Legislative and Regulatory Update

By Lary Camp, Legislative Committee Co-Chair

Regulatory Update: Tony Anderson has been selected as the new Executive Officer of the Board of Forestry. He previously was with the California Natural Resources Agency. The Board has held a series of sessions on the permanent regulations governing home hardening in the Zero Zone (0 to 5 feet) from the exterior of a residence in response to the Governor’s office. It is likely to approve the proposed regulatory package at its meeting on August 20. Here is a link to a draft for a workshop on August 18:  https://bof.fire.ca.gov/business/monthly-board-binder-archive/workshop-materials-2025. 

Legislative Update: The Legislature and the Governor signed a budget by the July 1 deadline. While the budget was adopted, there is still a lot of uncertainty due to a long-term, multibillion dollar structural budget deficit. The impending federal cuts are compounding these challenges. There is talk among some Capitol insiders that the Legislature will need to revisit the budget this month because several state programs are significantly underfunded. As a result, it is likely that most of the policy bills will be placed on the so-called “suspense file” where the fiscal committees will make their final decision in late August on whether to quietly hold the bills for fiscal or political reasons, or allow them to keep moving through the process to the respective Senate and Assembly Floors for full votes. September 12 is the last day for the Legislature to pass bills for the governor’s consideration. Ultimately, Governor Newsom will have the final say where he must make a final decision by October 12 for all bills that reach his desk by September 12.

There are some big unresolved issues relating to energy and wildfires, including the state’s Cap-and-Trade Program. As part of the final agreement for the 2025-26 budget, the Legislature approved Governor Newsom’s plan that will provide a $1 billion fund shift in 2025-26 for CAL FIRE operations that will come from what the Governor has renamed as “Cap-and-Invest” instead of Cap-and-Trade. However, the budget plan defers reauthorization of the State’s Cap and Invest program when legislators return in mid-August, along with further allocations of funds that are derived from the program. 

Meanwhile, there is a continued debate over how to spend the $10 billion climate change bond (Prop 4), which is still up in the air as several stakeholders take positions on how to provide funding for various programs. It’s not clear how much of the $10 billion legislative leaders and the Governor will approve this year, but it’s all but certain to include wildfire prevention and potentially some measures to address energy affordability. 

In addition, as part of the budget, the Legislature approved landmark budget trailer bills (AB 130 and SB 131), which provides for significant policy changes to building code enforcement and CEQA, primarily to address concerns about housing affordability. Among other things, the bill contains a provision that will put a six-year pause on California from adopting any changes to the residential building code (AB 130) and provisions that are intended to streamline CEQA compliance by providing a CEQA exemption for in-fill housing projects of 20 acres or less if the project adheres to local zoning.

Lastly, it should be noted the Senate will soon be going through a transition in leadership with Senator Monique Limón (D-Santa Barbara) having been selected to become the next Senate President Pro Tempore, taking over for termed-out Senator Mike McGuire in early 2026.

Senator Limón is a progressive legislator known for her staunch environmental background and aggressive efforts to reduce the use of fossil fuels, but she is also close to various labor groups. Interestingly, Senator Limón picked up key endorsements from some moderate Democrats to help solidify her leadership role at least through mid-2028, so there are likely to be some moderate Democrats in key leadership positions.

The table below updates the list of the bills that FLC and CFA are currently monitoring. Many are listed in the “watch” group at the moment awaiting Committee hearings or amendments. The FLC Board has provided separate letters or joined with CFA and other partners to prepare letters of support or opposition to several bills in the current legislature and will continue to do so over the next month or so.

In addition to the bills listed above FLC is monitoring in conjunction with CFA proposed bills in the following areas: The letter following the bill indicates current status: NP = no current position, O = Oppose, S = support, W = Watch.

Firefighters/Emergency Response: AB 270 (S), AB 294 (S), AB 591 (W, NP), AB 1075 (W, NP), AB 1309 (W, NP), AB 1395 (W, NP), SB 223 (W), SB 234 (S), SB 514 (W), and SB 581 (W).

Fire Mapping/Planning: AB 261 (Sen. Approp. Comm. W), AB 300 (Sen. Approp. Comm. W), AB 1455 (Sen. Approp. Comm. W, NP), and SB 326 (NP).

Proposition 4 Funding: AB 307 (W), AB 372 (NP), and SB 90 (W, NP).
1. Note: The letter after author’s name denotes party affiliation.

Wildlife/Parks/30x30 Implementation: AB 43 (W), AB 454 (W), AB 679 (W), AB 846 (NP), AB 900 (W), and AB 902 (W).

Water: AB 263 (W), AB 362 (W), AB 430 (S), and AB 794 (NP).

Additional bills being monitored since the May report.

AB 241 (S), AB 252 (W), AB 429 (S), AB 479 (W), AB 619 (W), AB 706 (Two Year Bill S), AB 799 (W), AB 812 (W), AB 914 (Two Year bill O), AB 1057 (W), AB 1124 (W), AB 1331 (O).

You can find any bill’s text at the following link: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/home.xhtml.

Current Year

Legislative Archives

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Appellate Decision on WFMP Case

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Good News -- Exemptions and NTMPs

CAL FIRE has reversed its policy change regarding the acceptance of exemptions for NTMPs. Please refer to the link below to view the letter from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Ken Pimlott) to the California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection (Keith Gilless).

Should you have any questions, please send an email to the FLC Legislative Committee at legchair@forestlandowners.org.
 
Letter and Supporting Content from CAL FIRE to Board of Forestry

Download Letter

Legislative Committee Assignments

• Assembly Committees Webpage
• Senate Committees Webpage

Public Policy Institute of California

The Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) issued a report in mid-September on the status of forest health in the Headwaters Forests. On September 20, there was a panel debriefing on the report. Click on the links below to download the documents.

• PPIC Forest Health Report (Sept 2017)
• PPIC Forest Health Panel Debrief (Sept 2017)

If you are interested in wathcing the panel debrief, the video is posted on the PPIC's website:

Agency and Advocacy Letters

• FLC Letter - USFWS - NSO TA