Wildfire safety: fuels reduction projects.

Assembly Members Ellis and Gallagher propose temporary exemptions from California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requirements for specific wildfire fuel reduction projects in high-risk areas, while establishing new oversight mechanisms for emergency wildfire safety measures. The legislation creates a pathway for expedited approval of five categories of fuel reduction work: removal of hazardous or dead trees, creation of strategic fuel breaks, clearing of evacuation routes, implementation of cultural burning practices, and maintenance of existing fuel modification projects.

For strategic fuel breaks and roadway clearing, the exemptions apply only to common, non-native vegetation species under eight inches in diameter. Lead agencies must hold public meetings with 30 days' notice before determining a project's exemption status and file notices with both the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation and county clerks upon project approval. These CEQA exemptions expire on January 1, 2028.

The bill requires the California Environmental Protection Agency and Natural Resources Agency to report to the Legislature by January 31, 2026, on implementation of the Governor's March 2025 emergency proclamation regarding fuel reduction projects. These reports must detail which entities requested and received regulatory relief, document project specifications including location and acreage, and assess both alignment with state wildfire goals and compliance with environmental protection standards. Local agencies retain authority to levy fees sufficient to cover associated costs, with no state reimbursement required for implementing the program.