wildfires that burned through Los Angeles County for days in January covered tens of thousands of acres of land, killed at least 29 people, destroyed thousands of properties and caused billions of dollars in damages. According to CoStar, the blazes wiped out almost $31 billion in property values, ravaging about 11,000 properties between homes and businesses. More than 95 percent of these real estate losses affected single-family homes. State Farm, the largest home insurer in the country, said it had received a total of 12,855 claims related to the fires as of June 10 and had already paid more than $3.96 billion in claims. The company has estimated that the January wildfires will cost it a total of $7.6 billion, though reinsurance payments from its parent company would lower the losses to about $612 million. A State Farm insurance company sign amid the rubble of a building destroyed by the Palisades fire on Sunset Boulevard in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on January 16. A State Farm insurance company sign amid the rubble of a building destroyed by the Palisades fire on Sunset Boulevard in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on January 16. FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images While State Farm says it is paying claims to policyholders affected by the fires in keeping with its "promise to customers," several customers have accused the insurer of mishandling, delaying and denying claims in the weeks and months following the blazes, leaving them in precarious financial positions or forced to stay in dangerous homes. Anger against the company has been boiling over in California since January following reports that the insurer had cut hundreds of policies in areas affected by the fires only months before the blazes broke out. That anger is mounting as many policyholders feel they are not being treated fairly by the company, which has asked for a 17 percent emergency rate hike to stabilize its financial position in the state after the fires. What Is the Investigation About? Lara announced on Wednesday that the California Department of Insurance had initiated a market conduct examination of State Farm, expanding its ongoing investigation into consumer complaints against the insurer. This type of inquiry includes a "thorough, fact-based review" that typically takes several months, the department said. The commissioner said the department had received numerous complaints from policyholders, with "some troubling patterns" emerging from them, including "the frequent reassignment of multiple adjusters with little continuity in communication, inconsistent management of similar claims, and inadequate record-keeping or information-sharing among claims teams." These issues create "unnecessary stress" for policyholders, "prolong recovery, and erode trust," Lara said. The commissioner added that while the department had launched an investigation, it could take action and advocate for consumers only if it received a formal complaint. "I urge any wildfire survivor facing delayed payments, claim disputes, multiple adjusters, smoke damage issues, or any other problems to file a formal complaint with my Department," Lara said. Complaints can be submitted on the department's website at or homeowners can call 800-927-HELP. State Farm has said it is cooperating with the California Department of Insurance in the market conduct exam process. What Are People Saying? Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said in a news release following Wednesday's announcement: "Californians deserve fair and comprehensive treatment from their insurance companies. No one should be left in uncertainty, forced to fight for what they are owed, or face endless delays that often lead consumers to give up. "While there are national standards for insurance claims handling, they can be vague and inconsistently applied, especially during large-scale, climate-driven disasters. This examination will assess whether State Farm has complied with California's consumer protection and claims handling laws and will help determine if further reforms are needed as natural disasters increasingly disrupt insurance markets across the country." Assemblymember John Harabedian, a Democrat representing Pasadena, said in a news release: "Following the Eaton Fire, our community deserves clear communication and fair treatment to facilitate a swift rebuilding process. I have received numerous complaints from neighbors regarding the claims process. A market conduct examination will provide the clarity we urgently need. I am grateful to Commissioner Lara for taking action to demand transparency and ensure that families receive the answers they deserve." State Farm said in a news release on Thursday: "A fair review will find that thousands of State Farm customers are being helped by our teams on the ground in Los Angeles County and are very satisfied. Our efforts will remain on serving all our customers and meeting our obligations under the contract while providing the necessary information to the CDI. The Department routinely examines all insurance companies. These exams help ensure processes and procedures are in full compliance with state regulations." What Will Happen Next? The investigation launched by California regulators on Wednesday is expected to take months. Meanwhile, California homeowners who have insurance policies with State Farm are likely to face a rate increase this year as the carrier's request for a 17 percent hike received interim approval by the California insurance commissioner last month. The rate changes are expected to affect homeowners renewing their policies on or after June 1, 2025.
