Newsom begs for billions in D.C., but Florida Sen. Scott slam: “Where’s the $billions California already wasted?”
Florida – As California Governor Gavin Newsom visited Washington, D.C. to ask for more federal help, the fight over how to spend money on wildfires and hold people accountable is getting more heated. Two U.S. senators are pushing hard for answers about how the state has used billions of federal tax dollars that were supposed to help with wildfire preparedness and recovery.
His visit comes at a time when these senators are pushing hard for answers. Their primary concern is the hug California fire in January 2025, which was a disaster that left communities in shock and highlighted troubling questions about how the state used prior federal assistance.
Senator Rick Scott, who has been keeping an eye on things in California for the past few months, told Newsom to explain how previous federal funds were used before asking Washington for more. Scott said that the state has gotten a lot of money for wildfires in the past ten years, but many who were touched by the January catastrophe say that a lot of that money was not used properly. Many survivors say they continue to face a maze of bureaucratic barriers nearly a year after the flames died out.
Scott made it clear that the congressional investigation he is leading with Senator Ron Johnson is trying to find out why so many people were left unprotected before and after the wildfire. Lawmakers heard moving stories from people who lost homes, businesses, and loved ones during their recent field hearing, “Forgotten After the Flames: Stories from the Palisades Fire.”
Witnesses said that during evacuations, people were confused, help took a long time to arrive, and there were still problems that made it hard to rebuild. Some others indicated that older people were especially unprepared because of problems with emergency preparedness and outreach.
According to Scott, these testimonies paint a picture of a state that did not deploy its federal funding effectively.
“They (Californians) deserve answers before California receives more of Americans’ hard-earned tax money. We’ll keep working to get those answers in our congressional investigation,” Scott said.
Scott and Johnson have sent many letters to federal, state, and local officials as part of the investigation. In these letters, they ask for extensive information about California’s plans for being ready for and responding to emergencies. They have asked for information about efforts to prevent future problems, decisions about how to handle gasoline, the speed of recovery operations, and the delays that many this year fire’s victims are still facing.
The investigation gets a harsher political edge with Newsom’s travel to Washington. He says that more federal help is required to deal with wildfire seasons that are getting worse, but critics say that the state needs to show that it used previous funding wisely and for their intended purpose first. The governor’s request for further help and Congress’s continuous examination show how deeply divided people are over disaster spending, accountability, and the federal government’s responsibility in helping states that are prone to wildfires.
The problem continues to be very personal for the survivors who spoke out. A lot of people spoke about the promise of rebuilding, but they noted that the process has been stuck at almost every step. Their stories are now important pieces of evidence in the congressional review, which is pushing lawmakers to demand more transparency and supervision.
Scott said again that the investigation will keep going until victims get the answers they’ve been looking for for a long time. This was said as Newsom met with federal authorities in the capital.
He noted that the goal is not just to learn from past mistakes, but also to make sure that money is spent wisely so that future catastrophes don’t happen. For people who are currently living in temporary housing because of the January disaster, the results of this government investigation may affect how quickly and fairly their communities may recover.
