Barger Backs Newsom’s $100 Million Wildfire Relief Fund Loan For Rebuild; Still Nothing for Soil Recovery

Pasadena Now reports that Supervisor Kathryn Barger is backing Governor Newsom’s proposed $100 million Disaster Rebuilding Fund, which would help Eaton Fire survivors access private construction financing through interest-rate buy-downs and loan-loss guarantees. This may help some families move forward with construction with a fund intended to help close the gap between insurance payouts and rising rebuilding costs, but it would not provide direct cash to homeowners and still requires legislative approval.
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It also does not address one of the central barriers to safe recovery: contaminated soil. Rebuilding loans can help finance new structures, but they do not solve the unresolved need for testing, remediation, and clearance of toxic soil around fire-impacted homes. Without dedicated funding for soil recovery, families may be pushed toward rebuilding on land that has not been proven safe—risking construction worker exposure, contaminating new building materials, and further spreading toxic dust through excavation, wind, and resuspension.