"This will be the most expensive natural disaster the state has ever incurred," Gov. Gray Davis declared after an aerial tour of the California wildfires.

The wildfires have burned almost as many structures as were destroyed in the 1991 Oakland Hills fire, which was the costliest wildfire in U.S. history. With almost 1 million acres burned, the conflagrations have surpassed the 1987 record of 873,000 acres.

Here's a look at the likely impact for California and the rest of the country:

Q: What's the likely cost of the current wildfires?

A: "We're reluctant to assign a dollar amount yet because many fires are still out of control," said Candysse Miller, head of the Insurance Industry Network of California.

However, Miller said the number of structures destroyed is nearing the 2,900 burned in the 1991 Oakland Hills fire that caused $1.7 billion in insured losses.

In 2002 dollars, the Oakland Hills fire would cost $2.2 billion, ranking10th on the Insurance Information Institute's list of costliest catastrophes -- a list topped by the 2001 terrorist attacks at $40.6 billion followed by Hurricane Andrew, the 1992 Florida blowout that led to $19.87 billion in insured losses in 2002 dollars.

Q: Those are insured losses covered by private policies. Will my insurance premiums rise if I live in California or another state?

A: If you're a Californian, it's too soon to tell.

If you live elsewhere, no. Just as Californians didn't pick up the tab for Andrew, Floridians don't pay for California wildfires because insurance rates and regulations are state matters.

Insurance analysts consider $2 billion or so in wildfire claims a manageable loss when the industry had a surplus of $312.5 billion as of June 30.

Hurricane Andrew was so devastating it caused Florida insurance regulators to revise their models for damage a hurricane might do, said P.J. Crowley of the Insurance Information Institute.

Should these fires prove catastrophic on a similar scale, he said, California might revise its insurance model although it's unlikely.

Q: What will taxpayers pay?

A: As with other catastrophes, taxpayers typically pick up sums similar to insurance coverage for damage to roads, highways, sewerage and other infrastructure.

Q: What about other relief?

A: Bush's disaster declaration paves the way for low-interest disaster loans, and the Internal Revenue Service granted tax relief to affected taxpayers in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura counties.

Federal employment and excise tax deposits made by Nov. 7 won't be subject to penalty, while returns and other tax payments due on or after Oct. 21 get an extension until Dec. 29. Just mark "CA Wildfires" in red on the top of tax forms.

Also, taxpayers in the presidential disaster area can claim casualty losses not covered by insurance this year or next year. Attorney-accountant Mark Luscombe of tax publisher CCH said taxpayers are generally better off taking a casualty tax loss in the year in which their income is lower.

-- Mary Deibel's e-mail address is deibelm@shns.com.

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