Sen. Dodd to Lead Wildfire Safety Progress Hearing

SACRAMENTO – Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, chair of the Senate Governmental Organization Committee, will lead an oversight hearing Tuesday on California’s response to wildfires, detailing efforts to safeguard the state and make it more resilient.

The committee will review improvements to wildfire preparedness and prevention including significant legislation and investments that have been undertaken over the past five years. It will also listen to reports from various state and local agencies including Cal Fire and the Legislative Analyst’s Office, and take public comment.

“The Legislature made good progress on wildfire safety and we must ensure our proposals and investments do what they are intended to do,” said Sen. Dodd.

Sen. Dodd, whose district has been hard-hit by recent wildfires, has authored nearly a dozen wildfire safety bills including those resulting in creation of the Office of Wildfire Technology Research and Development and the Wildfire Forecast and Threat Intelligence Integration Center.

What: Oversight Hearing, Senate Governmental Organization Committee: Building Resilience: Evaluating California’s Recent Wildfire Emergency Preparedness and Response Efforts

Who: Sen. Dodd; Helen Kerstein, principal fiscal & policy analyst, Legislative Analyst’s Office;  Jared Sippel, principal fiscal & policy analyst, Legislative Analyst’s Office; Chief Brian Marshall, fire and rescue branch, Cal OES; Marvin Green, deputy director of logistics management, Cal OES; Chief Curtis Brown, deputy director of fire protection, Cal Fire; Scott Gregory, deputy director of technology, Cal Fire; Jonathan Woldemariam, director of wildfire mitigation & vegetation management, San Diego Gas & Electric Co.; Sam Wallis, community alert and warning manager, Sonoma County Department of Emergency Management.

When: 9 a.m.(following regular committee business), March 28, 2023

Where: Suite 1200, 1021 O Street, Sacramento, CA

Streaming: https://www.senate.ca.gov/

Background Paper: https://sgov.senate.ca.gov/sites/sgov.senate.ca.gov/files/wildfire_oversight_background_3.28.23.pdf

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Senator Bill Dodd represents the 3rd Senate District, which includes all or portions of Napa, Solano, Yolo, Sonoma, Contra Costa, and Sacramento counties. You can learn more about the district and Senator Dodd at www.sen.ca.gov/dodd.