Wagering on wildfires — that’s what some people are doing on prediction markets.

People are betting on when a wildfire could start, how long it will last, how far it will spread and even whether homes will burn.

Platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket allow people to place bets on the outcomes of real-world events. Now, you can add destructive wildfires to the list.

But lawmakers say betting on a disaster crosses a line, and they’re now pushing for new restrictions to stop it.

“The thought of people choosing to make a buck off of that, it’s just gross,” said Lizz Porter, a Colfax resident who lost her home in the 2021 River Fire.

For Porter, wildfires are a constant concern.

“It’s a constant presence in our day-to-day lives,” Porter said.

Her home was among more than 100 destroyed in the 2021 River Fire. She says the idea of people betting on wildfires is an insult to injury.

“These are real people. Like we are real people and it’s infuriating,” Porter said.

Now, California Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla are joining several other senators from across the country calling for a crackdown on betting platforms offering wildfire-related wagers.

The lawmakers argue profiting off the suffering of others is wrong, while also raising concerns that wildfire betting could create a dangerous financial incentive.

“There’s also the heightened risk—according to state and local fire officials—that individuals could be tempted to commit arson in order to make sure their bets are successful,” the senators wrote in a letter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Ann Skeet, senior director of leadership ethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, also questions what allowing these types of bets says about society.

“The fabric of society is fraying a little bit when we’re betting on the harm and demise of our neighbors,” Skeet said.

The senators’ letter also points to Polymarket, where more than $1.2 million was wagered on the 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires.

Currently, the Dodd-Frank Act prohibits certain event betting on things like assassination and terrorism, but wildfires and other natural disasters are not included.

“But nobody really anticipated this level of depravity, really, that people would stoop to betting on this kind of weather event,” Skeet said.

Lawmakers are now calling for more guardrails when it comes to putting wagers on disasters, arguing the consequences are not a safe bet.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has until Aug. 14 to respond to the senators’ letter.

Meanwhile, Porter hopes any new restrictions apply not just to wildfires, but to betting on all natural disasters.

Paramount CEO David Ellison told a group of the company’s top executives that he will start the process of exiting California on Oct. 1 if State Attorney General Rob Bonta will not negotiate to settle an antitrust suit around the planned merger with Warner Bros. Discovery.

Ellison made the remarks at a meeting last week. Details were first reported by Puck and confirmed by Deadline.

Bonta is leading a group of 20 State Attorneys General in the case that is set to go to trial in federal court in the Northern District of California March of 2027. Oct. 1 is the day Paramount starts to accrue a so-called ticking fee of $7 million a day agreed to in the WBD deal terms if the transaction hasn’t closed by then. Paramount had asked the judge for a November trial date.

Deadline hears that Ellison was emphatic at the meeting that he does not want to relocate but also doesn’t feel welcome in Paramount’s home state as the company and the AG wage a PR battle. The $111 billion merger has been approved by the DOJ and international regulatory agencies, including in the EU and UK.

The AGs’ suit is focused on antitrust claims in three areas — wide release films, blockbuster films and cable network programming. Ellison has promised the combined studios will release 30 films a year with significant theatrical windows. He has said he offered to put that in writing for the AG and otherwise engage in settlement talks around potential concessions.

A relocation would start with the company’s headquarters, followed by studio jobs. Ellison would move Paramount, or the merged Paramount-WBD, regardless of the outcome of a trial. Beyond the ticking fee, Paramount would owe WBD a $7 billion termination fee (the largest in corporate history) if the deal falls apart unless Warner’s board led by CEO David Zaslav agrees to renegotiate. WBD can walk if the deal is not clinched by June 4.

Rumors had surfaced months ago that Ellison was considering a California exit if the AG did not soften his stance. Destinations mentioned have included Tennessee, Texas and Georgia. Potential new home states have presumably offered significant incentives if Paramount relocates.

In response to previous threats to leave the state, Bonta has called it a “last ditch effort to try to blackmail my office and the attorneys general into allowing an illegal deal.”

Paramount has accused Bonta of playing politics. In an op-ed published in Deadline on Monday, the California AG said “Paramount and Warner Bros see the writing on the wall: that they will lose in a court of law. So instead, they are resorting to the court of public opinion. They want to talk about anything but the facts of this case … As disingenuous as it may be, they are welcome to do so.”

The California Film Commission on Monday announced that Paramount’s Alicia Silverstone-starring Clueless series and EGOT superstar Viola Davis‘ corporate fixer series Ascent  have been allocated nearly $38 million in Golden State tax incentives under its sweetened package to curb runaway production.

The threat of coastal flooding this week on the Southern California coast led to a suspension of service for part of Metrolink’s Orange County Line and preparations to protect shorelines residences.

Metrolink suspended Orange County Line service south of the Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo Station, starting Monday. The temporary service changes will be in effect Monday through Friday, when high tides are expected to pound the coastline in Orange County and other locations.

Temperatures start to drop. Kelley Moody has the forecast for Monday Aug. 10, 2026.

A coastal flood advisory was issued for Orange County beaches from 6 p.m. Monday to 11 p.m. Wednesday.

The high tides were expected to affect low-lying beaches south of Point Conception. Minor coastal flooding is possible starting Monday evening and continuing through Wednesday, when tide heights of up to 7.5 feet are expected between 8 and 10 p.m. each evening.

During that period, Orange County Line trains will operate only between Los Angeles and the Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo Station. No alternate bus service will be provided.

Metrolink said weekend service is not expected to be affected. Last month, similar high-tide conditions caused delays that extended beyond the affected corridor.

Amtrak Pacific Surfliner and freight rail service are expected to continue operating as long as conditions remain safe, according to Metrolink.

The agency said crews have been reinforcing the rail line in south Orange County this week by adding rock and other protective material to help guard against erosion. Workers also will continue inspecting the coastal tracks during high tides, with equipment and repair materials staged nearby if needed, officials said.

In Long Beach, the city installed a wooden fence on part of the shoreline to protect beach-side homes from high tides. The neighborhood was hit hard by high surf last month.

City New Service contributed to this report.