California Gov. Newsom requests nearly $40 billion in wildfire recovery funding in letter to Congress

The aid would go toward “immediate and long-term recovery work needed to rebuild lives and properties,” according to the letter.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom requested nearly $40 billion in wildfire recovery aid in a letter to members of Congress on Friday. At least 29 people died as a result of the raging fires in Southern California last month, with over 16,000 structures destroyed. The letter, obtained by CNN affiliate KCRA, was addressed to House Speaker Mike Johnson, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and Reps. Tom Cole and Rosa DeLauro, the chair and ranking member, respectively, of the House Appropriations Committee. The aid would go toward “immediate and long-term recovery work needed to rebuild lives and properties,” according to the letter. The request includes $16.8 billion in public assistance funding, $9.9 billion for house and business repairs, $9.61 billion in business loans and grants and $2 billion in low-income housing tax credits. “The impacted communities have experienced widespread devastation and the total impact on California’s economy will take years to fully quantify,” Newsom said in the letter. Last month, Newsom signed legislation issuing a $2.5 billion relief package to California, though he said in a news conference that he expects the federal government to reimburse the state. Before leaving office in January, former President Joe Biden said the federal government would cover 100% of costs for the first 180 days of recovery. But since taking office, President Donald Trump – along with some Republican members of Congress, including Johnson – have suggested that aid to California could be conditioned on the state altering its environmental management policies.