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|  | 1. | I                  have reviewed this annual                  report on Form 10-K of PICO Holdings, Inc. (the                  “Registrant”); |
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|  | 2. | Based                  on my knowledge, this annual report does not contain any untrue                  statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary                  to                  make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which                  such                  statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period                  covered by                  this report; |
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|  | 3. | Based                  on my knowledge, the                  financial statements, and other financial information included                  in this                  quarterly report, fairly present in all material respects the financial                  condition, results of operations and cash flows of the Registrant                  as of,                  and for, the periods presented in this                  report; |
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|  | 4. | The                  Registrant’s other certifying                  officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining                  disclosure                  controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e)                  and                  15d-15(e)) and internal controls over financial reporting (as defined                  in                  Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the Registrant                  and                  have: |
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|   | (a) | Designed                  such disclosure controls                  and procedures, or caused such disclosure control and procedures                  to be                  designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information                  relating to the Registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries,                  is                  made known to us by others within those entities, particularly                  during the                  period in which this report is being                  prepared; |
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|   | (b) | Designed                  such internal control                  over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over                  financial                  reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable                  assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and                  the                  preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance                  with generally accepted accounting                  principles; |
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|   | (c) | Evaluated                  the effectiveness of                  the Registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this                  report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure                  controls                  and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report                  based                  on such evaluation; and |
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|   | (d) | Disclosed                  in this report any                  change in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that                  occurred during the Registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the                  Registrant's fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report)                  that                  has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially                  affect, the                  Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting;                  and |
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|  | 5. | The                  Registrant’s other certifying                  officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation                  of                  internal control over financial reporting, to the Registrant’s auditors                  and the audit committee of the Registrant’s board of                  directors: |
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|   | (a) | All                  significant deficiencies and                  material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control                  over                  financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect                  the                  Registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial                  information; and |
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|   | (b) | Any                  fraud, whether or not                  material, that involves management or other employees who have                  a                  significant role in the Registrant’s internal control over financial                  reporting. |
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