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NEW YORK (AP) — When the unexpected happens — whether fire, hail, or human error — renters insurance can provide much-needed stability. But many choose not to purchase coverage, including in places most frequently and hardest hit by natural disasters, new research shows.

Linda Klamm, who works as an attorney for insurance policyholders after catastrophes, lost her home to a firestorm in Oakland, California, in 1991, and has firsthand experience with the challenges of collecting on a policy.

“The sky went from being a reddish color to the sun looking bloodied. Then it quickly became black,” she said, of that year. “I loaded my 3-year-old and not-quite-6-year-old into the back of the car. We got a few things — our dog, one of our three cats, the kids. There were two ways out. By the time I was leaving, one was engulfed in flames.”

In the wake of subsequent fires, including wildfires in California and other states, Klamm offers assistance to policyholders on recovering funds. While homeowners tend to have more financial stability, renters more often face the burden of losses without a financial cushion, she said.

For those who do acquire a policy ahead of time, which Klamm encourages, fire and many other “catastrophic events” are typically covered to a point, but most policies still exclude earthquakes and floods.

Replacing the bare necessities is “all-consuming and exhausting,” Klamm recalls, of the days after the firestorm. “When I wasn’t driving or at work, I was working on the claim or shopping. My youngest cried every night and begged to go home.”

Even though she had trained to handle insurance claims, Klamm found the process of re-acquiring possessions, communicating with the insurance company, and rebuilding her life grueling — and that’s with a policy in place.

The average cost of a renters insurance policy in 2023 was $148 per year, or about $12 per month, according to the most recent analysis by NerdWallet. That number’s based on a policy for a hypothetical 30-year-old with $30,000 in personal property coverage, $100,000 in liability coverage and a $500 deductible, but coverage rates vary widely by state and policy choices.

Only about 40 percent of rental households purchase renters insurance, according to a 2022 report by the Joint Center for Housing Studies by Harvard University, compared with 88 percent of homeowners who purchase coverage, according to a 2023 study by the Insurance Information Institute.

A new analysis from the nonprofit Financial Health Network has found that the uneven distribution of insurance coverage tends to leave low-income households lacking policies, especially in states that have experienced the greatest losses due to climate disaster.

“The cost of insurance products can act as a barrier,” the researchers found. “Some consumers prefer not to purchase insurance, especially if they are unaware of their risks or perceive their risks to be manageable.”

Asked why they choose not to purchase renters insurance, more than one in three polled said the cost was “too expensive” and they felt they had “no need for it,” according to the Financial Health Network.

States with higher-than-average annual losses include California, Florida, Louisiana, Texas, and Washington, according to the Financial Health Network. The losses are incurred by flooding, hurricanes, landslides, and wildfires, among other unusual weather events, such as tornadoes.

“Losses from natural disasters are an equity issue,” the study’s authors write. “Those living in high-loss states were more frequently financially vulnerable than residents of low-loss states.”

Following a disaster, renters are not responsible for financing repairs to the building where they live, but still need to replace or repair belongings that are damaged or destroyed. As renters typically have lower incomes, less wealth, and lower financial health than homeowners, the difficulties have a compounding effect.

The authors of the Financial Health Network report recommend structural policy changes. They suggest states mandate grace periods for consumers who experience financial hardship and struggle to pay insurance premiums, to help renters keep coverage if they experience cash flow issues. They also recommend landlords increase the uptake of rental insurance by making it a default expense for renters, which they would choose to opt out of, rather than opting into.

Here’s what to keep in mind:

WHAT SHOULD I KNOW ABOUT ACQUIRING RENTERS INSURANCE?

Many insurance companies will give you a discount on your renters insurance if you buy it along with another policy — such as auto insurance — which is known as “bundling.” For consumers who live in high-risk states, Klamm said, “the first piece of advice is to get it — renters insurance — and then to consider cash value versus replacement cost.”

Insurance companies make this distinction between the kinds of compensation a policyholder receives after losses. Essentially: Would you prefer to receive the dollar value of what you own (the “cash value”), or the cost of replacing it (which tends to be higher, as goods depreciate over time)? If you opt for the “replacement cost,” you’ll pay a higher monthly premium.

WHAT’S COVERED BY RENTERS INSURANCE?

Most renters insurance policies include:

— Personal property protection. If your belongings are stolen or destroyed, the insurance company pays (minus your deductible).

— Liability and medical costs. If you’re found responsible for a person being injured or property being damaged in your home, the insurance company pays.

— Loss of use. If you need to relocate after a disaster while your home is being repaired, the policy may cover hotel bills and other unexpected expenses in the interim.

REMEMBER TO UPDATE THE POLICY OVER TIME.

Klamm advises policyholders to check in and make changes to their coverage choices over the years.

“While people tend to get a policy and pay on it without changes, the limits get completely askew with reality as to what things might cost over time,” she said. “So check in on those and see that they’re adjusted, as you do tend to acquire more things.”

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The Associated Press receives support from Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism.

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Albany State University defeated Morehouse College 24-14. The two Georgia-based HBCUs met on a neutral field at MetLife Stadium for the second annual Toyota HBCU New York Classic.

Albany State scored two touchdowns early in the first quarter including a 58-yard pass by quarterback Isaiah Knowles to Rashad Jordan. They would connect again on a 13-yard reception in the fourth quarter with Isaiah Knowles finishing the game 20 for 30 and 245 yards passing with three touchdowns.

“I really wanted to win. And we went out and got it,” said Jordan.

Both teams have trained under new head coaches this season who met for their first competition at the Toyota HBCU New York Classic.

“This is a game for our kids [and] they’ve been playing this game since they were four or five years old. The fact that we’re in MetLife Stadium…doesn’t change the fact that you’re in between those lines,” said the Golden Rams head coach Quinn Gray, Sr., a former NFL quarterback and FAMU legend. “We would have played in the parking lot if they put the ball down, it doesn’t matter where, we play football. We’ll play anywhere, anytime, anyplace.”

Regarding the opportunity to play in the Toyota HBCU New York Classic, he added, “Eleven of these kids had never been on an airplane before so the experiences this has created for these kids is second to none.”

Morehouse was led by coach and alumni Gerard Wilcher, who fulfilled his dream to become a head coach for the prestigious college last February when he was brought in to lead the Tigers. 

“These are Morehouse men. We are here to win and graduate. We are working on the winning part as well as the graduation part,” said Wilcher. “It’s about growing and learning from our mistakes. Somewhere along the years, we fell way behind, and now we are playing catch up.”

The Toyota HBCU New York Classic is a multi-day celebration of HBCU culture and community activities, including career fairs and education days, a Greek step show, tailgate, battle of the bands, and more. The game’s halftime show included a live performance by rap legend Big Daddy Kane, plus spectacular drumline performances and a battle of the bands between Morehouse College and Albany State University.

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ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Help-wanted advertisements in New York will have to disclose proposed pay rates after a statewide salary transparency law goes into effect on Sunday, part of growing state and city efforts to give women and people of color a tool to advocate for equal pay for equal work.

Employers with at least four workers will be required to disclose salary ranges for any job advertised externally to the public or internally to workers interested in a promotion or transfer.

Pay transparency, supporters say, will prevent employers from offering some job candidates less or more money based on age, gender, race or other factors not related to their skills.

Advocates believe the change also could help underpaid workers realize they make less than people doing the same job.

A similar pay transparency ordinance has been in effect in New York City since 2022. Now, the rest of the state joins a handful of others with similar laws, including California and Colorado.

“There is a trend, not just in legislatures but among workers, to know how much they can expect going into a job. There’s a demand from workers to know of the pay range,” said Da Hae Kim, a state policy senior counsel at the National Women’s Law Center.

The law, signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul in 2022, also will apply to remote employees who work outside of New York but report to a supervisor, office or worksite based in the state. The law would not apply to government agencies or temporary help firms.

Compliance will be a challenge, said Frank Kerbein, director of human resources at the New York Business Council, which has criticized the law for putting an additional administrative burden on employers.

“We have small employers who don’t even know about the law,” said Kerbein, who predicted there would be “a lot of unintentional noncompliance.”

To avoid trouble when setting a salary range, an employer should examine pay for current employees, said Allen Shoikhetbrod, who practices employment law at Tully Rinckley, a private law firm.

State Senator Jessica Ramos, a Democrat representing parts of Queens, said the law is a win for labor rights groups.

“This is something that, organically, workers are asking for,” she said. “Particularly with young people entering the workforce, they’ll have a greater understanding about how their work is valued.”

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Maysoon Khan is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Maysoon Khan on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court’s decision siding with Black voters in an Alabama redistricting case gave Democrats and voting rights activists a surprising opportunity before the 2024 elections.

New congressional maps would have to include more districts in Alabama and potentially other states where Black voters would have a better chance of electing someone of their choice, a decision widely seen as benefiting Democrats.

It’s been more than three months since the justice’s 5-4 ruling, and maps that could produce more districts represented by Black lawmakers still do not exist.

Alabama Republicans are hoping to get a fresh hearing on the issue before the Supreme Court. Republican lawmakers in Louisiana never even bothered to draw a new map.

Khadidah Stone, a plaintiff in the Alabama case, said the continuing opposition was “appalling” but “not surprising.” She noted that Alabama is where then-Gov. George Wallace blocked Black students from integrating the University of Alabama in 1963.

“There is a long history there of disobeying court orders to deny Black people our rights,” she said.

A similar dynamic is playing out in Florida, where Republicans are appealing a ruling favorable to Black voters to the Republican-majority state Supreme Court.

Lawsuits over racially gerrymandered congressional maps in several other states, including Georgia, South Carolina and Texas, quickly followed the Supreme Court’s landmark Voting Rights Act decision in June. But the continued pushback from Republican legislatures in control of redistricting means there is great uncertainty about whether –- or how soon -– new maps offering equal representation for Black voters will be drawn.

Whether the Republican strategy proves to be a defiance of court orders that the Supreme Court will shoot down or a deft political move will be become clearer over the next month.

Shawn Donahue of the State University of New York at Buffalo, an expert on voting rights and redistricting, said the Supreme Court could put a quick end to the delays and “summarily affirm” the decision of a lower court panel that rejected the latest Alabama congressional map. That map continued to provide just one majority Black district out of seven in a state where Black residents comprise 27% of the population.

“You could have some of (the justices) just kind of say — ‘You know what, I didn’t agree, but that’s what the ruling was,’” Donahue said.

The Supreme Court also could agree to hear Alabama’s challenge, bringing the state’s redistricting plans back to the court less than a year after it rendered its opinion in the previous case.

Republicans want to keep their map in place as the state continues to fight the lower court ruling ordering them to create a second district where Black voters constitute a majority or close to it. The state contends the Supreme Court set no such remedy and that the new map complies with the court’s decision by fixing the problems it identified — such as how the state’s Black Belt region was split into multiple districts.

“A stay is warranted before voters are sorted into racially gerrymandered districts that are by their very nature odious,’ the state attorney general’s office wrote in the stay request.

The stakes are high. With Republicans holding a slim majority in the U.S. House, the redistricting cases have the potential to switch control of the chamber next year.

Shortly after its decision in the Alabama case, the Supreme Court lifted its hold on a similar case from Louisiana, raising hopes among Democrats that the state would be forced to draw another Black majority congressional district.

But even if the court rejects Alabama’s latest plan, it would not necessarily bring an instant end to the case in Louisiana, where U.S. District Court Judge Shelly Dick has ruled that a second majority-Black district must be drawn.

Dick has three days of hearings scheduled to begin Oct. 3. But her initial order blocking the 2022 congressional map drawn by Louisiana’s GOP-controlled Legislature — which maintains white majorities in five of six districts in a state where about one-third of voters are Black — remains on appeal. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is to hear arguments Oct. 6.

Louisiana’s lawyers argue that the Black communities the plaintiffs and the district court seek to include in a second majority Black district are too far-flung, even under the Alabama precedent.

The high court’s decision in the Alabama case “did not present a free pass to future plaintiffs to establish (Voting Rights Act) liability without proving that the relevant minority population is itself compact,” Louisiana said in its argument.

The voting rights advocates suing the state argue that the plans they have suggested so far are “on average more compact” than the plan the state is trying to preserve.

Stuart Naifeh, who is a plaintiff as part of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, said in Louisiana that the court is considering the maps drawn by only the plaintiffs because the Legislature chose not to draw any. Louisiana state Rep. Sam Jenkins Jr., a Democrat, said he is optimistic now that the matter is in the courts.

“We had the opportunity to do the right thing, which would have been fair for all the people of Louisiana,” he said. “I am disappointed that the court still has to come in and make our state do what is right.”

Louisiana’s argument against a second district has less merit than Alabama’s, said state Sen. Royce Duplessis, a Democrat. Louisiana has just one majority Black congressional district out of six even though Black residents account for one-third of the state’s population. That lone district encompasses both New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

“These are two distinct cities, two distinct regions, two distinct interests and needs, and it only makes sense to have these two large communities to anchor individual congressional districts,” Duplessis said. “We have shown that there is a multitude of ways to draw a map that has two majority Black districts that meet all the criteria for fair redistricting.”

A similar case is playing out in Florida, though not in federal court.

A state judge ruled earlier this month that a redistricting plan pushed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, a GOP presidential contender, should be redrawn because it diminishes the ability of Black voters in north Florida to pick a representative of their choice.

The state is appealing that ruling, and the case might be fast-tracked to the Florida Supreme Court, where five of the seven justices were appointed by DeSantis. Both sides are requesting a quick resolution before the next legislative session in case districts need to be redrawn for the 2024 elections.

The new map essentially drew Democratic U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, who is Black, out of office by carving up his district and dividing a large number of Black voters into conservative districts represented by white Republicans. DeSantis contended the previous district extended 200 miles just to link Black communities, violating the constitutional standards for compactness.

Angie Nixon, a Black state representative from Jacksonville, was one of the Democratic lawmakers who led a protest against the DeSantis map. She said she is still hopeful the state’s high court will ultimately deliver the outcome wanted by voting rights groups.

Nixon said groups have been organizing to get more people engaged.

“We are going to use this as an opportunity to serve as a catalyst to get people moving and get people out to vote,” she said.

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Gomez Licon reported from Miami. Associated Press writers Kim Chandler in Montgomery, Alabama, and Kevin McGill in New Orleans contributed to this report.

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NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs got the key to New York City on Friday, the same day that he released his first studio album in 17 years.

“The bad boy of entertainment is getting the key to the city from the bad boy of politics!” Mayor Eric Adams said as he presented a giant key to Combs in Times Square.

The entertainer thanked Adams and shouted, “Diddy finally has the key to the city!”

Combs, 53, was born in New York City and raised in nearby Mount Vernon.

His new album “The Love Album – Off the Grid” is his first solo studio project since 2006.

It features nearly 30 guest artists including Mary J. Blige, Justin Bieber, H.E.R., Babyface, John Legend and Busta Rhymes.

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HAMPTON, Va. (AP) — Students were dancing in the aisles and their seats in the Hampton University auditorium long before Vice President Kamala Harris took the stage for the first stop of her fall college tour.

Jaden Clemons and Layth Carpenter, both 18-year-old freshmen, said they viewed Harris as “authentic” and “relatable” as the alum of Howard University, another historically Black school.

But neither was ready to commit to supporting Harris and Joe Biden next year, the first time they will be eligible to vote in a presidential election. And when it comes to lining up behind Democrats or Republicans, Clemons said, “We don’t even feel like it’s something that we need to choose.”

Getting students like these two off the sidelines is one of the top challenges for the White House as Biden seeks a second term as the oldest president in American history, and it’s one that Harris will confront as she crisscrosses between campuses in the coming weeks. Although young people lean left, they’re less likely to vote, and preventing them from tuning out is crucial in close campaigns that hinge on narrow margins.

And Biden isn’t the only candidate trying to line up support among young voters. Former President Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination in his comeback bid for the White House, visited Iowa State University last weekend.

He tossed autographed footballs into a cheering crowd during a cookout at Alpha Gamma Rho, an agricultural studies fraternity, and then attended the football game against in-state rival University of Iowa.

“I guess the youth likes Trump,” he said.

John Brabender, a media consultant for the Trump campaign, said the former president tries to show up at events that lead to video on social media — for example, Trump’s appearance at a mixed martial arts fight in Las Vegas in July.

Since YouTube and TikTok are crucial platforms for young people, he said, “Our goal is to make sure content is created in an interesting enough way that it does get shared.

Drawing the attention of young people can be difficult, but Trump’s celebrity remains powerful. One of the few things that Isaac Gavin, a 21-year-old senior at Drake University in Des Moines, knows about the Republican primary is that Trump is a candidate again.

“I don’t even know all who is running. It seems like so many,” he said. “It’s confusing.”

Sen. Mitt Romney, a Utah Republican who announced his retirement this week, told reporters at the U.S. Capitol that he doubted Trump could make inroads with a new generation.

“My party is only going to be successful getting young people to vote for us if we’re talking about the future,” he said. “And that’s not happening so far.”

Biden won 61% of voters between the ages of 18 and 29 in 2020, according to AP VoteCast, making young voters a critical part of his coalition. However, his approval ratings within that age group now stand at 29% compared to 40% overall, according to a new AP-NORC poll.

At Hampton, Harris said there was too much at stake — abortion, voting rights, gun control — for students to miss their shot to shape the country’s future.

“What concerns me sometimes is that our young leaders will be told that their vote doesn’t matter,” she told the audience. “It’s because you voted,” Harris added, “that Joe Biden is president and I’m vice president of the United States.”

Harris’ college tour — with another stop Friday at North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, N.C. — is one part of a broader strategy.

The White House has worked with online influencers to reach people who don’t rely on traditional media. The Democratic National Committee is also building a network of student volunteers to organize on college campuses, and they flew banners over football games to urge voter registration.

“As Democrats did in 2020 and 2022, we will meet younger Americans where they are and turn their energy into action as part of our winning 2024 coalition,” said Kevin Munoz, a Biden campaign spokesman.

Given the liberal bent of younger voters, Democrats’ competition isn’t always Republicans but apathy or the lure of a third party. John Della Volpe, director of polling at the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics, said the White House will need to break through to people who tend to tune out when it comes to politics so they’re aware of what Biden has accomplished since taking office.

“It’s just an incredibly challenging environment to communicate that message,” said Della Volpe, who worked on Biden’s campaign in 2020. “And unless those things are understood, cynicism grows.”

Destiny Humphreys, a 22-year-old senior at South Carolina State University, said she fears that politicians always say they’ll “listen to the people” only to backtrack once they’re in a position of power.

“Everybody keeps saying the same thing just in different ways but ultimately, they’re not listening to the people,” she said.

On Thursday, Harris repeatedly tried to demonstrate that she understood young voters’ concerns. She said they had taught her about “climate anxiety” and their fears of a warming world.

At another point, she asked how many students had participated in active shooter drills in their schools, and a sea of hands went up. Older people, Harris said, “don’t get it.”

Harris acknowledged that the White House has faced roadblocks, such as the U.S. Supreme Court decision that undermined its debt forgiveness plan. But she said she wouldn’t stop fighting for the administration’s agenda.

“I like to say, I eat ‘no’ for breakfast,” she said. “I don’t hear ‘no.’”

Harris ended with a pitch for help.

“With each generation, we must fight for our rights and our freedoms,” she said. “And so, just stay active. Because I and your country are counting on you.”

After the event, Carpenter said she felt that Harris sort of “danced around” students’ questions and blamed problems on Congress.

But Clemons might have been won over.

Biden and Harris are “strong candidates, in my eyes,” he said, “mainly because of what I saw today.”

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Price reported from New York and Beaumont from Des Moines, Iowa. Reporting was contributed by Ayanna Alexander in Orangeburg, S.C., and Farnoush Amiri in Washington.

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