California Democrats are attempting to make state oil and gas companies pay for damage caused by the Los Angeles wildfires, claiming that fossil fuel emissions are to blame for the deadly disaster.
A new Democrat-introduced bill, the Affordable Insurance and Climate Recovery Act, if passed, would allow for “victims of climate disasters,” such as the L.A. fires, and insurance groups to sue oil and gas companies for damages under the claim that their emissions fueled the raging fires.
Democrat state Sen. Scott Wiener, who introduced the bill this week, said that fossil fuel companies should pay for fire damage, because they are “driving the climate crisis.”
“Californians shouldn’t be the only ones to pay the costs of devastating climate disasters. From last year’s floods to the fires in LA, we know that the fossil fuel industry bears ultimate responsibility for fueling these disasters,” state Sen. Scott Wiener wrote in a post on X announcing the legislation.Â
TRUMP MEETS WITH CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS, FIRE AND LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS TO SEE LA WILDFIRE DAMAGE FIRST HAND
Flames from the Palisades Fire burn a building on Sunset Boulevard amid a powerful windstorm on Jan. 8, 2025, in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles. (Apu Gomes)
The bill, which received the backing of several state lawmakers, comes as Democrats have attempted to blame the recent fires on climate change rather than state and city policies, which have faced heightened criticism in the weeks following the deadly blaze.
Just months before the wildfire, the city of Los Angeles slashed the fire department funding by over $17 million. The L.A. fire chief said that there are “not enough firefighters in L.A. County to address four separate fires of this magnitude.”
NEWSOM THANKS TRUMP FOR COMING TO CALIFORNIA TO TOUR FIRE DAMAGE IN TARMAC FACE-OFF
“We pay the highest taxes in California. Our fire hydrants were empty. Our vegetation was overgrown, brush not cleared. Our reservoirs were emptied by our governor because tribal leaders wanted to save fish. Our fire department budget was cut by our mayor. But thank god drug addicts are getting their drug kits,” actress Sara Foster wrote in a post on X. “@MayorOfLA @GavinNewsom RESIGN. Your far-left policies have ruined our state. And also our party.”
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump tour a fire-affected area in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Jan. 24, 2025. (Mandel Ngan)
Trump used the power of his pen this week to sign an executive order to override the state’s environmental policies in order to create more water availability in the L.A. area.Â
In the executive order issued on Sunday, Trump called on federal agencies to override regulations potentially limiting water availability in the area, such as the Endangered Species Act (ESA), which seeks to minimize water infrastructure to protect certain fish species, such as the Delta smelt.Â
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The order comes just weeks after Trump accused Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., of caring more about protecting an endangered fish species than the state’s residents amid the wildfires.
