Wine Country Times

California Assemblymember Jim Wood recently announced that he is "working hard" to secure additional funding for the state's wildfire protection efforts.

On April 28, Assembly Bill 9 (AB-9) passed unanimously in an 8-0 vote. The bill was originally introduced by Wood to expand efforts to prevent wildfires and boost wildfire response across the state.

"The people in the district I represent have suffered three of the last five most devastating California wildfires. Be prepared," Wood wrote in an April 28 Twitter post. "I'm working hard to get more funding for #WildfirePreparedness and #HomeHardening. #AB9 #CALeg"

The bill would codify the Department the Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Program to support regional leadership to increase capacity and develop, prioritize and implement strategies and projects that create fire adapted communities and landscapes by improving watershed health, forest health, community wildfire preparedness and fire resilience.

“Wildfires have devastated the state for years,” Wood said in a statement. “The fires of the past decade, and 2020 alone, have resulted in the tragic loss of lives and property and personal trauma which has resulted in thousands of homeowner’s insurance non-renewals forcing homeowners onto the California FAIR plan, the state’s insurer of last resort, at sometimes triple the cost of their previous policies.”

Under the bill, the department would be required to provide block grants to regional entities or eligible organizations to develop strategies to develop governance structures, identify wildfire risks, foster collaboration and prioritize and implement projects within the region to achieve the goals of the program. The bill would also require the department to maintain information on program implementation on its website.

“We’ve all seen, many of us firsthand, the devastation and havoc these wildfires have caused to people and communities and we must do everything we can to prevent future tragedies,” Wood said.

Fifteen of the 20 most destructive wildfires in California have occurred in the last 10 years with five of the six largest wildfires in California history occurring in 2020 alone. 

Historic fuel load levels in many California environments and the effects of climate change has resulted in a dangerous environment for wildfires.

Approximately one in four California residential structures are located within or in proximity to fire hazard severity zones designated as “high” or “very high” on maps by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.