Letter to President Donald Trump - Carbajal Urges White House to Approve Major Disaster Declaration

Letter

Dear President Trump:

I write in strong support of the State of California's request for a major disaster declaration to provide much needed recovery assistance as a result of the fires that raged throughout regions of Southern California and the Central Coast. We urge this administration to move swiftly to approve California's request for a major disaster declaration and federal recovery aid.

People in our communities have lost everything, from their homes to their businesses. The Thomas Fire started on Monday, December 4, 2017 off the Highway 150 and Highway 126 in Ventura County and spread into portions of Santa Barbara County. It has burned more than 272,000 acres and destroyed over 1,000 structures.

On December 5, 2017, Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency within the state of California and submitted a requested for a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) declaration for the Thomas Fire. On December 8, 2017, Governor Brown also submitted a request for a Presidential emergency declaration for federal assistance to help combat the fire. We were pleased to see you and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approve California's requests expeditiously. However, it is critical that you also grant this major disaster declaration to help the communities impacted by the fires rebuild.

Again, we strongly support Governor Brown's request for a major disaster declaration. We stand ready to provide any support to you in approving this request and provide the necessary resources to the impacted communities.

Sincerely,

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