Wildfires
RIVERSIDE (CNS) – State Senator Kelly Seyarto (R – Murrieta) said Monday his recently signed bill to promote expedited resolutions to recover from property damage stemming from wildfires will help reduce “unnecessary government bureaucracy” that might otherwise mire homeowners in long delays, waiting to rebuild.
“When a wildfire destroys a home or an entire neighborhood, families should be able to focus on rebuilding their homes and their lives, not navigating unnecessary government bureaucracy, no matter where the fire strikes in California,” Seyarto said Monday. “The challenges communities face after a disaster are a reminder that government action must go beyond promises and good intentions.”
In the most recent legislative session, Seyarto introduced Senate Bill 904, titled “Recovery from a State of Emergency.” The proposal received unanimous approval in the Senate and near-unanimous approval in the Assembly in August.
It was signed into law by the governor on Sept. 29.
The bill has two activation dates — Jan. 1, 2028, and July 1, 2028. The first date clears the way for property owners filing for permits to remove debris, rebuild and procure other land-use authorizations to complete everything online, as opposed to via hard copy mailings and submissions.
The second date is the point at which the California Department of Housing & Community Development, in coordination with other agencies, must convene a “workgroup” to draw up recommendations for which provisions of the state Building Standards Code to temporarily suspend in order to “facilitate rapid, safe, disaster-resilient and cost-effective rebuilding” of decimated places.
“Families deserve a government that is prepared, follows through, removes unnecessary obstacles and makes rebuilding a priority, not an opportunity to force new mandates on victims,” the senator said. “I introduced SB 904 because that commitment should not end with one disaster. Every California community deserves the same urgency and support when tragedy strikes.”
Seyarto, a career firefighter prior to entering politics in the previous decade, said he was inspired to spearhead the bill after observing the profound hardships faced by property owners in the wake of the wind-driven Los Angeles County wildfires in January 2025 that destroyed thousands of residential and commercial structures.
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