Box 15, Folder 11, Document 32

OFFICE OF

COMPTROLLER GENERAL
STATE CAPITOL

ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30334

James L. BENTLEY

COMPTROLLER GENERAL April By 1968

Honorable Ivan Allen, Jr.
Mayor

City of Atlanta

City Hall

Atlanta, Georgia 30303

Dear Ivan:

Thanks for your letter and request that I give some attention to Chapter 14
of the Report of the President's Commission on Civil Disorders which relates
to repair and compensation of damages incurred in riot areas,

You are to be commended for moving so vigorously and in such comprehensive

thrust to meet the reauirements of this Report. This is typical of you,
however.

I am rather thoroughly familiar with Cnapter 14 as well as the whole report

of the Insurance Advisory Panel submitted by Governor Richard Hughes of
New Jersey. Several of my fellow Insurance Commissioners and I worked
rather closely and pleasantly with both Governor Hughes and his executive
assistant, Stanford Ross, in research and hearings prior to the drafting of the
report.

The proposed changes in the Federal Disaster Act mentioned in Chapter 14
are already under way in the Federal Congress where legislation was introduced

several days ago.

The second section of Chapter 14 deals with the subject of insurance, and

here again legislation has already been introduced in the Federal Congress to
implement the nationwide aspects of the recommendation, These include the
creation of a national insurance development corporation which will provide a
type of reinsurance for the industry for riot losses due to the disturbing
withdrawal of European reinsurers from the American market, Legislation has
also been introduced in the Congress by Senator Russell Long and Congressman
Wilbur Mills to accomplish the proposed tax deferral features of the Panel

report,






Honorable Ivan Allen, Jr. - 2- April 8, 1968

I have already held exploratory sessions with local property and casualty insurance
executives on the subject of the recommended "voluntary plans" to provide fair access
to property insurance for property owners, A joint industry - government group is
being formed to develop voluntary plans and give the opportunity to the industry to
respond without the necessity of mandatory legislation creating insurance pools to
facilitate insuring property in urban core areas.

It would be helpful to have your personal assistance in this program or the benefit of
the expertise of some of your department heads and municipal officials. I will be
contacting you about this later in the spring.

It appears, therefore, that every flank has been covered from the insurance, compen-
sation and repair aspect of the riot problem. These areas obviously involve state
and federal action. I have already testified twice and filed four separate statements
with Congressional Committees in Washington on these subjects. I think that the
presently pending federal legislation with some quite appropriate amendments will

be passed within the next sixty days.

Work to be done on the insurance aspect here at the state level is progressing, and

I will continue to report to you on it. Incidentally, a recent state-wide survey of
insurance agents and brokers indicates virtually no discrimination against property
owners in Georgia due to race and color. There are the implications of race and
geographical discriminations which themselves are minimum in Georgia. They will
nevertheless be significantly studied as we begin applying these proposed solutions.

Finally, let me thank you for your good and patient leadership at the municipal

level. We must pray fervently and regularly that our City and our entire State will
continue to be spared this humiliating destruction. Understanding and patient leadership
is a part of the solution.

Sincerely,

CN dtl;
des o

2 . Bentley
President ,/ National Associatibn
of Insufance Commissioner

>



i
}

JLB:ds