SACRAMENTO, CA (KMJ) — Governor Gavin Newsom held a news conference on Monday to highlight new firefighting equipment and his proposed $2 billion investment in wildfire and emergency preparedness.
Newsom’s state budget doubles the $1 billion increase he earlier proposed for wildfire preparation and response.
The plan will phase in 12 new Cal Fire Black Hawk helicopters and 7 massive air tankers, and add1400 fire personnel.
- $700M more to help clear brush, vegetation
- $400M to make buildings more fire-resistant
- $300M increase to reinforce Cal Fire
In 2020, lightning strikes and record heat brought us the worst wildfire season in CA history.
Climate change is here.
We’re investing record amounts to prepare CA.
More black hawks.
More air tankers.
More firefighters.
And more projects to make our state more resilient. pic.twitter.com/VfLrWn4ybP
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) May 24, 2021
The governor says his investments will enable the state to take urgent action to support wildfire suppression, improve forest health and build resilience in communities to help protect residents and property from catastrophic wildfires.
The governor says this is the largest wildfire investment in state history.
Click to listen to the report by KMJ’s Liz Kern:
