EDITORIAL: Newsom shifts blame on failed wildfire policy

Orange County Register (CA)

Jul. 17—This summer's blazing heat and perilous drought conditions have sparked a wildfire season that is among the worst that California has ever faced, yet Gov. Gavin Newsom is pointing fingers and scoring cheap political points rather than revamping the way the state deals with these recurring problems.

For perspective, CBS News reported that, "The number of wildfires in California to date this year is greater than the amount recorded in the same time period in 2020 — a year which saw more burned acreage than any recorded year in history."

Late last month, Newsom visited the site of the Lava Fire in the far north, where he blamed the Trump administration. "It goes without saying," he said, "in California we were engaged in a relationship with the federal government that was more like sparring partners." He mocked the former president for "debating raking policies" in forests.

Trump didn't get all the details right, but he highlighted an issue that shouldn't be particularly controversial — the need to enhance forest-clearing efforts to reduce the fuel load. In August, the state and feds agreed "to double the rate of forest thinning and prescribed burns to 1 million acres a year," the Mercury News reported.

At the time, Newsom praised the former administration for its quick response and "very effective" partnership with the state. There's no point debating the policies of a past administration, but time for the current state administration to embrace effective reforms that help California weather current and future wildfire challenges.

Unfortunately, the governor has lost credibility on the issue. CapRadio and NPR reported that Newsom "misrepresented his wildfire preparedness and even disinvested in prevention." He claimed that his administration thinned 90,000 acres — but really only dealt with 12,000 acres. "(T)he state's fire prevention work overall dropped by half last year," per the report.

During a video conference with Western governors, President Joe Biden complained that the starting pay for a U.S. Forest Service firefighter is below $14 an hour. However, total compensation for California state firefighters is more than $150,000 a year. County and city firefighters earn compensation packages above $200,000. Let's deal in reality. Inadequate firefighter pay is not hobbling our wildfire response.

Newsom blamed the worsening fire situation on climate change, but doubling down on the state's climate-change policies — designed to help reverse worldwide warming conditions — is the wrong approach. A changing climate certainly worsens the wildfire situation, but the key is embracing policies that help weather the changes.

For instance, the state can use its Greenhouse Gas Funds in a more-effective manner by toughening wildfire resilience rather than funding dubious projects such as High Speed Rail and affordable-housing projects. California should earmark more of those dollars, which come from the state's cap-and-trade auctions, for projects that directly improve our ability to mitigate fire risks.

The administration should also review the state's insurance policies, which make it difficult for insurers to price policies that reflect the risk. Better market pricing will discourage homeowners from building in fire-prone areas. Newsom also needs to review the state's regulations, which make it difficult for private landowners to get permits for prescribed burns.

Proper wildfire policies are not particularly sexy, but Newsom should focus on the basics and leave the finger pointing and partisanship to others.

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