The executive order will target price gouging and halt some environmental regulations to speed up rebuilding, the governor said.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced an executive order on Jan. 12 that focuses on rebuilding as the Los Angeles area burns from multiple wildfires.
Newsom spoke with NBC News’s Jacob Soboroff on “Meet the Press” about the executive order, which will target price gouging and halt environmental regulation related to “projects to repair, restore, demolish, or replace property or facilities substantially damaged or destroyed as a result of this emergency.”
“I’m worried about issues of rebuilding as it relates to scarcity, as it relates to property taxes, meaning scarcity of resources, materials, personnel. I’m worried about time to getting these projects done,” Newsom said.
Newsom said that California leads the country in “environmental stewardship,” which he doesn’t intend to give up.
“But one thing I won’t give into is delay. Delay is denial for people: lives, traditions, places torn [apart], torn asunder. Families, schools, community centers, churches, you’ve seen it,” Newsom said. “The number of schools that have been lost in this community, and … we’ve gotta let people know we have their back.”
Multiple large wildfires have devastated the Los Angeles area recently, leveling blocks of homes and businesses. The fires have killed 16 people as of Jan. 11, with five deaths attributed to the Palisades Fire and 11 to the deadly fire burning in and around Altadena and Pasadena near Eaton Canyon, according to a statement from the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.
Officials expect that number to rise as cadaver dogs complete systematic grid searches of destroyed neighborhoods. Authorities have created a center to report those still missing.
As of the evening of Jan. 11, CalFire reported that the Palisades Fire and the fires in the vicinity of Altadena and Pasadena near Eaton Canyon, near Sylmar, between Ventura and Los Angeles counties, and around Soledad Canyon Road had already consumed roughly 62 square miles, equal to an area larger than San Francisco. The Palisades Fire and the fire near Altadena and Pasadena alone incinerated 59 square miles.
By Jacob Burg
