Thursday, June 18, 2026

Fire Survivor Homeowners’ Mortgage-Pause Bill Clears Key Senate Committee

A measure by Pasadena Assemblymember John Harabedian would let disaster survivors statewide halt payments on uninhabitable homes

A bill that would give homeowners across California a clear path to pause mortgage payments after a declared disaster cleared the state Senate Banking and Financial Institutions Committee on Wednesday, advancing legislation written by an Assemblymember whose own district was gutted by the Eaton Fire.

The committee voted 7-0 to approve AB 1842, the California Emergency Mortgage Relief Act, with amendments, and sent it to the Senate Judiciary Committee. The bill is not yet law.

AB 1842 was authored by Assemblymember John Harabedian (D-Pasadena), whose 41st District includes Altadena, where the January 2025 Eaton Fire destroyed 9,418 structures, according to Cal Fire. State Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez (D-Pasadena), who represents Pasadena and Altadena, is among the bill’s co-authors.

The measure would require a mortgage servicer to offer forbearance for an initial 180 days when the Governor or the federal government declares a state of emergency and a home is made uninhabitable. A borrower could extend that relief in 90-day increments, up to a 12-month maximum. During forbearance, the bill would bar late fees and default-rate interest and would require servicers to report borrowers’ credit obligations under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act.

When Harabedian introduced the measure in February, his office described it as a first-of-its-kind statewide protection aimed at prompt relief for future disaster survivors. California law already lets hardship borrowers request forbearance during an emergency; AB 1842 would set a uniform process rather than rely on case-by-case relief. Families are displaced by high rebuilding costs, insurance delays and labor shortages, all of which lengthen recovery, according to Harabedian’s office.

“Communities deserve a clear assistance framework that will give them the best shot at recovering in the aftermath of a natural disaster,” Harabedian said in a statement issued by his office after the vote. “By establishing that framework, we can set our state up for success as we continue to combat the effects of climate change and best serve affected families.”

The bill grew out of the 2025 wildfires. After California required 12 months of forbearance and barred foreclosures following the fires, some homeowners reported servicers denying or delaying relief, according to National Mortgage News, which reported that those accounts drove Harabedian’s push to write the requirements into law.

At an April hearing of the Assembly Banking and Finance Committee, a Center for Responsible Lending representative testified in support, telling lawmakers that “nobody wins from a foreclosure on a disaster-damaged uninhabitable house,” according to the hearing record. Industry groups raised concerns. Paul Gigliotti, chief executive of the California Mortgage Bankers Association, said in remarks reported by National Mortgage News that the bill “goes further than current law by applying these requirements to any state-declared emergency.” A contested provision letting borrowers sue servicers was among the points reworked in committee.

The Assembly passed AB 1842 on May 26 on a 58-14 vote. The companion bill, AB 1847, would extend wildfire forbearance for Eaton and Palisades fire survivors from 12 months to 36 and push the deadline to request relief to January 7, 2029.

Harabedian’s 41st District spans La Cañada Flintridge, Pasadena, Altadena, Sierra Madre, Monrovia, Bradbury, San Dimas, La Verne, Claremont, Upland, Rancho Cucamonga, Oak Hills, Piñon Hills and Phelan.

In Altadena, the need remains visible: as of December 2025, only 23 of nearly 6,000 significantly damaged residential properties had completed rebuilding, according to a Catalyst California analysis of county permitting data. If AB 1842 clears Senate Judiciary, it would continue through the Senate before any vote to send it to the Governor — deciding whether the next disaster comes with a payment pause already written into state law.