Gov. Gavin Newsom Asks To Extend FEMA Funding for California Wildfire Survivors

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked the federal government to extend Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster assistance to survivors of last year’s wildfires as they struggle to rebuild.

If approved, the 12-month extension of FEMA disaster assistance would allow survivors to keep receiving support through July 2027. The Individuals and Households Program provides financial and housing assistance and could benefit 29,500 households. About 1,000 are currently getting temporary housing assistance.

“We’re doing everything in our power to support survivors, but they need continued federal support to rebuild safely and fully,” Newsom said. “Cutting off assistance now would leave families without the resources they need at a critical moment in their recovery.”

The state is still reeling from the January 2025 wildfires in Palisades and Altadena. They destroyed 16,000 structures, including 12,000 homes, causing upward of $131 billion in property and capital losses.

Wildfire survivors have a long road to recovery

FEMA released $2 billion to wildfire survivors in the months after the fire, including $101 million for housing and other needs assistance. This money has helped over 31,000 people obtain short-term rentals and home repair costs. California also enacted its own mortgage relief program.

But many people are still displaced after the fire, and only a few homes have been completely rebuilt. Los Angeles, for instance, suffered 7,417 damaged or destroyed homes. The city has issued 1,891 new building permits, but just 34 homes have been rebuilt.

California blames a series of structural problems, including slow insurance payments, housing shortages, and a lack of contractors.

But Newsom also blamed FEMA for not approving assistance quickly enough. Hundreds of millions in public assistance funding associated with the wildfires haven’t been approved by the Department of Homeland Security. That’s also stalling projects for new schools, parks, and infrastructure.

“These delays are holding up critical recovery projects and rebuilding efforts in impacted communities that FEMA experts have already approved,” Newsom’s statement said.

War of words

There’s been plenty of criticism on all sides after the Easton and Palisades fires—the second and third most destructive in California’s history, according to CAL FIRE. State leaders blame the federal government for slow-rolling federal assistance. President Donald Trump accuses state officials of ineptitude and has tried to federalize cleanup efforts.

The city of Malibu recently sued Los Angeles and several other entities for negligence in maintaining the water supply system, among other allegations.

And, California’s insurance agency alleges insurance companies, particularly State Farm, are slow or confusing in responding to the almost 39,000 claims from homeowners.

Last week, they sought sanctions against that insurer, up to a one-year suspension of its license. State Farm, in return, called the state’s insurance market “dysfunctional.”