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Californians 'angry' amid devastating wildfires, asking where high tax dollars went: local researcher
Kristian Fors, a Los Angeles County resident and research fellow at the California-based Independent Institute, says locals are wondering what their tax dollars are going toward as officials struggle to contain devastating wildfires fanned by strong winds.
The wildfires have destroyed more than 12,300 homes around LA over five consecutive days, leaving at least 11 people dead and thousands displaced. As of Saturday morning, the Palisades Fire was 11% contained, the Eaton Fire 15% contained, the Kenneth Fire 80% contained, and the Hurst Fire 76% contained, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
“I think at its core level, we, the citizens of the United States and of Los Angeles, we expect certain provisions from our government. And when people see that our basic needs are not being met, they’re angry,” Fors told Fox News Digital.
“I think the people of California — they’re willing to pay high taxes. They’re willing to support things that maybe they don’t necessarily agree with because there is a basic assumption that underlies it all, that our government is here to take care of us,” he continued. “But now in a situation like this, when there’s total mismanagement, when people are scared, when there’s 0% containment, people are asking themselves a question, what did all those tax dollars go for?”
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Firefighters work near a burning structure in Pacific Palisades, California, on January 8, 2025. (Jason Ryan/NurPhoto)
Fors, whose research focuses on government waste and inefficiencies in California, evacuated his home in La Cañada Flintridge, which neighbors the now-smoldering city of Altadena, with his grandfather after their next-door neighbor knocked on their door at 6 a.m. and said, “You need to leave.”
The research fellow pointed to multiple issues he believes could have been addressed to mitigate wildfires, including more favorable insurance policies that would encourage “a lot of productive sorts of construction” built to withstand wildfires and other natural disasters; putting fire-resistant power lines underground; turning power off when strong winds blow through certain areas; and more controlled burns.
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Luke Dexter reacts as he sifts through the remains of his father’s fire-ravaged beachfront property in the aftermath of the Palisades Fire Friday, Jan. 10, 2025 in Malibu, Calif. (John Locher)
Fors also noted that California has been struggling to address its housing crisis for years, and displaced residents are struggling to find places to go after evacuating from their homes.
“At a statewide level, I’m not sure if the necessary efforts are being taken.”
“[California Gov.] Gavin Newsom back in 2020 came up to a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Forest Service, and they agreed that they were going to clear … 500,000 acres of forest land per year,” Fors explained. “And that means doing controlled burns, because part of the issue with living in a place like California is we’re surrounded by wild lands. These wild lands accumulate brush, and that brush is incredibly dangerous. … So they came to this memorandum of understanding they were going to clear 500,000 acres, but they’ve only cleared about 100,000 per year.”
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A helicopter drops water on the Palisades Fire in Mandeville Canyon, Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, in Los Angeles. (Etienne Laurent)
LA County Fire Chief Anthony C. Marrone told reporters on Saturday that his department is prepared for the strong Santa Ana winds that could fan the flames through Wednesday.
“These winds, combined with dry air and dry vegetation, will keep the fire threat in Los Angeles County high,” Marrone said.
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People watch the smoke and flames from the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on Jan. 7, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Tiffany Rose/Getty Images)
The Eaton Fire has burned 14,117 acres and is now 15% contained, with over 7,000 structures damaged or destroyed. Marrone said 2,832 emergency personnel are deployed to fight the fire.
Todd Hopkins, battalion chief for Cal Fire, said the Palisades Fire is now at 21,596 acres and is 11% contained. A total of 5,316 structures have been destroyed in the fire, including 426 homes. More than 150,000 residents have been evacuated, he added.
Fox News’ Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
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RAWLINS, Wyoming (KUTV) — A man wanted for alleged rape and domestic violence in Utah was arrested in Wyoming.
He is “behind bars thanks to the work of eagle-eyed troopers with the Wyoming Highway Patrol,” WHP said on social media.
Troopers were alerted to a Be On The Look Out (BOLO) call at approximately 7 a.m. on Thursday for a suspect in a white Chrysler Seabreeze.
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Troopers in Rawlins, Wyoming, spotted the vehicle just after 8:30 a.m.
The suspect was arrested without incident and transported to the Carbon County Jail.
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WOODINVILLE — For four straight years, at least parts of Washington have been in a drought, as snowpack has failed to meet historical norms amid climate change.
This year, all of Washington is experiencing drought, after a wet winter scuttled by warmer temperatures, according to state officials.
Washington state leaders are looking for ways to deal with the ongoing water challenges, which state Ecology Director Casey Sixkiller calls “our new normal.”
A new initiative, called Washington’s Water Future, will lead roundtable discussions across the state this summer, with recommendations delivered to Gov. Bob Ferguson before the 2027 legislative session begins in January. Local and tribal governments, utilities, industry leaders, environmental groups and community organizations will be at the table.
Officials announced the effort Wednesday at King County’s Brightwater Treatment Plant near Woodinville.
“It’s clear we need to take steps to protect our water supply,” Ferguson said in a pre-recorded video. “We need secure water supplies so we can grow our economy, support our agriculture industry, protect healthy fish runs and preserve tribal resources.”
Sixkiller said the work is about whether Washington will shape the future of water in the state, or just react to it.
“Washington is a water state,” Sixkiller said. “Water shapes our landscapes, our communities, our economy, and for many a way of life passed down through generations. We all know that where there’s water, there’s life, but these days, we don’t have to look very hard to see that our relationship with water is changing.”
Climate change is causing precipitation in the winter to fall more as rain than snow, with less stored naturally in the mountains for the summer, when farms and fish are competing for the dwindling resource. This system, dependent on snowpack, is becoming less reliable, Sixkiller said.
By 2080, the Puget Sound region is expected to get less than half of its normal snowpack, with wintertime stream flows increasing by half and a corresponding drop in the summertime, the agency director said.
“The cost of inaction is already showing up in drought emergencies, flood damage, stressed salmon runs and uncertainty for communities trying to plan their future,” Sixkiller said.
Last year, the Department of Ecology took the unprecedented step to curtail surface water usage in the Yakima River Basin, where the effects of drought are more severe. The move has drawn accusations of mismanagement against the state.
In an interview, Sixkiller said it’s too soon to say whether his agency will need to do the same this year, but noted the state declared a drought earlier than usual to give water managers in the area more time to prepare.
The statewide drought declaration last month unlocked $3 million in grants to respond to the effects.
The harms already
The Yakima-Tieton Irrigation District, which serves 28,000 acres, is bracing for its canal system to “blow out” after a wildfire burned it in 2024, and subsequent flooding and debris slides further damaged it, said Jon DeVaney, president of the Washington State Tree Fruit Association.
“This is a clear example of the need to, not only plan long term, but be prepared to see that hole that we’re already in get a little bit deeper,” DeVaney said.
The low flows and higher temperatures are treacherous for Washington’s salmon. And fish hatcheries are grappling with dwindling water. The Suquamish Tribe, for example, hasn’t been able to expand a hatchery because of the lack of water, Chairman Leonard Forsman said.
Forsman, also president of the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, acknowledged the priorities when thinking about the future of water availability are “people and farms, and then fish habitat comes in later.”
“And we need to try to balance that,” he said.
Meanwhile, data centers the tech sector is building to support artificial intelligence and other technologies are also driving demand for water.
Some of the ideas
In responding to the state’s water needs, Sixkiller said “all solutions and all ideas are on the table.”
He was responding to a question about desalination, a process turning salt water into potable water that communities in more arid climates have turned to in addressing water shortages. Arizona, for one, is pursuing the idea. Sixkiller called the water scarcity in the American southwest a “very big red flag of what could happen here.”
The city of Lynden in Whatcom County has grown rapidly over the past 15 years, Mayor Scott Korthuis said. So the city, located along the Nooksack River, has had to find innovative approaches to securing water.
For one, the city now recycles discharged water from the local Darigold dairy plant into the river, as a source of drinking water.
The city is also working on an aquifer recharge project to take water from the river during high flows and store it underground until it’s needed later. Sixkiller cited this type of work as an idea to be explored in the Washington’s Water Future roundtable discussions.
“There are a range of untapped solutions from different areas, from different ways to store water and to recycling,” Korthuis said, noting financial, legal and regulatory obstacles.
Aging water infrastructure that will need to be replaced or upgraded provides an opportunity for innovative solutions, Sixkiller said.
King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci noted the new initiative’s acronym matches that of the World Wrestling Federation, saying there will be some “smackdowns” in these discussions. The tongue-in-cheek comment worried state Rep. Davina Duerr, D-Bothell.
“I’m afraid it’ll be a smackdown on the Legislature for funding, and whatever else,” she said.
Washington State Standard is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
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