Rep. Judy Chu on Wednesday criticized President Trump’s executive order on wildfire rebuilding, saying it does nothing to address the primary obstacle facing survivors in her district: whether they can afford to rebuild.
The Eaton Fire destroyed more than 9,400 structures in Altadena one year ago. Chu, who represents California’s 28th Congressional District, which includes Altadena and northern Pasadena, said Trump’s order focuses on permitting — when what survivors actually need is money.
“The number one concern I hear from wildfire survivors in my district is whether they can afford to rebuild, and this Executive Order does nothing to address that,” Chu said in a statement. “In fact, it will do nothing to accelerate rebuilding.”
Trump signed the executive order Friday. The White House announced it Tuesday.
The order directs federal agencies to consider preempting state and local permitting processes and orders a 60-day audit of California’s use of federal hazard mitigation funds.
The president blamed Democratic officials for the slow pace of reconstruction. “American families and small businesses affected by the wildfires have been forced to continue living in a nightmare of delay, uncertainty, and bureaucratic malaise,” Trump wrote in the order, “while state and local governments delay or prevent reconstruction by approving only a fraction of the permits needed to rebuild.”
But Chu and other local officials agree that permitting is not the main barrier.
Joy Chen, executive director of the Eaton Fire Survivor’s Network, a coalition of more than 10,000 fire survivors, said the primary obstacle is financial.
“The number one barrier to Eaton and Palisades fire survivors right now is money,” Chen said, citing gaps between insurance payouts and actual construction costs.
Nearly one-third of survivors cited rebuild costs and insurance payouts as primary obstacles in a December survey by the nonprofit Department of Angels. By comparison, 21 percent mentioned permitting delays.
LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose district includes Altadena, said the county already has expedited permitting processes in place. “The most urgent need in the Altadena region is financially driven,” Barger said. “Families lack the capital to kick start or continue their rebuilding plans.”
Chu called the executive order “yet another distraction” from Trump’s responsibility to deliver federal disaster aid. Governor Gavin Newsom has requested approximately $34 billion in supplemental disaster assistance. The Trump administration has not transmitted that request to Congress.
“For more than a year, President Trump and congressional Republicans have refused to deliver supplemental disaster aid not only to communities devastated by the Eaton and Palisades Fires, but also to disaster survivors in Florida, Texas, and North Carolina,” Chu said.
More than 2,600 rebuilding permits have been issued between Palisades and Altadena, but fewer than a dozen homes had been fully rebuilt in Los Angeles County as of January 7, according to the Associated Press. Approximately 900 homes are under construction.
Newsom’s office dismissed the executive order. “An executive order to rebuild Mars would do just as useful,” his office stated on social media. “Mr. President, please actually help us. We are begging you.”
Chu said she would continue fighting for federal assistance. “I will not stop fighting until this assistance is delivered and our communities have what they need from the federal government to recover, rebuild, and heal,” she said.
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