A invoice that sought to overtake California’s system for wildfire hazard mapping has died within the state Meeting.
Senate Invoice 610, launched in June by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), sparked heated debate over its plan to eradicate the decades-old system of rating state and native lands as “reasonable,” “excessive” or “very excessive” hearth hazard severity zones — designations that affect growth patterns and constructing security requirements based mostly on an space’s likelihood of burning.
The plan as a substitute would have empowered California’s state hearth marshal, Daniel Berlant, to create a single “wildfire mitigation space” classification for California, which supporters mentioned would simplify the system and create a uniform set of requirements for wildfire preparation and mitigation.
The invoice was held within the Meeting Appropriations Committee on Thursday.
“We’re relieved this harmful proposal won’t be shifting ahead this yr,” mentioned J.P. Rose, a coverage director and senior legal professional with the Heart for Organic Variety, who opposed the invoice.
Rose and different critics had described SB 610 as “true madness” that might make it simpler to develop extra housing in fire-prone areas. They mentioned it could additionally wrest decision-making energy over such choices away from native governments.
Rose mentioned he considered Thursday’s choice as a victory for the greater than 150 organizations that weighed in towards the invoice in a sequence of open letters to Gov. Gavin Newsom and state legislators.
“We stay up for collaborating with the Legislature in steering new housing away from high-risk areas whereas supporting equitable and climate-resilient growth in current communities,” he mentioned.
Proponents of the laws, alternatively, mentioned the plan wouldn’t dictate the place property might be constructed however would as a substitute streamline the present system and guarantee uniform hearth safety requirements for all buildings in designated wildfire mitigation areas.
“The essential must strengthen our wildfire mitigations continues,” Berlant mentioned in a textual content message on Friday. “We are going to proceed to work with our stakeholders to deal with the necessity to carry change to the unacceptable trajectory we’ve been on associated to houses being destroyed [by] wildfire.”
Wiener didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Legislative officers mentioned it’s probably the invoice can be revived subsequent yr.
SB 610 is “one thing I care rather a lot about,” Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks, chair of the appropriations committee, advised reporters after the listening to.
“I’ve labored with the senator on this, and I believe we want extra time to proceed to work on it,” Wicks mentioned. “However I count on we’ll see extra motion on that subsequent yr as effectively.”
Occasions employees author Anabel Sosa contributed to this report.
