In immediate response to the recent Los Angeles area firestorms, Governor Gavin Newsom has signed an executive order aimed at skirting the usual bureaucracy that might hamper relief efforts for the fire survivors. The documentation furnished by the governor's website reveals that this order focuses on suspending regulations, extending various deadlines, and delivering critical regulatory relief to accelerate recovery.
Effectively slashing through red tape, the executive order waives certain restrictions that could hinder access to crucial services like child care, education, and rental housing, "As Los Angeles rises, we will continue to remove the barriers that would stand in the way. This executive order provides targeted relief from regulations that impact victims and would otherwise slow this community’s quick recovery," Governor Newsom articulated, according to the Governor's Office. The order grants latitude on administrative cost caps for state-funded preschool programs, extends several deadlines vital for health care and child care documentation, and eases the regulatory requirements for developmental services.
Further boosting the state's recovery and rebuilding vigor, Newsom's approach entails postponing the individual tax filing deadline to October 15 for Los Angeles County taxpayers while also extending the sales and use tax filing deadline, as well as providing mortgage relief meetings in certain zip codes, the Governor's office elucidates, an undertaking to fortify the resilience of impacted businesses and livelihoods. To facilitate temporary housing, the Governor expedited the process of establishing accessory dwelling units and mobile homes, suspending the associated fees, and instituting eviction protections for tenants sharing space with fire victims, as per the Governor's Office.
For those Californians directly affected by the Los Angeles wildfires, the state has established CA.gov/LAfires, a consolidated platform that also comprises in-person Disaster Recovery Centers, to assist survivors in navigating the information and resources available from multiple governmental echelons, with the possibility of applying for disaster assistance online, via phone, or using the FEMA smartphone application, where assistance can be accessed in over 40 languages and support is available for relay service users.
