Bipartisan infrastructure bill passes: Here's what California will get

[quaint]

Joshua Bote, SFGATE

—$25.3 billion over five years for repairing roads in the state that are in poor condition
—$4.2 billion over five years for repairing bridges in the state that are in poor condition
—$3.5 billion for water infrastructure and eliminating lead pipes in the state
—$1.5 billion for airport infrastructure
—$384 million over five years to build a network of chargers for electric vehicles
—At least $100 million to install more broadband coverage
—$84 million over five years for wildfire protection
—$40 million over five years for cyber attack protection
—An unnamed sum from a $3.5 billion federal fund for “weatherization which will reduce energy costs for families”

[Merlot]

1. Seems like wildfire protection is a low priority.

—$84 million over five years for wildfire protection

[quaint]

2. Protection is separate from fire fighting

AP 9/9/21

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California lawmakers on Thursday voted to spend more than $2 billion to prevent wildfires and address a severe drought, closing the book — for now — on a $262.5 billion operating budget that began the year with a record deficit because of the pandemic and ended with a record surplus in spite of it.

Wildfire spending in California has more than tripled since 2005, surpassing $3 billion last year. But most of that money is spent on putting out fires, not preventing them.

New spending approved Thursday brings California’s wildfire prevention budget to more than $1.5 billion. The money will pay for things like the strategic clearing of brush and trees that could fuel massive fires in the future. It will also pay for a bevy of inspectors to review homes in wildfire prone areas before they are sold.

Lawmakers also approved an additional $1.2 billion to pay for things like grants to plan for climate change, water recycling projects and cleaning up contaminated water sources. Assembly Speaker Pro Tempore Kevin Mullin, a Democrat from South San Francisco, called it “the largest state level investment in climate resilience, ever.”

It's a little help.