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Wildfire Solutions Coalition Launches to Secure Long-Term Fire Prevention Funding in California
Santa Clara County FireSafe Council Among Coalition Founders
July 3, 2025, Saratoga, CA—Santa Clara County FireSafe Council (SCCFSC) announced today it has become a founding member of The Wildfire Solutions Coalition. Launched in June 2025 in response to the growing urgency of California’s wildfire crisis, the cross-sector Coalition is unified in the critical need to move the state from wildfire response to wildfire risk reduction.
The goal of the Coalition is to secure the resources necessary—in the private sector and across local, state, and federal levels— to achieve California’s wildfire resilience goals and dramatically reduce the impacts of catastrophic wildfire across the state.
As the legislature and the administration consider reauthorization of the state’s Cap-and-Invest program, we have a unique opportunity to move the needle on this issue and scale implementation of California’s Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan. We support 10% of future Cap-and-Invest auction revenues to go toward regionally appropriate wildfire resilience strategies, as part of a larger set of dedicated investments for nature-based solutions.
The Wildfire Solutions Coalition is calling for a dedicated, long-term funding mechanism to support proven fire prevention strategies at scale, including:
- Forest and vegetation management
- Community hardening and defensible space
- Workforce development and good, green jobs
- Tribal-led cultural burning and stewardship
“According to Seth Schalet, CEO of the Santa Clara County FireSafe Council, “The California wildfire crisis costs $117 billion per year in economic losses according to several studies. What’s cheaper and more efficient? Investing in wildfire resilience now. For every $1 invested in prevention, we save the state at least $6. The Santa Clara County FireSafe Council is proud to be a founding member of The Wildfire Solutions Coalition. By fully funding and implementing California’s wildfire resilience strategy, we can shift from crisis response to preparation—and save money doing it.”
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