CaliforniaState officials may award grants to carry out regional wildfire plans
State officials may award grants for regional wildfire plans, and local fire assistance grants may cover more ways to prevent fires.
What it does
The Department of Conservation director may award grants to regional groups, and the Wildlife Conservation Board may award grants to regional and local groups, to carry out regional wildfire plans.
Money appropriated for large landscape projects must also support ecosystem health work and regional grants for plans developed to reduce wildfire risk.
Local fire grants may cover vegetation changes and other steps to prevent human-caused fires, including ignition risks along roads and driveways.
The department may continue authorizing advance payments on grants under the regional forest and fire program; the previous end date is removed.
Argument forDirect grants could help regional groups put wildfire plans into action and support ecosystem health when grant money is available.
Argument againstState agencies’ funding guidelines could shape which regional plans receive grants, leaving some regional priorities without direct support.
More detail
The Department of Conservation director and the Wildlife Conservation Board may award regional landscape grants. The director may award grants to regional entities. The board may award grants to regional entities and local entities to carry out regional priority strategies. Before grants are issued, the director and board must work with the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force to set funding guidelines tied to the state wildfire action plan and its later updates. The director and board must establish funding guidelines before issuing their respective grants.
The state must allocate money appropriated for landscape-scale projects to ecosystem health work and regional landscape grants. The allocation applies to money appropriated to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection for landscape-scale projects. Regional landscape grants must support regional priority strategies. Ecosystem health work includes projects on chaparral, shrubland, grassland, and coastal sage scrub lands.
The Department of Forestry and Fire Protection may fund more kinds of work through its local fire assistance grants. Eligible work includes vegetation changes and steps such as hardening infrastructure or community education to reduce human-caused fire starts. Ignition prevention means lawful steps to reduce fires caused directly or indirectly by people or infrastructure. Roadside and driveway vegetation work must remain consistent with the program’s project requirements.
The Department of Conservation may authorize advance payments on grants under the Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Program. The authority applies to grants under the Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Program. The bill extends the advance-payment authority beyond its previous July 1, 2025 end date, with no new end date stated.
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Where it stands
- Introduced
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
- To Governor
- Became Law
Looking ahead
No hearings or votes scheduled.
History
- 2026
- Sep 29Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 768, Statutes of 2026.Latest
- Sep 29Approved by the Governor Gavin Newsom.Became Law
- Sep 15Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3 p.m.To Governor
- Aug 31Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 78. Noes 0. Page 6995.).Major
- Vote recorded AB 2513 Petrie-Norris Concurrence in Senate Amendments. Result: pass.Lower
- Aug 30In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
- Vote recorded 3rd Reading AB2513 Petrie-Norris By Blakespear. Result: pass.Upper
- Aug 30Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 40. Noes 0.).Passed Senate
- Aug 24Read second time. Ordered to third reading.Minor
- Aug 21Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.Major
- Aug 13Read second time. Ordered to third reading.Minor
- Vote recorded Do pass. Result: pass.Upper
- Aug 13From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (August 13).Minor
- Aug 10In committee: Referred to APPR. suspense file.Minor
- Vote recorded Placed on suspense file. Result: pass.Upper
- Aug 3From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on APPR.Major
- Jul 29In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
- Jun 24From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (June 23). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.Minor
- Jun 23
- Vote recorded Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] with the recommendation: To Consent Calendar. Result: pass.Upper
- Jun 10Referred to Com. on N.R. & W.Minor
- May 27In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.Minor
- May 26Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 78. Noes 0. Page 5328.)Passed Assembly
- Vote recorded AB 2513 Petrie-Norris Assembly Third Reading. Result: pass.Lower
- May 18Read second time. Ordered to third reading.Minor
- May 14From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (May 14).Minor
- Vote recorded Do pass. Result: pass.Lower
- Apr 29In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.Minor
- Apr 20Re-referred to Com. on APPR.Minor
- Apr 16Read second time and amended.Major
- Apr 15From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 13. Noes 0.) (April 14).Major
- Apr 14
- Vote recorded Do pass as amended, and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. Result: pass.Lower
- Apr 7From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on W., P., & W. (Ayes 14. Noes 0.) (April 6). Re-referred to Com. on W., P., & W.Minor
- Apr 7Re-referred to Com. on NAT. RES.Minor
- Apr 6From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on NAT. RES. Read second time and amended.Major
- Vote recorded Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Water, Parks, and Wildlife]. Result: pass.Lower
- Mar 9Referred to Coms. on NAT. RES. and W., P., & W.Minor
- Feb 21From printer. May be heard in committee March 23.
- Feb 20Read first time. To print.Introduced
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