During Wildfire Preparedness Week, Sen. Ben Allen, D-Pacific Palisades, reflected on the devastation of last year's Los Angeles fires and the continued need to reduce risk across regions to better mitigate damage when disaster strikes.
"Preparing for the next disaster is daunting, but being proactive can ultimately save lives and treasure," Allen said. "We need to adopt an all-hands approach to improve community resilience and better protect families from the new challenges of our growth and a changing climate. Collectively, we can make a more meaningful difference through smart actions and investments to be more prepared for the road ahead."
Allen has spent the past two years focused on resilience and risk reduction across California. The passage of his Prop 4 unlocked $10 billion of investments in infrastructure improvements and resilience projects — the largest investment of this kind in state history. After finalizing $3.2 billion in Prop 4 investments in 2025-26, the state has proposed at least an additional $2.2 billion for the coming fiscal year. Funds have already been used to reduce fire fuel in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Allen has proposed two policies this year aimed at reducing risk across communities.
SB 894 provides low-interest loans for Californians to make home hardening and defensible space upgrades — lowering the financial barrier to renovations that can reduce a structure's fire risk by nearly 50 percent.
SB 1297 establishes Regional Wildfire Partnerships to pool resources between local agencies, nonprofits, insurers and utilities to improve community-scale resilience.
"We cannot improve affordability and reduce risk while operating in siloes," Allen added. "Preparation to save lives and minimize losses requires public participation and collective action."
Edited by SMDP Staff