State senators gathered in Pasadena on Friday afternoon to announce a series of wildfire recovery bills, including protecting renters, expanding firefighter staffing and funding programs for displaced K-12 students and community colleges.
Legislators say the 13 bills of parcels are intended to “invest in a safe California.”
“This is one of the toughest times that Los Angeles cities and counties have seen in nearly a century,” Senate Pro Tem Mike McGuire (D-North Coast) said outside Pasadena’s First United Methodist Church. (McGuire) and legislative leaders promised to address those affected by wildfires burned in Los Angeles last month.
Although the bill was attended in June and landed on the governor’s desk in September, McGuire said he hopes to “pass the legislature to quickly move these bills quickly and put them in the next 60 days. On the damn governor’s table.”
Senator Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica), who represents Pacific Palisades and co-organizes three bills, said the legislation was about “we can do everything we can to reduce the chance of such a disaster and give them once again the comfort they deserve. .”
Sens. A bill written by TomUmberg (D-Santa Ana) and Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-Los Angeles) will increase civil penalties to protect those displaced from temporary housing, accommodation or rent. It will also authorize the state attorney general to issue an arrest warrant to violators.
Another proposal would require companies to provide relief for temporary mortgage loans. If enacted, if there is a need to move due to a wildfire, the tenant can get back a portion of the already paid rent. Mobile homes located in a “state of emergency” will receive temporary rental control.
Senator Susan Rubio (D-Baldwin Park) and colleagues, chair of the Senate Insurance Committee, proposed a plan to develop a committee to focus on wildfire mitigation efforts and ensure homeowners and developments Commercial makes buildings more fire-resistant.
Another bill proposed by Rubio and Sasha Renée Pérez (D-Burbank) proposes to expand the suspension of a year-long non-updated suspension of insurance, which is currently targeting residential policies within the wildfire postal code to cover commercial policies. This will protect small businesses and apartments after the wildfire, the author believes.
McGuire introduced the first part of the sweeping all inclusive earlier this week. This is the Firefighter Act of 2025, which will manufacture about 3,000 seasonal firefighters who work for nine months of the year and are fired in the winter to become employees throughout the year.
“Let’s speak out, wildfires won’t be resting for three months,” McGuire said in a press conference.
The plan will also enable the state’s vegetation managers and CAL fire engines to operate year-round. The proposal could bring the state up to $185 million a year, and it is a “deeply needed” personnel as the West continues to burn at a historic rate, his office said.
Last month, Democratic members of the parliament introduced bills against displaced Angelens housing.
This includes legislation that could make it easier for homeowners to obtain coastal development licenses for accessories homes. Other bills include bills that will create temporary eviction exemptions to allow those displaced to stay in temporary homes; another person will allow anyone who loses the home to receive a one-year mortgage extension.
Republicans from the aisle also introduced bills that included an array that focused on strengthening criminal penalties to resolve recent cases of suspected robbery and other criminal activities during wildfires.
Two people were introduced last month, which would increase the penalty for robbery, which makes theft a felony in a large wildfire or other type of disaster. A bill by Senator Suzette Martinez Valladares (R-Santa Clarita) would make a felony imitation of police or firefighters in a state of emergency.
Legislators also want to get drones to fly drones in emergencies, aggravating penalties for aggravating arson if wildfires destroy more than 500 acres. A man recently pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in federal court in Los Angeles for his drone colliding with a firefighting plane working on a Palisades fire.
