AB 1455: State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection: defensible space requirements: ember-resistant zones: emergency regulations: California Environmental Quality Act.

Official summary

Legislative Counsel’s Digest (official, as of the latest version). Written by nonpartisan legislative staff; reproduced verbatim.

Existing law requires the State Fire Marshal to identify areas in the state as moderate, high, and very high fire hazard severity zones based on consistent statewide criteria and the severity of the fire hazard. Existing law requires a person who owns, leases, controls, operates, or maintains (1) a building or structure in the state responsibility area, or (2) an occupied dwelling or structure within a very high fire hazard severity zone as designated by a local agency, to, among other defensible space requirements, maintain a defensible space of 100 feet from each side and from the front and rear of the structure, as specified. Under existing law, one of these defensible space requirements is the requirement to create an ember-resistant zone within 5 feet of the structure, based on regulations promulgated by the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, to consider the elimination of materials in the ember-resistant zone that would likely be ignited by embers, as provided. A violation of these defensible space requirements is a crime.

This bill would revise and recast the defensible space requirements applicable to a very high fire hazard severity zone as designated by a local agency by explicitly requiring the state board to adopt regulations to implement all of the above-described defensible space requirements. The bill would authorize local agencies responsible for fire protection to designate, by ordinance, defensible space requirements based on the defensible space regulations promulgated by the state board, as provided, and would authorize the local agency to consider local variations in local fire hazards, geography, development, and other conditions and authorize alternative practices to those in the state board regulations, if the alternative practices provide for substantially similar practical effects as those stated in the state board regulations. The bill would provide that a property owner, as defined, in compliance with the applicable alternative practices adopted by the local agency shall not be deemed to have violated the defensible space requirements adopted by the state board, as provided. To the extent that this expands the duties of a local agency, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law, known as the Administrative Procedure Act, governs the procedures for the adoption, amendment, or repeal of regulations by state agencies and for the review of those regulatory actions by the Office of Administrative Law. Existing law establishes procedures for the adoption of emergency regulations, including requiring that the state agency make a finding that the adoption of a regulation or order of repeal is necessary to address an emergency, as defined. Under existing law, a regulation, amendment, or order of repeal adopted as an emergency regulatory action may only remain in effect for up to 180 days, unless the adopting agency complies with specified requirements relating to notice of regulatory action and public comment.

By Executive Order No. N-18-25, Governor Gavin Newsom directed the state board to complete the formal rulemaking process applicable to these ember-resistant zone requirements no later than December 31, 2025. Existing law requires the state board, on or before January 1, 2023, and in consultation with the Office of the State Fire Marshal, to update a guidance document on fuels management to include suggestions for creating an ember-resistant zone within 5 feet of a structure based on regulations promulgated by the state board, to consider the elimination of materials in the ember-resistant zone that would likely be ignited by embers.

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect.

This bill would require the state board to adopt regulations to implement the above-described defensible space requirements for an ember-resistant zone required within 5 feet of a structure in the state responsibility area and a very high fire hazard severity zone as designated by a local agency, as specified. If adopting the regulations through the regular rulemaking process of the Administrative Procedure Act would inhibit compliance with the deadline in Executive Order No. N-18-25, the bill would require the regulations to be adopted as emergency regulations and would require the Office of Administrative Law to consider the adoption of initial regulations as necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, and general welfare. The bill would authorize the state board to readopt any of these emergency regulations, as provided, and would make any of these adopted or readopted emergency regulations effective until revised by the state board. The bill would provide that the adoption or readoption of these regulations does not constitute a project for purposes of CEQA. The bill would revise and recast the provisions applicable to the guidance document by requiring the state board, no later than one year after adopting regulations in compliance with the deadline in Executive Order No. N-18-25, to update the guidance document to reflect the new regulations.

Sponsors

Sponsors by party (alphabetical): Democratic 1

“Support” is shown only as formal sponsorship recorded by the legislature. Roll-call votes are available on the official bill page.

Recent official actions

1. October 13, 2025Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 731, Statutes of 2025.
2. October 13, 2025Approved by the Governor.
3. September 22, 2025Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3 p.m.
4. September 10, 2025Urgency clause adopted. Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 74. Noes 1. Page 3206.).
5. September 9, 2025In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
6. September 9, 2025Read third time. Urgency clause adopted. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 39. Noes 0. Page 2728.).
7. September 8, 2025Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
8. September 5, 2025Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
9. September 4, 2025Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
10. September 3, 2025Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
11. August 26, 2025Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
12. August 25, 2025From committee: Be ordered to second reading pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8.