Idaho Governor Brad Little said the administration is trying to keep similar destruction from occurring in Idaho as wildfires ravaged houses in Southern California.
The governor’s office’s first Wildfire Report was created in August, and Little and state agency leaders discussed the state’s progress in implementing its recommendations at a press conference Friday morning in Boise. These recommendations include funding and enhancing fire mitigation technology, assisting utilities in safeguarding their infrastructure, and supporting legislation to protect Idaho homes and insurance rates.
“We continue to pray for the many families affected by the devastating fires in southern California,” Little stated. Unfortunately, the scale of the destruction is not wholly unexpected. Many areas of the Golden State are unsafe to live in as a result of the actions of California’s elected officials. In Idaho, the reverse is taking place. We are aggressively and deliberately lowering the risk of fire and making sure Idahoans’ property is protected.
Idaho authorities work to enhance energy infrastructure and fire suppression technology.
Little is proposing $100 million for fire management in Idaho for the fiscal year 2026. Of that amount, $60 million would be used to restore the Fire Suppression Deficiency Fund, which was exhausted during the 2024 fire season, and $40 million would cover the average fire suppression spending for the previous five years. Funds for wildland firefighter bonuses are also included in the governor’s budget to aid in hiring new employees.
According to Dustin Miller, director of the Idaho Department of Lands, the state’s population, which reached two million last year, is increasing. “That means there are more fires in the wild and urban interface and more fires caused by humans than before,” he said.
Miller stated that the state’s aviation management program is being improved, satellite protection services are being established, and improved fire detection camera tools are being established.
Through its Idaho Energy Resiliency Grant Program, the Idaho Governor’s Office of Energy and Mineral Resources is also making investments to safeguard utility infrastructure, according to Richard Stover, the office’s administrator.
In order to assist primarily small rural municipal cooperative utilities in protecting their transmission poles and power lines from wildfire, the program has awarded $22 million to 23 projects throughout Idaho this year, he said.
Brad Richy, director of the Idaho Office of Emergency Management, expressed pride in Idaho’s capacity to assist other states in times of natural disaster.
“Neighbors helping neighbors is the best thing about Idaho,” Richy said, adding that the office has dispatched 104 Idaho firemen to put out the flames in California.
A bill to reduce insurance prices and wildfire risk is proposed by the director of the Idaho Department of Insurance.
Dean Cameron, the director of the Idaho Department of Insurance, submitted a measure on Wednesday to help homeowners reduce their risk of wildfires and stabilize the state’s insurance market.
In Idaho, wildfires scorched almost a million acres this year. 140 buildings were also destroyed by fire.Cameron informed the House Business Committee on Wednesday that 41 of them were dwellings.
No agency can accomplish this on its own: Officials in Idaho discuss plans to reduce wildfires.
Cameron stated during the press conference that his office frequently gets calls from people whose homeowners insurance is increasing or decreasing.
Homeowners insurance is offered by 91 insurance firms in Idaho. According to Cameron, 22 of the businesses requested to stop or not renew their plans in Idaho in 2023.
In light of the California fires, we are now receiving inquiries asking how to fortify their homes and avoid property loss, he said.
The Idaho Wildfire Risk Mitigation and Stabilization Pool Act, House Bill 17, aims to protect homes from wildfires, lower insurance costs, and draw insurance firms to Idaho.
In order to give homeowners money to update their properties’ fire safety, the bill would establish a financial pool using already-existing resources. Cameron informed the committee on Wednesday that these improvements might involve removing shrubs, installing mesh screens, and replacing the roof. The general fund would not be affected. The law would also establish a 12-member group of specialists from the insurance, forest products, and fire industries, as well as state officials, to devise plans to stabilize the insurance market.
According to Cameron, a comparable storm fund has been established in certain southern states, which has essentially resulted in lower insurance prices in those regions.
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