CAL FIRE has opened a new solicitation for its Wildfire Prevention Grants Program, funded by Proposition 4, with up to $70 million available statewide for FY 2025-26. Water districts are eligible applicants, and grants are recommended at $950,000 or less.
Eligible activities span three categories:
- The largest is hazardous fuels reduction, which covers the kinds of work most relevant to water system operators:
- clearing brush and dead or dying trees,
- creating and maintaining fuel breaks,
- removing ladder fuels that can carry fire into tree canopies,
- thinning vegetation along roads to support evacuation and emergency access and
- reducing fuel loads around critical infrastructure like water storage and treatment facilities.
- The program also funds wildfire prevention planning, including:
- evacuation plans,
- Community Wildfire Protection Plans and
- Local Hazard Mitigation Plans.
- Lastly, the program funds public education and outreach on defensible space and fire-safe communities.
Projects benefiting disadvantaged communities, demonstrating greenhouse gas reductions, leveraging matching funds or aligning with existing CAL FIRE Unit or community fire plans receive additional priority. Projects that include the California Conservation Corps are also favored.
For mutual water companies with infrastructure in or near wildfire-threatened communities, this is worth a close look. CalMutuals encourages interested members to reach out soon — connecting with your local CAL FIRE Unit early in the process is strongly recommended and can meaningfully improve your chances of success. Full program details are available HERE, and CalMutuals is happy to help you think it through.