Overview

• KGO/ABC7 reporting says the California Department of Insurance identified a direct business purpose for only seven of 48 trips reviewed, with incomplete records and at least 13 trips showing taxpayer-paid expenses.
• Receipts cited by reporters include more than $11,600 for a New York PrideFest stay with no insurance meetings listed, over $24,000 for a Bogotá conference with about $7,000 in taxi fares, and a South Africa trip that included a safari and $33,000 in security costs.
• Lara’s office says every trip had a direct business purpose, complied with FPPC rules, and used standard California Highway Patrol dignitary protection, and it disputes details such as the length and nature of the South Africa itinerary.
• SFGATE reports the FPPC opened the case after the new records came to light, and an ethics expert from Common Cause noted the agency typically pursues investigations only when it sees a potential for malfeasance.
• The scrutiny lands as California works through a strained insurance market after severe wildfire losses, with Lara’s office pointing to recent commitments by several insurers to maintain or expand coverage in the state.