As Southern California Battles Massive Wildfires, House Passes Rep. Carbajal Bill to Reduce Wildfire Threat

Today, bipartisan legislation to reduce wildfire risks written by Congressman Salud Carbajal (D-CA-24) was advanced by the U.S. House of Representatives. The vote comes as firefighters are battling wildfires across Southern California, including a new fire less than 50 miles from Rep. Carbajal's district.

Rep. Carbajal's Fire Safe Electrical Corridors Act would reduce procedural steps for removing hazardous vegetation near power lines, cutting red tape to allow for a more streamlined process when tackling wildfire risk.

The Congressman spoke on the floor earlier today advocating for the passage of his bill. You can watch that full speech here.

"As hundreds of brave firefighters, first responders, and forest rangers work around the clock to respond to the massive wildfires burning across California, I'm working in Washington to approve the federal policy changes that can help us prevent these increasingly-destructive fires," said Rep. Carbajal. "Our bipartisan bill is a no-brainer for the Western states that have seen the rising risk of fires year after year. No one change in policy will eliminate wildfire risk entirely, but I call on my colleagues: let's continue down this road of wildfire response - not holding up disaster aid for partisan posturing in the wake of this historic fire season."

The legislation advanced today would allow the U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management to approve the removal of hazardous trees near power lines on federal land - including national forests like Los Padres National Forest - without requiring a timber sale, easing a serious threat that has in the past been a major cause of destructive wildfires.

Currently, utility companies are required to keep trees and branches away from powerlines on federal land. But fallen or dead trees cannot be cleared currently without a timber sale, creating an administrative step that can slow clearing of hazardous fuel and potential triggers for a wildfire on federal land.

The bill was adopted as an amendment to the bipartisan Fix Our Forests Act.

The Fire Safe Electrical Corridors Act would:

• Allow the Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management to provide standing permission for electrical utilities to cut and remove hazardous trees near power lines without requiring a timber sale.
  
• Require any utility that sells marketable forest products from hazardous trees removed near power lines to return any proceeds to the U.S. government.
  

The bill was first introduced the bill in 2023 with California Representatives Carbajal, Jim Costa (D-CA-21), and David Valadao (R-CA-22) leading in the House and U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein and Alex Padilla leading in the Senate.

The bill was approved by the House Natural Resources Committee unanimously in September 2024.