Maryland officials will appeal a federalgovernment's decision to deny millions of dollars in disaster aidsought by the state, following the Freddie Gray riots in Baltimorethat left the state with excessive repair costs. DougMayer, a spokesman for Gov. Larry Hogan said in a letterto the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), that thegovernor's office “will be pushing to have the decisionreversed.” FEMA's decision, which claims that the aid was“not appropriate” for rioting events, is under review by the HoganAdministration. If granted, the FEMA aid would cover 75% ofeligible costs for state and city public agencies.

American International Group, Inc. (AIG) ismaking it possible for students in 19 global cities to acquirevaluable skills in entrepreneurship, financial literacy and workreadiness through a generous grant of $425,000 to implement JuniorAchievement USA^® (JA) programs. Students from kindergarten through 12th grade will benefit from JAprogramming during the 2015–2016 school year. The initiative willenable students to learn important skills, including creating abudget, becoming work-ready and developing a business plan. AIGemployees will serve as JA classroom volunteers and board members,while supporting other special events.

Leavitt Group's Las Vegas office was recentlyawarded an “Agency Excellence Award” at the group's annualconference. Wade Leavitt, local managing co-owner of LeavittInsurance Agency, who accepted the award with co-owner DaveJohnson, was also recognized for his 30-year service with thecompany.

Erie Indemnity Company, a member of ErieInsurance Group, will host an audio webcast with the financialcommunity on Friday, July 31, at 10 a.m. ET. The webcast isto discuss results of the second fiscal quarter for 2015. Thelive webcast will air via the company's Investor Relations website andwill be placed in the archive after 1:30 p.m. ET.

Fosun International Limited andMeadowbrook Insurance Group, Inc. announced onTuesday, July 7 the completion of Fosun's acquisition ofMeadowbrook. The transaction was completed following confirmationof Meadowbrook shareholder approval along with all necessaryregulatory approvals.

The Chinese automobile insurance market will benefit from a USD$5 million investment from Solera Holdings, Inc.The country's first Solera Technology Center (STC)research facility will be created to advance the rapidly growingChinese automobile insurance industry. A joint venture created in2011 between Solera and a leading global insurer MAPFRE, STC seeksto modernize the insurance ecosystems of growing and emergingcountries worldwide with data-based science, predictive software,and technology-focused education and training for the P&Cindustry.

More than four years after Christchurch was hitwith a 6.3 magnitude earthquake, the second-largest city in NewZealand still has visible widespread damages. The aftermath of thedisaster that killed 185 people on February 22, 2011, now hasresidents questioning the recovery of the city. It was thesecond major earthquake to hit Christchurch within a period of afew months, and although the first was far deeper, there were nofatalities. There were 13,000 aftershocks that followed the secondearthquake, which occurred at midday when shoppers and touristsfilled the streets, damaging more than 100,000 houses and renderingmore than 11,500 uninhabitable. Approximately 90% ofChristchurch residents had insurance coverage but settlementnegotiations between insurers and property owners have delayed therecovery process.