House GOP Staff Report Questions FireAid Spending, Flags Grants Unrelated to Wildfire Relief

Overview

• A Republican-led House Judiciary Committee interim staff report alleges FireAid diverted a portion of the $100 million it raised from direct aid to wildfire survivors toward unrelated projects and did not make promised direct payments to individuals.
• Investigators say FireAid distributed about $75 million to 188 nonprofits and flagged just under 2% of total funds as questionable based on internal documents and grant reports.
• Line items cited include roughly $100,000 to podcasters through the Altadena Talks Foundation, $100,000 for voter participation efforts, about $550,000 to groups involved in political advocacy, approximately $500,000 for nonprofit administrative costs and bonuses, and $500,000 to the Black Music Action Coalition.
• The report also highlights a $250,000 grant to Community Organized Relief Efforts, noting a grant report that listed undocumented migrants among priority groups, and it questions grants where salaries or labor were covered at organizations such as Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County and the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank.
• FireAid previously was cleared by a September 2025 Latham & Watkins review that found funds were distributed in line with its mission, and the charity still has roughly $25 million left to allocate.