Overview
- The executive order, signed Jan. 23 and announced Tuesday, directs FEMA and the SBA to draft rules preempting state and local permitting for federally funded rebuilds and to allow builder self‑certification of compliance with safety standards.
- FEMA is instructed to audit nearly $3 billion in Hazard Mitigation Grant Program funds, and Homeland Security and SBA leaders are to deliver proposed regulations and legislative recommendations on accelerated timelines within the next 30 to 90 days.
- Gov. Gavin Newsom denounced the move and urged release of California’s $33.9 billion disaster aid request, saying the chief obstacle is money; his office cites more than 1,600 permits issued and hundreds of homes under construction.
- Reconstruction remains slow more than a year after the Pacific Palisades and Eaton Canyon fires, with fewer than a dozen homes rebuilt as of Jan. 7, roughly 900 under construction, 31 deaths, and about 13,000 residential properties destroyed.
- Legal and practical authority for federal agencies to override local building and land‑use processes remains uncertain, and experts say the preemption push could face court challenges as residents await clarity on how the order will work.