Trump changes course, approves California relief for 6 fires
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —President Donald Trump's administration abruptly reversed course and approved California's application for disaster relief funds to clean up damage from six recent deadly and destructive blazes that have scorched the state, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Friday.
“Just got off the phone with President Trump who has approved our Major Disaster Declaration request. Grateful for his quick response,” Newsom said in a brief statement.
Neither he nor the White House gave details on why the administration shifted positions only hours after it initially denied the state's request for a declaration that officials said could provide the state with hundreds of millions of dollars.
White House spokesman Judd Deere previously said California's request “was not supported by the relevant data” needed for approval and that Trump agreed with a recommendation from the Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator to reject the declaration.
“The Governor and (GOP) Leader( Kevin) McCarthy spoke and presented a convincing case and additional on- theground perspective f or reconsideration leading the President to approve the declaration,” Deere said in a statement after Trump's change of heart.
McCarthy thanked Trump in a tweet for providing “the assistance needed to rebuild and repair,” though his office did not respond to requests for more details on what changed.
Fellow Republican U.S. Rep. Tom McClintock said in a tweet that McCarthy told him “the President has committed to reverse FEMA's decision ... and help is on the way.”
Both congressmen represent areas harmed by wildfires.
The state had planned to appeal the denial and believed it had a strong case, Brian Ferguson, a spokesman with the governor' s Office of Emergency Services, said before the reversal.
News om had asked for the major dis aster declaration on Sept. 28 to cover fire sin Fresno, Los Angeles, Madera, Mendocino, San Bernardino, San Diego and Siskiyou counties.
The 30- page request described t he disasters and pointed out that damage assessments were incomplete because the fires were still raging and access was difficult.
Federal major di s aster declarations allow for cost-sharing for damage, cleanup and rebuilding between the state and federal governments. They also activate relief programs led by FEMA.
The dispute surfaced as a representative of one fire-stricken area warned that time was running out to clean up debris before rain and snow arrived, bringing the threat of mudslides and toxins being washed into a river watershed.
Denials of relief are rare and Newsom, a Democrat, has previously praised the Republican administration for approving aid related to the fires and the coronavirus pandemic. The White House said Trump quickly approved wildfire relief t hat was supported by damage estimates.
Among the fires listed in the now-approved aid application is the Creek Fire, which erupted in the Sierra Nevada on Sept. 4 and is 60% contained after burning 850 homes and more than 537 square miles (1,391 square kilometers) in Fresno and Madera counties.
Republican state Assembly man Jim Patterson of Fresno said before the reversal that he had consulted with area congressional offices.
“I have gotten encouraging response that FEMA is beginning to understand that they may have made a mistake here,” he said.
Patterson said, however, there was no time to waste on bureaucratic finger-pointing and lauded the state Office of Emergency Services f or pushing ahead with funding from a California disaster law in which the state will pay 75% and counties pay 25%.