Calif. Fire Agencies Request $100M in State Funding

Following some of the largest fire and mudslide events in California history, the California Fire Chiefs Association is urging Governor Jerry Brown and state lawmakers to provide an additional $100 million in state funds for pre-deployment of staffing, apparatus, and equipment before extreme weather events.

“We commend the governor’s commitment today of $25 million of Cap and Trade funding to fund additional fire engines for the mutual aid system, and we look forward to working with state lawmakers on a larger investment to increase preparedness, improve communication, and fund public safety personnel deployed to disaster-stricken areas,” said Mark Hartwig, president of the California Fire Chiefs Association, in a release.

According to the coalition, Ventura County effectively used state funding to up-staff and pre-position 24 additional fire engines in anticipation of the wind event prior to the Thomas Fire. In addition, local government resources from around California were pre-deployed in Montecito and performed a number of successful swiftwater rescues.

In its letter to Governor Brown and the Legislature, the local fire agency coalition urged $100 million in increased funding to:

• Purchase fire, rescue, HAZMAT, and EMS equipment for distribution from the Office of Emergency Services to local agencies in the Mutual Aid System
• Modernize the aging Mutual Aid System to facilitate ordering, logistical support, and command and control functions at local public safety communications centers
• Fund pre-positioning of all-hazard resources in advance of predicted extreme weather events
• Fund a geo-based opt-out disaster notification system to alert people in the path of approaching or anticipated life-threatening events.