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Treasury report recommends stricter supervision of insurers’ climate risks
Compliance Week, June 27, 2023
The Treasury Department’s Federal Insurance Office (FIO) issued a report Tuesday on gaps in how states supervise and assess climate-related risks among insurers.
The 68-page report expands upon efforts to collect data on climate-related risk in the insurance industry, specifically at the state level. The report was conducted and released in response to an executive order by President Joe Biden in May 2021.
Some states already have policies in place to incorporate climate-related risks into state insurance regulation and supervision, but these efforts are “fragmented … and limited in several critical ways,” the Treasury said in a press release.
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Settlement payouts in sexual abuse cases increasing
Business Insurance, June 28, 2023
The average amount paid out for sexual abuse settlements and verdicts is increasing dramatically, says a study.
Between 2017 and 2022, the average payout in 176 cases involving payouts of at least $1 million, was $43.9 million, according to an analysis issued Tuesday by Arlington, Texas-based Praesidium Inc., which specializes in preventing sexual abuse in organizations that serve youth and vulnerable adults.
This compares with an $11.2 million average for the 2012-2016 period, which reflects data from 109 cases, according to the analysis.
The study found that in more than a third of sexual abuse cases, there was an indication the offender had previously abused someone before the reported incident, or the organization was aware of previous concerns, although the actual number of such incidents with a previous low level of concern is “likely much higher.”
“The majority of cases of abuse occurred after missed or ignored warning signs,” it said.
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Most pickup trucks have unsafe rear seats, new study finds
CBS News, June 28, 2023
The front seats of a pickup truck are the safest place on the vehicle to be in the event of a collision.
That's according to a new crash test designed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety to evaluate rear-seat passenger safety. Four out of 5 compact pickup trucks in the study earned substandard ratings. Just one truck, the 2022-2023 Nissan Frontier, clinched an "acceptable" rating.
"All these things tell us that the rear seat belts need improvement," IIHS President David Harkey said in a statement. A high risk of head and chest injuries was behind the majority of the disappointing safety ratings.
The 2022-2023 Jeep Gladiator, 2022-2023 Toyota Tacoma, and 2022 Chevrolet Colorado all earned "poor" ratings, while the 2022-2023 Ford Ranger received a score of "marginal," the second-lowest safety rating. The trucks used in the study were crew cab models, which have full-sized back seats and the most rear passenger room of any of the cab styles.
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Roads, bridges, trails, ports: White House awards $2.2B in transportation grants
Ohio Capital Journal, June 29, 2023
The U.S. Department of Transportation will send more than $2.2 billion in grants to state, tribal and local governments under a grant program that was expanded under the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law.
The $2.26 billion for 162 projects provides funds for each of the 50 states, two territories and the District of Columbia. It is similar to the allocation for the grant program last year, the first after President Joe Biden signed the $1.2 trillion infrastructure law that added funding for the program.
The projects include improvements and expansions of roads, rail, bridges, pedestrian trails and maritime infrastructure.
The Transportation Department has managed a similar discretionary grant program since 2010, though the name of the program and criteria have changed with each presidential administration. Funding levels, set by Congress, also vary year to year, ranging from roughly $500 million to more than $2 billion in each of the two years since the infrastructure law passed.
Under Biden, the department has prioritized projects that advance climate goals, racial equity and safety.
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Environmental experts warn fracking on state lands in Ohio is dangerous, economically dubious
Ohio Capital Journal, June 29, 2023
The Ohio Oil and Gas Land Management Commission heard from three environmentally-minded experts Wednesday skeptical of opening state lands to exploration. They argued the industry is downplaying risks and the strain on resources while offering an overly optimistic outlook.
Understanding the threats
Silverio Caggiano spends a lot of time thinking about worst case scenarios. The retired Youngstown Fire battalion chief has nearly four decades of experience as a firefighter and spent more than 30 years dealing with hazardous materials. He argues the emergency response plans fracking companies offer are “paper tigers.”
“They’ll list fire service is XYZ fire department,” Caggiano said. “They neglect to put in there that XYZ fire department is a volunteer fire department and it may be an extended response time before those people actually get there to help solve your problem.”
He pointed to the Eisenbarth well fire and the Powhatan gas leak as two recent examples. In both cases, he said, the company had emergency response plans that checked all the boxes but fell apart when tested.
Caggiano also criticized the lack of information companies make available to first responders. He showed a Material Safety Data Sheet, or MSDS, for a Halliburton chemical marketed as GasPerm 1000. In the row where it would normally have a unique ID number for the compound, instead it says “proprietary.”
“They’re giving you information, but it’s useless,” Caggiano explained. “I cannot go verify this.”
Although big fires might grab more attention, Caggiano raised concerns about slower crises as well. Big trucks on small access roads is a recipe for accidents, he said. And while he worries about the brand name chemicals companies put in, he’s also concerned about substances like radium that fracking pulls out of the ground.
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