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California In Crisis
It’s not politicizing to wonder why fire hydrants are dry in a wealthy, coastal superstate where the average home costs $750K.
“A month before fires, L.A. fire chief warned budget cuts were hampering emergency response,” Julia Ingram admitted for CBS News on January 10, 2025. “Before wildfires broke out across Los Angeles, the city’s fire chief said that budget cuts were hampering the department’s ability to respond to emergencies, a department memo shows.”
The wildfire crisis in California is prompting a furious round of recriminations about political mismanagement and malpractice in the state. Even Democrat-friendly media outlets like CBS can’t fail to notice.
“Funding for the city’s fire department decreased by $17.6 million, or 2%, between the 2024–25 fiscal year and the 2023–24 fiscal year, according to city budget documents,” noted Julia Ingram for CBS News. “However, the city council in November approved a four-year $203 million contract with the firefighter’s union to help boost wages and health benefits for staff, drawing from the budget’s general fund.”
The November move might have been too little, too late, as Ingram noted for CBS: “The budget cuts drew criticism as firefighters scrambled to contain the ongoing fires. In a Dec. 4 memo, LAFD Fire Chief Kristin Crowley wrote to the Board of Fire Commissioners that the…