{"id":164932,"date":"2026-02-05T09:11:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T09:11:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/164932\/"},"modified":"2026-02-05T09:11:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T09:11:10","slug":"la-county-opposes-trump-order-rejects-federal-takeover-of-local-permitting-in-fire-zones-daily-bulletin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/164932\/","title":{"rendered":"LA County opposes Trump order, rejects federal takeover of local permitting in fire zones \u2013 Daily Bulletin"},"content":{"rendered":"

Los Angeles County is pushing back against President Trump\u2019s executive order to take over the rebuilding process in the Palisades<\/a> and Eaton<\/a> fire zones, threatening to sue the administration if local land-use powers are overridden.<\/p>\n

The Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 without discussion on Tuesday, Feb. 3, to monitor the actions of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Small Business Administration (SBA), the agencies Trump\u2019s order put in charge of expediting housing rebuild permits and \u201cto cut through bureaucratic red tape and speed up reconstruction\u201d in the fire-scarred areas where more than 16,000 structures were lost on Jan. 7, 2025.<\/p>\n

Also part of the motion, the supervisors authorized County Counsel to sue or join existing lawsuits that oppose the Trump executive order.<\/p>\n

Third District L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath said in a prepared release that the Trump administration has delayed granting the fire survivors disaster recovery funding, emphasizing this as a critical need so far unsupported by the White House.<\/p>\n

That promised funding not yet awarded by the White House is said to total $34 billion and would be money used by fire survivors and for community infrastructure to help with rebuilding.<\/p>\n

\u201cFire survivors don\u2019t need uncertainty, delays, or federal power grabs \u2014 they need real help rebuilding their homes and livelihoods,\u201d Horvath said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Executive Order is more of the same from the Trump Administration: empty promises with no meaningful disaster relief,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Executive Order No. 14377, issued on Jan. 27<\/a>, calls on FEMA and the SBA to issue regulations that supercede state and local (L.A. County, City of Los Angeles, City of Pasadena, City of Malibu) permitting processes and requirements, according to a White House statement on its website.<\/p>\n

The new process, though with few details, would allow builders to self-certify to a federal designee that they have met all state and local health, safety and building standards, bypassing local permitting authorities. The federal agencies would ensure that all permits meet federal laws governing environmental issues, historic preservation and natural resources, including adhering to the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA), as well as the federal Endangered Species Act and the National Historic Preservation Act.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s order calls on Congress to enact legislation to address rebuilding permits \u201cwhich state or local governments are not enabling timely recovery after disasters.\u201d<\/p>\n

It also calls on FEMA to investigate whether state hazard mitigation grant program funds were awarded \u201ccontrary to law,\u201d and calls for an audit of California\u2019s awarding of those funds.<\/p>\n

The Eaton fire destroyed 9,414 structures, including homes and commercial buildings, killing 19 civilians. The Palisades fire destroyed 6,873 structures, killing 12 civilians. The two fires combined destroyed 16,287 structures and there were 31 lives lost. These statistics are according to Cal-Fire.<\/p>\n

\"AftermathAftermath of the Eaton Fire looking over homes between Pine Street and Altadena Drive in Altadena, CA, on Monday, February 3, 2025. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register\/SCNG)<\/p>\n

The White House has said only about 2,500 of the homes and businesses destroyed in both fires have received permits to rebuild and less than 10 homes have been rebuilt. The Trump administration blames local leaders for taking too long to process rebuilding permits, saying the process in both L.A. city and L.A. County are \u201coverly burdensome, confusing\u201d and include \u201cduplicative permitting reviews\u201d that have stalled recovery efforts.<\/p>\n

As of Feb. 4 for unincorporated properties burned in the Eaton fire, the L.A. County Permitting Progress Dashboard shows 1,384 new residential building permits issued, with 682 rebuilds under construction for new residential homes. So far, only eight new residential units have been built.<\/p>\n

The time a permit spends in L.A. County review is 31 business days, plus 63 business days spent with the applicant, for a total of 94 business days to issue a permit. The City of Pasadena has issued 26 permits, while 45 remain in review.<\/p>\n

In the Palisades, the City of Los Angeles has issued 1,753 permits for rebuilding, according to the dashboard. The total housing permits issued by these three agencies equals 3,163 \u2014 many more than the White House estimated but what both supporters of local efforts and critics say are too few.<\/p>\n

\"MayorMayor Karen Bass speaks with Walter and Alessandra Lopes outside their home that was destroyed during the Palisades Fire and is now being rebuilt in Pacific Palisades on Monday, May 19, 2025. Bass signed an executive order waiving all permit fees in Palisades. The Lopes are expecting a refund of the permit fees they paid to the city of L.A. (photo by Hans Gutknecht, Los Angeles Daily News\/SCNG)<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Fifth District L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose district includes the Eaton fire footprint, met with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin and SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler in the Pacific Palisades area.<\/p>\n

Trump has tapped Zeldin to lead an effort \u201cto break through local logjams however possible,\u201d according to the EPA.<\/p>\n

Zeldin and Loeffler\u2019s visit included a roundtable in the Pacific Palisades, where they discussed the recovery with residents and business owners.<\/p>\n

Barger called her conversation with Zeldin a solutions-based conversation. She proudly mentioned L.A. County\u2019s streamlined process of 31 business days for completing a permit review.<\/p>\n

Barger seemed to agree with the motion she voted for that indicated there was no need for a federal take-over of permitting. That there is another issue at play that needs attention.<\/p>\n

\u201cI emphasized that 53% of impacted residents have taken no action (in the Eaton fire zone) to rebuild, not because of permitting delays, but because they lack the capital to move forward \u2014 an issue exacerbated by delayed insurance payouts. Many families have not submitted plans or encountered the County\u2019s rebuilding pipeline and are now facing a serious financial crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nic Arnzen, chair of the Altadena Town Council, agreed 100% with the county\u2019s motion, saying in an interview on Wednesday, Feb. 4, that the president\u2019s executive order misses the point, saying neither he himself, nor any of his cabinet members have visited Altadena to ask survivors about what\u2019s lacking.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we need is the $34 billion (in aide for fire survivors and rebuilding),\u201d Arnzen said. \u201cThat is No. 1.\u201d That\u2019s about the amount asked for by Gov. Gavin Newsom in a December letter<\/a> he wrote to Congressional leaders.<\/p>\n

Arnzen criticized the president\u2019s executive order, saying it\u2019s the wrong move at the wrong time.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat they are offering to do is disrupt something that is over one year in the making,\u201d he said. \u201cThe county has been doing things in many helpful ways. To start from scratch would only damage the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a recent Zoom call on FEMA disaster relief efforts throughout the country and other federal issues, Amanda Devecka-Rinear, co-founder of the New Jersey Organizing Project, who has been organizing disaster survivors since Hurricane Sandy in 2012, commented on the Trump executive order for California fire survivors.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s a fascinating contradiction for the current administration\u2019s stated goal to move more disaster recovery to the states, right?\u201d she said. \u201cTo then sort of come in and take over is yet another example of why we need an independent FEMA led by someone who knows what they\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

An inquiry to the White House on Wednesday went unanswered by deadline.<\/p>\n

SCNG Staff Writer Anissa Rivera contributed to this article.<\/p>\n

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