Car insurers helped fund Patrick inaugural

Almost half of the most generous donors to Governor-elect Deval Patrick's inaugural next week are major auto insurers whose business could be greatly affected by Patrick's actions on efforts to reform the state's highly regulated industry.

Four of Patrick's nine leading contributors -- Arbella Insurance Group, the Commerce Group, the Hanover Insurance Group, and Liberty Mutual Group -- have a significant stake in whether Massachusetts shifts to a less-regulated system, which opponents say would discriminate against certain drivers, but which supporters say would give consumers more competition.

The four insurers joined Comcast, The Beal Companies, Joanne and Paul Egerman, Simon Brand Ventures, and the State Street Corp. at the platinum level of giving, according to a donor list released by Patrick's inaugural team yesterday; lesser contributors are listed at levels of gold, silver, sponsors, and friends.

Stephen Crawford, a spokesman for Patrick's inaugural effort, declined to say how much each contributor had given, or what amount corresponds to each giving level. He said Patrick will eventually detail all the contributions, perhaps as early as next week. Corporate donations were capped at $50,000.

All four insurers have been active in the debate over whether Massachusetts should change its auto insurance market; Arbella and Commerce have lobbied to keep the current model, and Liberty Mutual and Hanover have pushed for deregulation.

The companies helped fund a flurry of television ads this year aimed at the public and at state lawmakers, who ended up taking no action. Representatives of the insurers could not be reached for comment late yesterday.

Governor Mitt Romney has been mostly unsuccessful in his push for deregulation, but the debate is expected to resume after Patrick takes office on Thursday.

Patrick signaled during the campaign that he favors more competition within the current framework, but he has not made clear what he will do once he is in office.

One insurance industry insider said the four insurers were clearly trying to get into Patrick's good graces.

"There's no question," said the insider, who has an interest in the outcome and would speak only on on condition of anonymity . "We're all interested to see what new governor does."

Crawford dismissed the suggestion that the insurers were trying to buy influence and he said they should expect no favors.

"What they get is tickets to the inaugural, their name listed in the program, and the satisfaction of knowing that their contribution made it possible for a lot of people who never even thought they would be included in an event like this," Crawford said.

Commerce was a big contributor to Patrick during the gubernatorial campaign.

Liberty Mutual gave generously to his Republican opponent, the outgoing lieutenant governor, Kerry Healey.

One of the cochairmen of Patrick's transition team, a Worcester lawyer, Michael Angelini, is chairman of the board at Hanover.

Other donors to the inaugural effort include biotech and pharmaceutical companies such as Amgen and AstraZeneca, Red Sox owner John W. Henry, and the AFL-CIO.

Crawford said it is still unclear how much Patrick's inaugural celebration will cost.

However, a person knowledgeable of the fund-raising said they expected to raise more than $1 million from private donations. Crawford said more than 10,000 people are expected to take part in the inaugural festivities, which are spread out over several locations across the Commonwealth. (Details can be found online at www.jan4th.org.)

Patrick's team also released a list of 97 inaugural committee members, including author John Updike, singer James Taylor, and former state attorney general Scott Harshbarger.

Some committee members also donated to the inaugural effort, Crawford said.

Inauguration week will include the first-ever outdoor swearing-in ceremony outside the State House, a youth event at the Shubert Theater , and public celebrations in Pittsfield, Springfield, North Andover, Hyannis, and North Dartmouth. "Deval Patrick pledged to engage citizens in civic life and to engage government in their lives," said Beverly Morgan-Welch, cochairwoman of the committee. "Bringing the inauguration to as many people as possible sends a strong signal to everyone that a new day has dawned in Massachusetts."

Scott Helman can be reached at shelman@globe.com.