Cal. Pub. Res. Code § 4740 — Wildland Fire Prevention and Vegetation Management

The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:

(a) The department has extensive technical expertise in wildland fire prevention and vegetation management on forest, range, and watershed lands. When appropriately applied, this expertise can have significant public resource benefits, including decreasing high-intensity wildland fires, improving watershed management, range improvement, improving vegetation management, forest improvement, wildlife habitat improvement, restoring ecological integrity and resilience, improving community wildfire protection, improving carbon resilience, providing enhancement of culturally important resources, and maintenance of air quality.

(b) Because of the scope of the problem of high-intensity wildland fires and expertise of the department, local governments, including cities, counties, and special districts, need assistance in preventing future problems resulting from inadequate fire prevention planning and vegetation management.

(c) California will benefit if existing state expertise is made available to local governments, including cities, counties, and special districts, thereby integrating those efforts.