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WASHINGTON – California lawmakers urged Congressional leaders on Friday to fund federal aid amid questions about the Congressional budget fight and the possibility that they may have been imposed by the Trump administration.
Their letter, signed by all 54 House members and all Senate members, shows the latest steps in a month-long political battle to ensure California has the money it needs to clean up and rebuild its destruction after the catastrophic wildfires of January.
“The road to full recovery is long and the response from the federal government has been extremely helpful up to now, but it will require additional funding and resources,” read the letter sent to Sen. John Tune (Rs.D.), House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (DN.Y.), and House Minority Leader Hakem Giuffrey (DN.Y.).
The demand for funds arises because Congress is in the midst of its own budget negotiations. Congress must vote to continue funding the government or risk closure by March 14th.
A few days after wildfires exploded across Los Angeles County, President Biden has pledged to the federal government to support 100% of the cost of disaster relief to California until June. Funds approved through fire management subsidies and disaster declarations are heading towards the first phase of recovery, including cleaning debris, removing dangerous goods, and continuing to pay one responder’s salary.
But it remains unclear whether President Trump will maintain Biden’s promises or how Congress has decided to deal with funding for the budget.
Long before he became president again, Trump was suffering from California and had promised to withhold federal aid for wildfire relief. When the LA fire erupted just days before LA took office, the fear that California would remain unsupported was embodied.
President Trump speaks to officials on a tour of the Pacific Palisade fire damage in January.
(Mandel nkan/AFP via Getty Images)
But Trump’s first trip as president was touring the damage caused by a wildfire in Los Angeles. There, apparently moved by the destruction he witnessed, he pledged to abandon or promote federal permits or tariffs, accelerating the restructuring process.
“I’m going to give you everything you want,” he told a roundtable of staff and residents. “I’m going to give you more than the president has ever given me.”
Embarrassingly showing his daze against Trump on the 2024 campaign trail, Gov. Gavin Newsom has visited Washington, DC, and has reached the clear goal of ensuring ongoing wildfire aid.
“In times of need and crisis, people need to see their representatives working together,” Newsom said during his visit. “There’s no patience for people who are in crisis.”
Newsom once again reiterated its needs for Washington leaders in a letter seeking nearly $40 billion from various federal sectors later last month.
Trump and his Republican allies have raised the possibility of linking future aid to California to certain conditions. Rick Grenell, the special envoy for Trump’s wildfire response, said the future of federal wildfire aid will include restrictions from the California Coastal Commission, which regulates development along the state’s coastal zones and protects public access to beaches.
The letter from the California legislator appeared to nod to the extraordinary stage of coordinating disaster relief assistance.
“Just as the federal government has helped communities affected by wildfires in the western United States, tornadoes in the Midwest, ice storms in Texas and hurricanes in the southeast, we need to once again help the families, businesses and communities affected in Los Angeles County recover.”
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