States spend big as water levels fall, raising risks for catastrophic fires
| TWISP, Wash. — Governments across the Western United States are allocating unprecedented sums of money to prepare for what experts expect will be one of the worst wildfire seasons in memory, as low water levels and high temperatures conspire to create tinderbox conditions.
In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has proposed spending $2 billion on emergency preparedness. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) signed a measure allocating $125 million every biennium for the next two decades on fire relief and mitigation. Oregon legislators are preparing to send s $220 million wildland protection measure to Gov. Kate Brown (D). And in Arizona, site of some of the worst fires that have already exploded this year, Gov. Doug Ducey (R) approved a bill to spend $100 million. |
