Cal Fire’s total base wildfire protection budget has nearly tripled over the past 10 years, from $1.1 billion in 2014‑15 to $3 billion in 2023‑24.

Just over $100 million was cut from California's wildfire and forest resilience fund in the latest budget, though total spending has grown sharply since 2014.

As wildfires in California caused at least two dozen deaths and billions of dollars in damages, some social media users accused Governor Gavin Newsom of slashing money to prevent fires. Many posts including by Fox News stated Newsom cut about $100m in fire prevention from the state’s budget months before the Los Angeles fires.

Gavin Newsom has arrived for the photo op of him watching his state burn to the ground,” controversial account Libs of TikTok wrote alongside the video.

On social media, President-elect Donald Trump amplified a claim that California Gov. Gavin Newsom slashed the state's fire budget by $100 million just months before the outbreak of the recent wildfires.

President-elect Donald Trump blamed his political nemesis California ... Department of Forestry and Fire Protection reports 0% of the Palisades, Eaton and Hurst fires have been contained. Newsom ...

California governor launches a fact-checking site amid historic wildfires and doubles National Guard as flames threaten more landmarks.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Reeling from destructive wildfires, including the deadliest in California history, state lawmakers in 2020 passed new requirements for clearing combustible materials like dead plants and wooden furniture within 5 feet (1.5 meters) of homes in risky areas.

California is years behind ... the new rules because they are deemed at highest fire risk by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The fire, driven by hurricane-force winds ...

(AP) — Reeling from destructive wildfires, including the deadliest in California ... are deemed at highest fire risk by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.