Over half of this crucial firefighting team has been diverted off wildfire work as part of Trump’s illegal Guard deployment
What you need to know: President Trump’s illegal militarization of Los Angeles is hamstringing firefighting resources in California just as peak fire season begins.
SACRAMENTO – All 14 Joint Task Force Rattlesnake teams responded to the Los Angeles fires in January. Now, only nine are available and each of those are significantly understaffed, thanks to President Trump’s illegal deployment of federal troops to Los Angeles.
Joint Task Force Rattlesnake is made up of over 300 California National Guard (CalGuard) members, who work at the direction of CAL FIRE to help fight and prevent fires. More than half of that team has been diverted off of wildfire efforts to Los Angeles as part of President Trump’s illegal federalization of the Guard.
With peak fire season right on the horizon, we need all available boots on the ground to protect communities. President Trump’s illegal militarization of Los Angeles is sidelining crucial firefighting and prevention resources – more than half of Task Force Rattlesnake.
It’s time to end the chaos and get California’s National Guard back to this important work.
Governor Gavin Newsom
The National Guard impact is on top of the Trump administration’s dangerous cuts to the U.S. Forest Service, which also threatens the safety of communities across the state. The U.S. Forest Service has lost 10% of all positions and 25% of positions outside of direct wildfire response – both of which are likely to impact wildfire response this year.
“In just the first five months of 2025 California has experienced more than 2,300 wildfires,” said CAL FIRE Director and Fire Chief Joe Tyler. “Having the necessary firefighting apparatus and personnel is critical to our mission at CAL FIRE.”
California’s unprecedented wildfire readiness
Despite the federal cuts, California remains ready. As part of the state’s ongoing investment in wildfire resilience and emergency response, CAL FIRE has significantly expanded its workforce over the past five years by adding an average of 1,800 full-time and 600 seasonal positions annually – nearly double that from the previous administration.
Late last month, the Governor announced $72 million for projects across the state that help reduce catastrophic wildfire risk. Additionally, 20 new vegetation management projects spanning nearly 8,000 acres have already been approved for fast-tracking under the Governor’s new streamlining initiative.
This builds on consecutive years of intensive and focused work by California to confront the severe ongoing risk of catastrophic wildfires, and Governor Newsom’s emergency proclamation signed in March to fast-track forest and vegetation management projects throughout the state. Additionally, to bolster the state’s ability to respond to fires, Governor Newsom recently announced that the state’s second C-130 Hercules airtanker is ready for firefighting operations, adding to the largest aerial firefighting fleet in the world.
New, bold moves to streamline state-level regulatory processes builds long-term efforts already underway in California to increase wildfire response and forest management in the face of a hotter, drier climate.