LA County Board

16. Addressing Overgrown Vegetation and Fire Risk Conditions in Altadena\nand the Santa Monica Mountains\nRecommendation as submitted by Supervisors Barger and Horvath: Instruct the\nDirector of Public Works in his capacity as the leader of Public Works and in\nhis upcoming role as the Director of the Rebuild Authority (RA) when the RA\ncommences operations on July 1, 2026, in coordination with the Agricultural\nCommissioner/Director of Weights and Measures (AR), Fire Chief, Chief\nSustainability Office (CSO) and other relevant Departments, and in consultation\nwith and coordinated with the Chief Executive Office (CEO) to ensure alignment\nwith the overall recovery strategies to do the following:\nWork with community based organizations to develop and implement a\ncoordinated, environmentally sensitive strategy to address hazardous\nvegetation, brush clearance, and related nuisance conditions on\nfire-impacted, vacant, or stalled residential properties throughout\nAltadena and the unincorporated Santa Monica Mountains.\nInstruct the Director of Public Works, the RA, and the Agricultural\nCommissioner/Director of Weights and Measures to prioritize voluntary\ncompliance, defensible space assistance, community outreach, and\nnon-punitive mitigation efforts before pursuing financial penalties against\nfire-impacted property owners.\nInstruct the Director of Public Works and, upon its commencement of\noperations on July 1, 2026, the Director of the RA, the Agricultural\nCommissioner/Director of Weights and Measures, CSO, and the Fire\nChief to evaluate innovative vegetation management approaches utilized\nby neighboring jurisdictions, including targeted grazing, nature-based\nsolutions, and other alternative vegetation reduction strategies, and\nassess the feasibility of pilot programs in Altadena and the Santa Monica\nMountains.\nInstruct the Director of Public Works and, upon its commencement of\noperations on July 1, 2026, the Director of RA, in coordination with CEO,\nAG, Fire, and other relevant Departments, to report back to the Board in\nwriting within 30 days with:\nRecommendations for immediate implementation actions and pilot\nvegetation mitigation programs;\nAny operational or legal barriers limiting proactive vegetation\nmanagement efforts;\nPotential partnership and funding opportunities to support\nvegetation reduction efforts without placing additional financial\nburdens on residents; and\nAny additional authorities or policy changes needed to support\nlong-term wildfire risk reduction and vegetation management\nefforts in Altadena and the Unincorporated Santa Monica\nMountains, including Sunset Mesa. (26-3385)