CA lawmaker demands federal probe amid fire destruction, as Sacramento seeks unity and accountability
California lawmakers called for unity amid the historic Los Angeles wildfires, while at least one fired off letters to Congress calling for federal investigations into Sacramento's fire preparedness and environmental policies.
Republican lawmakers also said at a news conference Monday that any talk of gaveling-in the special session with the express purpose of buttressing the state against President-elect Trump should be quashed.
Assemblymember Carl DeMaio, R-San Diego, said he is sending letters to members-designate of the new Trump administration and top oversight lawmakers, suggesting officials in Sacramento will not "get to the truth" on the blazes.
DeMaio said tragedies like wildfires are a rare issue that can unite Republicans and Democrats, adding Californians "stand united in wishing the best to these communities for a speedy recovery."
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"But I also believe that Californians also stand united on a very important issue of accountability. Why were we not better prepared for this disaster? All Californians are asking that question."
DeMaio said the legislative special session should include oversight hearings on questions he claimed Gov. Gavin Newsom has not sufficiently answered.
"He's given [questioners] nothing but evasion and yes, frankly, dishonesty," DeMaio claimed. "I do not believe that we are going to get to the truth if we leave the investigation in the hands of Gov. Gavin Newsom and other state and local politicians."
DeMaio said two of his letters have been sent to Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rand Paul and House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, both of Kentucky, to probe "a number of failures by state and local politicians on these fire disasters."
He added that he will ask President-elect Trump to also sign an executive order requesting federal agencies investigate California’s lack of brush management, public land maintenance and inadequate water supply and infrastructure in the fire-affected areas.
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Lawmakers also hammered insurance companies and warned the state’s insurance market could go insolvent if changes aren’t made amid dropped coverages and private companies pulling out of the state.
Assembly Minority Leader James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, noted his district weathered the 2019 Paradise fire, and offered the caucus’ condolences and support to those dealing with the crisis in Los Angeles.
"Our thoughts and prayers are going out to those community members and those first responders who are fighting and doing God's work fighting these fires as we speak. I want to make sure that we're doing everything we can to help get people safe, to help people recover," Gallagher said.
"[W]e need to do a whole lot more to combat and prevent catastrophic wildfires in our state," he said, adding that both wildfire prevention and issues with the state insurance market must be addressed in the special session.
Gallagher said that in 2021, he and other lawmakers fought for $1 billion in funding for such issues, and that there has been a major reduction in appropriations since then.
"We're calling for immediate action on recovery to help ensure that these communities recover from this disaster, but also on the real solutions that will help us to be a stronger, more resilient state against catastrophic wildfires."
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DeMaio, Gallagher and Sen. Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, also voiced concerns about the state’s insurance market.
Grove listed off almost a dozen insurance companies which she claimed either stopped writing Californian homeowners’ insurance, limited renewals or left the state’s market.
She noted homeowners cannot get or refinance a mortgage without proof of insurance and called for "permanently eliminating red tape and expediting cleanup and recovery and rebuild for all Californians affected by wildfires."
For his part, Newsom has reportedly proposed $2.5 billion in additional emergency response and preparedness funding.
Assemblymember Diane Dixon, R-Newport Beach, said seven of the 15 deadliest California wildfires have occurred over the past 10 years, and that little seems to change in the way of preparedness.
Former Republican Gov. Pete Wilson reopened the Santa Monica Freeway only 66 days after a 1994 earthquake-spurred collapse, she said.
Under Newsom, CalFIRE’s ranks and budget have both nearly doubled to nearly 11,000 members and $3.8 billion. The state’s forest management budget also increased under the potential 2028 presidential candidate.
In a tweet rejecting Republicans’ claims about cuts to fire prevention funding, Newsom’s press office tweeted that it presented a "purposefully misleading graphic that starts when a one-time budget supplemental was injected to respond to the horrific fires in 2019/2020."
Fox News Digital reached out to Newsom, as well as the Trump Transition and Comer for response to DiMaio's letters.