California Fire Safe Council
Encyclopedia
The name California Fire Safe Council (CFSC) has been used for two very different organizations. The original use of the name, from 1993 through mid-2002, referred to a loose consortium
of local community-based fire safe councils
and other organizations that shared the mission of making California's communities less vulnerable to catastrophic wildfire
. It was funded by the state of California Resources Agency
, Department of Conservation, Division of Forestry, also called CDF or CAL FIRE.
It was led by staff from the CDF Prevention Bureau.
In mid-2002 a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization was formed by members of the former CFSC using the name California Fire Safe Council, Inc. (CFSCI). At the moment the CFSCI came into existence, the former CFSC ceased to exist because the CFSCI was specifically set up as a non-membership corporation
. (Subsequently the Board amended the bylaws to create a class of "at-large members." However, these "members" have no voting rights.) The reason for creating the CFSCI was for it to be able to administer grants and collect the administration fee for operations rather than using grant funds for that function, since CDF had ceased funding for the old CFSC due to budget restraints.
(CDF or CAL FIRE) was facing increasing costs for wildfire suppression due to the influx of people building homes in what had previously been unpopulated wildlands. This area of mixed homes and wildlands is variously called the Wildland Urban Interface, Urban-Wildland Interface, or the I-Zone (where I=Interface).
Now during a wildland fire, more and more CDF firefighting resources had to be used to defend homes and lives, which meant that it was taking increased time and resources to get fires under control. Also, since over 90% of fires are started by human activity,
the number of fires was increasing due to the increased population.
In response, CDF stepped up its efforts to educate the public in "fire safe" principles, generally referred to as defensible space
, which can prepare a home to withstand an approaching wildfire and allow the firefighting resources to focus on controlling the fire. These same principles reduce the chance that a house fire will spread to the wildlands. In 1991, the CDF Fire Prevention Unit introduced the "Fire Safe - Inside and Out" program as part of the ongoing "Fire Safe - California" campaign. The intent of the new public awareness program was to help people who live in the wildlands learn to protect themselves and their property, inside and out, from wildfire. The program package included a video, a homeowners booklet, a fire safe checklist, a brochure, and a poster. The creator of the program, Bruce Turbeville, received a Bronze Smokey in recognition of his efforts.
of California
was facing an extreme budget deficit. CDF's budget had been shrinking for many years, and with the sharp decline in 1993 and increasing costs, the Department could no longer sustain its level of service unless something new was done. In May, in a special edition of the CDF in-house newsletter, Communiqué, CDF Director Richard Wilson announced the report entitled "Targeting CDF's Future", which was a result of an extensive planning project to identify ways CDF could improve its efficiency and effectiveness. One theme of the report was that CDF must "…seek out cooperative relationships with the private sector and other government agencies…"
A direct result was the formation of the “Fire Safe Advisory Council” in 1993 "as a means to help support the department’s shrinking education budget by enlisting the monetary and in-kind support of the private sector.” Initially, the Fire Safe Advisory Council consisted of representatives of the building, insurance, real estate, and utilities industries plus various government agencies such as the California Office of Emergency Services.
The following year, when Rich Just took the position of Staff Chief for Fire Prevention and Law Enforcement at Sacramento Headquarters, he said: "The Fire Safe Advisory Council is [a] means of bringing together agencies and business leaders from insurance companies to landscape firms to work on providing dollars and ideas to spread the prevention message here in California. … The path prevention is taking now is toward "communities". We've seen the disastrous effects of wildfires over the past several years, where entire communities have been devastated by fire. Educating the public on the firesafe measures they must take to give their homes and neighborhoods a fighting chance has become critical here in California."
At this time, the former Fire Safe Advisory Council became known as the Fire Safe Council with the "mission to preserve California's natural and man-made resources by mobilizing all Californians to make their homes, neighborhoods and communities fire safe. More than 30 businesses and government organizations sit on the statewide council. The objectives of the organization are to unite members to speak with one voice about fire safety, use the marketing expertise and communication channels of member organizations to increase distribution of fire prevention education materials and empower grass roots organizations to create fire safe communities." People interested in forming a local fire safe council were directed to contact their Ranger Unit.
In 1996, the Fire Safe Council/CDF, in cooperation with the Western Insurance Information Service, developed a Community Action Kit to assist the formation of local community-based fire safe councils. Also in 1996, as mentioned in the Community Action Kit, the updated "California Fire Plan" from CDF and the "Introduction to the I-Zone", sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF), the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (OES), and the University of California Forest Products Laboratory (UCFPL) both mentioned the value of creating local fire safe councils in California's communities.
. These were:
Each of these is explored in more depth below.
of California's financial situation in 2001, CDF was facing a significant budget
reduction, which included cutting back on funding for the Prevention department. Since it was the Prevention department which funded the operation of the CFSC, Bruce Turbeville, who was still acting as the Chairman of the CFSC since his retirement
in early 2001, was told that while CDF supported the Council, it could no longer be the sole source of funds; the CFSC needed to find other ways to support its programs
requested, and the Secretaries of the Department of the Interior and Department of Agriculture submitted, a September 8, 2000, report, Managing the Impact of Wildfires on Communities and the Environment, A Report to the President In Response to the Wildfires of 2000. This report, its accompanying budget request, Congressional direction for substantial new appropriations for wildland fire management, resulting action plans and agency strategies and the Western Governors Association
's A Collaborative Approach for Reducing Wildland Fire Risks to Communities and the Environment - A 10-Year Comprehensive Strategy - Implementation Plan have collectively become known as the National Fire Plan.
The National Fire Plan, and the subsequent Healthy Forests Initiative
(HFI), significantly increased Federal funding for projects on private lands, both "on the ground" and educational, that would reduce the wildfire risk to Federal lands.
For the first time, the Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) had funds available for grants to private organizations. Unlike the United States Forest Service
, (USFS), BLM did not have any internal structure in place to administer grants to the private sector.
Initially, CDF planned to route BLM funds through its ranger units and then to the local fire safe councils. However, this proved not to be a viable option because it would only be able to disperse the grant funds on a reimbursable basis. This meant that grant recipients would not receive their grant funds until after work had been done and paid for, and local fire safe councils did not have the operating budgets to be able to do that.
In order to qualify to receive grants through the SRF, recipients had to be 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations, or have a fiscal sponsor which was a non-profit, such as a Resource Conservation District. Alternatively, the California Community Forests Foundation (CCFF) was available to work with local fire safe councils that did not yet have 501(c)(3) status.
Indeed, the CFSC itself used the CCFF to administer "five grants provided by the Bureau of Land Management via the Sacramento Community Foundation. These funds will support for the ongoing development of the California Fire Safe Council by providing for the Fire Safe Council executive director and council administration and development of public education outreach materials including a new Fire Safe Council webpage (www.firesafecouncil.org)." A total of $716,665 was received from the Sacramento Regional Foundation for these grants.
The SRF operated the Community-Based Wildfire Prevention Grants Program for 2001 and 2002, at which point it was nearing the $10 million dollar limit it had agreed to. Something else needed to be done.
The work of the AAG resulted in the following:
It is important to note that the CFSCI was established as a non-membership entity under non-profit law. Subsequently the CFSCI Board amended the bylaws to create a class of "at-large members." The at-large members have no voting rights.
The CFSCI was set up as a non-membership organization because the AAG felt it would be too cumbersome to include representatives from all local FSCs in future voting, due to how many local councils there were and how difficult it was to determine how the various FSCs would be represented, given how many different types of FSCs there were. Instead, the AAG divided the state into three regions: Coast, Sierra, and Southern California, and created a seat on the Board for each region. The intention was for these representatives to have an ongoing two-way dialog with the local councils in their regions and thus allow local councils and the Board to be in communication through the local representative.
The following Board members were elected officers: Bruce Turbeville, Chairman; Ken Blonski, Vice Chairman; Leo McElroy, Secretary; and David Horne, Treasurer. A nominating committee, a legislative review committee, a public education committee and a development committee [were established].
The corrections below are not intended to detract from the valuable service provided by the CFSCI in its administration of the Grants Clearinghouse. They simply indicate that the thinking of the CFSCI has not kept current with the changes that occurred when the CFSCI was formed.
"Ten years ago, CDF formed the California Fire Safe Council."
"We are the statewide umbrella organization that supports community fire safety efforts and creates consensus on fire safety among diverse audiences. In California, we are the community-level cooperators implementing the National Fire Plan."
"The Fire Safe Council is a coalition of public and private sector organizations that share a common, vested interest in reducing losses from wildfire.
"The Fire Safe Council empowers communities to become fire safe."
in that its primary role is to administer Federal funding through the Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse
on behalf of the members of the California Fire Alliance.
There was nothing in the Bylaws that created the CFSCI about the CFSCI having any control over local FSCs. Local FSCs are independent organizations, as is the CFSCI. Bruce Turbeville himself said in his April 2002 White Paper that he wrote during the process of forming the CFSCI: “Once formed, the local Councils did not want the [C]FSC telling them how to conduct their business, but did want the FSC to provide them with tools they couldn’t create on their own to facilitate the success of their Councils.”
However, in the past the CFSCI has made several attempts to establish a top-down organizational structure with itself at the head. All of these were eventually abandonded, and local fire safe councils have retained their indepencence.
In addition, the CFSCI has received direct grants, both for Clearinghouse operation and for other projects.
In 2009 and 2010, an attempt was made to obtain details on the various Federal grants the CFSCI has received so that an analysis could be done of how much Federal money has gone to the CFSCI itself for overhead, versus the funding that went to “on-the-ground” projects. This effort was only moderately successful. Three of the four agencies provided partial information: the Bureau of Land Management only provided information about indirect expense reimbursement. The US Forest Service and the National Park Service provided both direct and indirect reimbursement data, but not about all of their grants. Fish & Wildlife, alone among the four agencies, refused to grant a fee waiver. As of June 2010, an appeal is pending.
An analysis of the grants where full data was available on both direct and indirect expenses, about three-quarters of total Clearinghouse funding through 2010, showed that nearly 15% of the Federal funding went to the CFSCI rather than to “on-the-ground” projects. This included a previously unannounced total of $370,000 in grants, including indirect expenses, to the CFSCI by the USFS ‘’in addition to’’ reimbursement for direct and indirect expenses in the 2005 and 2006 Clearinghouse cycles. Further, the USFS gave the CFSCI a direct grant in the 2003 cycle to set up the Clearinghouse in the amount of $60,000 in direct and indirect dollars. The existence of these grants, which came directly from the block grant funds intended for subgrants, only became known when the final list of recipients was received under the FOIA request.
This 15% overhead contrasts with claims by the CFSCI that administration is only 6 or 7%. While it's true that most expenses go to programs, which is how they're reported to the Internal Revenue Service on the Form 990, every dollar that is spent on running programs is one dollar less that is available for actual on-the-ground fire prevention and should be considered overhead, regardless of how the cost is recorded on the Form 990.
However, internally the CFSCI Board of Directors appears to have considered the funds as being for its use as a source of unrestricted funds. The minutes from the August 2, 2007 Board meeting read: "Dr. Horne [the CFSCI Treasurer] asked the Board to recognize the efforts of Ms. Rightmyer in conceiving of and implementing the “Million Who Dare to Care” fundraising program. ... Ms. Rightmyer ... commented that these are unrestricted funds…"
As of September 2011 there has been no public accounting of how much money was raised or how these funds were used.
has yet to supply a formal funding stream through the Grants Clearinghouse for community fire safe projects, such as is provided by Federal agencies.
As of September 2011, the CFSCI has made two known attempts, both unsuccessful, to obtain formal funding from the State of California, which the CFSCI would then administer through the Grants Clearinghouse, for its usual fee.
included the cover letter "Funding Allocation for Fire Safe Councils" signed by 10 members of the California Legislature and the associated document "Proposal for General Budget Funding of California's Fire Safe Councils." The reason for the failure of the proposal is unclear.
, the Representative for California State Senate
District 14, and one of the signatories to the 2006 cover letter to the Governor. The bill failed in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
In contrast, the CFSCI is a non-membership organization within the meaning of Nonprofit Corporation Law. While the CFSCI Board has amended the bylaws to create a class of "at-large members," these members have no voting rights.
The NVFSC is statewide while the CFSCI is one of over 100 organizations in California focusing on reducing the wildfire threat.
In 2005, "the Nevada Fire Safe Council received an appropriation from the Nevada State Legislature for $1,546,775 to establish a cost share, community-based wildfire threat reduction project, and to assist in the implementation of the recommended wildfire threat reduction projects as described in Community Wildfire Protection Plans." As of September 2011, the State of California has not provided funding through the Grants Clearinghouse. However, most CAL FIRE Units do supply in-kind matching funds for grants received by their local fire safe council(s).
1998: The Bronze Smokey Award was given to the California Fire Safe Council for the Fire Safe California Community Action Kit. The Bronze Smokey is earned by outstanding contributions to local or statewide wildland fire prevention efforts over 2 years or more.
1998: The CFSC was honored by the Public Relations Society of America for its role in the "El Fuego" campaign. "El Fuego" won the top award, Best of Show, surpassing more than 100 other corporate, governmental and organizational public outreach programs.
2001: The CFSC received the prestigious Francis H. Raymond Award, which has been given annually since 1987 to the individual(s), organization, agency, or company achieving excellence in forestry in California over five years or more. The award is named in honor of Francis H. Raymond, director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection from 1953 to 1970, and one of the primary advocates for the passage of the Professional Foresters Law in 1973.
2001: The CFSC set up a the first Community-Based Wildfire Prevention Grants Program to funnel Bureau of Land Management National Fire Plan funding to implement fire safe projects on private lands. This concept has since expanded to other agencies in the California Fire Alliance and is now known as the "Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse
."
2002: The "Homeowner's Checklist" from the "Fire Safe Inside and Out" program won the first place trophy in the Governor’s Clarity Awards competition. The goal of the award was to promote clear, concise and understandable language in state government documents. The program gave out 16 awards in 2002 when there were 111 entries from 33 departments in 10 agencies.
2002: Created its successor organization, the independent California Fire Safe Council, Inc. (CFSCI)
Consortium
A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....
of local community-based fire safe councils
Fire safe councils
Fire safe councils are grassroots community-based organizations which share the objective of making California's communities less vulnerable to catastrophic wildfire...
and other organizations that shared the mission of making California's communities less vulnerable to catastrophic wildfire
Wildfire
A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...
. It was funded by the state of California Resources Agency
California Resources Agency
The California Natural Resources Agency is a state cabinet-level agency in the government of California. The institution and jurisdiction of the Natural Resources Agency is provided for in California Government Code sections 12800 and 12805, et seq...
, Department of Conservation, Division of Forestry, also called CDF or CAL FIRE.
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is the State of California's agency responsible for fire protection in State Responsibility Areas of California as well as the administration of the state's private and public forests. It is often referred to as The California Department of...
It was led by staff from the CDF Prevention Bureau.
In mid-2002 a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization was formed by members of the former CFSC using the name California Fire Safe Council, Inc. (CFSCI). At the moment the CFSCI came into existence, the former CFSC ceased to exist because the CFSCI was specifically set up as a non-membership corporation
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
. (Subsequently the Board amended the bylaws to create a class of "at-large members." However, these "members" have no voting rights.) The reason for creating the CFSCI was for it to be able to administer grants and collect the administration fee for operations rather than using grant funds for that function, since CDF had ceased funding for the old CFSC due to budget restraints.
A need develops: prior to 1993
In the early 1990s, the California Department of Forestry and Fire ProtectionCalifornia Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is the State of California's agency responsible for fire protection in State Responsibility Areas of California as well as the administration of the state's private and public forests. It is often referred to as The California Department of...
(CDF or CAL FIRE) was facing increasing costs for wildfire suppression due to the influx of people building homes in what had previously been unpopulated wildlands. This area of mixed homes and wildlands is variously called the Wildland Urban Interface, Urban-Wildland Interface, or the I-Zone (where I=Interface).
Now during a wildland fire, more and more CDF firefighting resources had to be used to defend homes and lives, which meant that it was taking increased time and resources to get fires under control. Also, since over 90% of fires are started by human activity,
the number of fires was increasing due to the increased population.
In response, CDF stepped up its efforts to educate the public in "fire safe" principles, generally referred to as defensible space
Defensible space
Defensible space may refer to:*Defensible space , a concept of influencing negative social behavior through architectural and urban design....
, which can prepare a home to withstand an approaching wildfire and allow the firefighting resources to focus on controlling the fire. These same principles reduce the chance that a house fire will spread to the wildlands. In 1991, the CDF Fire Prevention Unit introduced the "Fire Safe - Inside and Out" program as part of the ongoing "Fire Safe - California" campaign. The intent of the new public awareness program was to help people who live in the wildlands learn to protect themselves and their property, inside and out, from wildfire. The program package included a video, a homeowners booklet, a fire safe checklist, a brochure, and a poster. The creator of the program, Bruce Turbeville, received a Bronze Smokey in recognition of his efforts.
The Fire Safe Advisory Council: 1993 to 1995
In 1993 the StateU.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
was facing an extreme budget deficit. CDF's budget had been shrinking for many years, and with the sharp decline in 1993 and increasing costs, the Department could no longer sustain its level of service unless something new was done. In May, in a special edition of the CDF in-house newsletter, Communiqué, CDF Director Richard Wilson announced the report entitled "Targeting CDF's Future", which was a result of an extensive planning project to identify ways CDF could improve its efficiency and effectiveness. One theme of the report was that CDF must "…seek out cooperative relationships with the private sector and other government agencies…"
A direct result was the formation of the “Fire Safe Advisory Council” in 1993 "as a means to help support the department’s shrinking education budget by enlisting the monetary and in-kind support of the private sector.” Initially, the Fire Safe Advisory Council consisted of representatives of the building, insurance, real estate, and utilities industries plus various government agencies such as the California Office of Emergency Services.
The following year, when Rich Just took the position of Staff Chief for Fire Prevention and Law Enforcement at Sacramento Headquarters, he said: "The Fire Safe Advisory Council is [a] means of bringing together agencies and business leaders from insurance companies to landscape firms to work on providing dollars and ideas to spread the prevention message here in California. … The path prevention is taking now is toward "communities". We've seen the disastrous effects of wildfires over the past several years, where entire communities have been devastated by fire. Educating the public on the firesafe measures they must take to give their homes and neighborhoods a fighting chance has become critical here in California."
The Fire Safe Council: 1995 to 1997
Chief Just's vision inspired local Ranger Units to work with their communities to become fire safe. By 1995, two community partnerships were well on their way. One was the Shingletown Community Fire Safe Project in the Shasta-Trinity Ranger Unit. Another was the Oakhurst-Ahwahnee Basin Community Fire Protection Project in the Madera-Mariposa-Merced Ranger Unit. Having the local Ranger Units involved in fostering community partnerships was also the philosophy of CDF Director Richard Wilson: "As CDF takes the Fire Safe Council concept to local communities, the field will become an important resource and uniting force. Ranger units can and should play a leadership role in this effort to form local fire safe councils." Director Wilson also said: "As more Californians move into wildland/urban intermix areas, a coordinated group effort has to he made to keep them safe from wildfire . We can't afford to have a fire engine in front of every home day and night; we must help our communities prepare for fire before it happens."At this time, the former Fire Safe Advisory Council became known as the Fire Safe Council with the "mission to preserve California's natural and man-made resources by mobilizing all Californians to make their homes, neighborhoods and communities fire safe. More than 30 businesses and government organizations sit on the statewide council. The objectives of the organization are to unite members to speak with one voice about fire safety, use the marketing expertise and communication channels of member organizations to increase distribution of fire prevention education materials and empower grass roots organizations to create fire safe communities." People interested in forming a local fire safe council were directed to contact their Ranger Unit.
In 1996, the Fire Safe Council/CDF, in cooperation with the Western Insurance Information Service, developed a Community Action Kit to assist the formation of local community-based fire safe councils. Also in 1996, as mentioned in the Community Action Kit, the updated "California Fire Plan" from CDF and the "Introduction to the I-Zone", sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF), the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (OES), and the University of California Forest Products Laboratory (UCFPL) both mentioned the value of creating local fire safe councils in California's communities.
The California Fire Safe Council: 1997 to 2001
By the end of 1997, the organization had changed its name to the California Fire Safe Council to reflect the increasing number of local fire safe councils being created around the state. People wanting to form local fire safe councils were now directed to contact the CDF Sacramento Headquarters Public Education Office. By January 1998, there were 50 local fire safe councils, and a web site was created for the California Fire Safe Council, which included pages for each local council. Local councils continued to form and to participate as part of the California Fire Safe Council coalition.Years of transition: 2001-2002
In 2001, several things happened that set the CFSC on a new path which eventually led to the formation of the California Fire Safe Council, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporationCorporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
. These were:
- Bruce Turbeville retired, and CDF named a new Public Education Officer
- CDF reduced their funding support for the CFSC
- The National Fire Plan provided a potential new funding stream
- The Community-Based Wildfire Prevention Grants Program was established
Each of these is explored in more depth below.
A new CDF Public Education Officer
Bruce Turbeville, who had developed and administered the CFSC since 1993, retired in early 2001. At the March 8, 2001 monthly meeting, he "introduced [Deputy Chief] Bryan Zollner, the new Public Education Officer for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection." Mr. Turbeville continued in his role as the Chairman of the California Fire Safe Council. Chief Zollner led the effort to establish the BLM Community-Based Wildfire Prevention Grants Program.CDF reduces funding
Due to the stateU.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of California's financial situation in 2001, CDF was facing a significant budget
Budget
A budget is a financial plan and a list of all planned expenses and revenues. It is a plan for saving, borrowing and spending. A budget is an important concept in microeconomics, which uses a budget line to illustrate the trade-offs between two or more goods...
reduction, which included cutting back on funding for the Prevention department. Since it was the Prevention department which funded the operation of the CFSC, Bruce Turbeville, who was still acting as the Chairman of the CFSC since his retirement
Retirement
Retirement is the point where a person stops employment completely. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours.Many people choose to retire when they are eligible for private or public pension benefits, although some are forced to retire when physical conditions don't allow the person to...
in early 2001, was told that while CDF supported the Council, it could no longer be the sole source of funds; the CFSC needed to find other ways to support its programs
New funding
In response to the wildland fires of 2000, President Bill ClintonBill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
requested, and the Secretaries of the Department of the Interior and Department of Agriculture submitted, a September 8, 2000, report, Managing the Impact of Wildfires on Communities and the Environment, A Report to the President In Response to the Wildfires of 2000. This report, its accompanying budget request, Congressional direction for substantial new appropriations for wildland fire management, resulting action plans and agency strategies and the Western Governors Association
Western Governors Association
The Western Governors' Association is a non-partisan organization of all 22 United States Governors The Western Governors' Association (WGA) is a non-partisan organization of all 22 United States Governors The Western Governors' Association (WGA) is a non-partisan organization of all 22 United...
's A Collaborative Approach for Reducing Wildland Fire Risks to Communities and the Environment - A 10-Year Comprehensive Strategy - Implementation Plan have collectively become known as the National Fire Plan.
The National Fire Plan, and the subsequent Healthy Forests Initiative
Healthy Forests Initiative
The Healthy Forests Initiative , officially the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 , is a law originally proposed by President George W. Bush in response to the widespread forest fires during the summer of 2002...
(HFI), significantly increased Federal funding for projects on private lands, both "on the ground" and educational, that would reduce the wildfire risk to Federal lands.
For the first time, the Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
(BLM) had funds available for grants to private organizations. Unlike the United States Forest Service
United States Forest Service
The United States Forest Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands, which encompass...
, (USFS), BLM did not have any internal structure in place to administer grants to the private sector.
Initially, CDF planned to route BLM funds through its ranger units and then to the local fire safe councils. However, this proved not to be a viable option because it would only be able to disperse the grant funds on a reimbursable basis. This meant that grant recipients would not receive their grant funds until after work had been done and paid for, and local fire safe councils did not have the operating budgets to be able to do that.
Establishment of the BLM Community-Based Wildfire Prevention Grants Program
Since the BLM funds could not be routed through CDF, a search was begun to locate a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that could accept the funds, disperse them, and provide an accounting to BLM. At the Monthly Meeting on June 21, 2001, Chief Zollner announced that the Sacramento Regional Foundation (SRF) had been chosen to serve as the grant administrator. This program subsequently became known as the "Community-Based Wildfire Prevention Grants Program." The Sacramento Regional Foundation agreed to host the grant program under contract with the Bureau of Land Management until 2006 or until it (the SRF) had hosted $10 million in grants, whichever came first. In return for this service, the SRF received an administrative fee (AKA "indirect cost rate") based on the amount of funds it administered: 8% on up to $2,000,000; declining gradually to just 5% on over $10,000,000.In order to qualify to receive grants through the SRF, recipients had to be 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations, or have a fiscal sponsor which was a non-profit, such as a Resource Conservation District. Alternatively, the California Community Forests Foundation (CCFF) was available to work with local fire safe councils that did not yet have 501(c)(3) status.
Indeed, the CFSC itself used the CCFF to administer "five grants provided by the Bureau of Land Management via the Sacramento Community Foundation. These funds will support for the ongoing development of the California Fire Safe Council by providing for the Fire Safe Council executive director and council administration and development of public education outreach materials including a new Fire Safe Council webpage (www.firesafecouncil.org)." A total of $716,665 was received from the Sacramento Regional Foundation for these grants.
The SRF operated the Community-Based Wildfire Prevention Grants Program for 2001 and 2002, at which point it was nearing the $10 million dollar limit it had agreed to. Something else needed to be done.
Formation of the California Fire Safe Council, Inc.
The idea of formalizing the California Fire Safe Council as a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation was first proposed at a monthly meeting on May 24, 2001. Discussions eventually resulted in the Administrative Action Group (AAG) subcomittee taking on this task in April 2002.The work of the AAG resulted in the following:
- Articles of Incorporation for the California Fire Safe Council, Inc. (CFSCI), a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation
- Final draft Bylaws
- Selection of a slate of candidates for the first Board of Directors
- Election of the first Board by local fire safe councils; i.e. the general membership of the CFSC
It is important to note that the CFSCI was established as a non-membership entity under non-profit law. Subsequently the CFSCI Board amended the bylaws to create a class of "at-large members." The at-large members have no voting rights.
The CFSCI was set up as a non-membership organization because the AAG felt it would be too cumbersome to include representatives from all local FSCs in future voting, due to how many local councils there were and how difficult it was to determine how the various FSCs would be represented, given how many different types of FSCs there were. Instead, the AAG divided the state into three regions: Coast, Sierra, and Southern California, and created a seat on the Board for each region. The intention was for these representatives to have an ongoing two-way dialog with the local councils in their regions and thus allow local councils and the Board to be in communication through the local representative.
The CFSCI begins
The first meeting of the new Board of Directors for the California Fire Safe Council, Inc. (CFSCI) was held on August 21, 2002. (Note that as of August 2008, the minutes from this meeting are not available online, so the information in this section was taken from the minutes of the General Meeting on August 22, 2002.)The following Board members were elected officers: Bruce Turbeville, Chairman; Ken Blonski, Vice Chairman; Leo McElroy, Secretary; and David Horne, Treasurer. A nominating committee, a legislative review committee, a public education committee and a development committee [were established].
Differences in the role and function of the CFSCI vs the former CFSC
It appears that the CFSCI has not realized that a transition occurred when it was formed, as its Board and Staff members continue to make assertions that no longer apply. The following examples, taken from then-Chairman Bruce Turbeville's presentation to the Governor's Blue Ribbon Fire Commission, and from the CFSCI brochure are illustrative.The corrections below are not intended to detract from the valuable service provided by the CFSCI in its administration of the Grants Clearinghouse. They simply indicate that the thinking of the CFSCI has not kept current with the changes that occurred when the CFSCI was formed.
"Ten years ago, CDF formed the California Fire Safe Council."
- The current CFSCI began when it was incorporated in mid-2002, which is when the previous CFSC, as a confederation of local councils, CDF staff, and other organizations supporting the fire safe mission, ceased to exist. The CFSCI was not formed by CDF and is not the same organization as the former CFSC.
"We are the statewide umbrella organization that supports community fire safety efforts and creates consensus on fire safety among diverse audiences. In California, we are the community-level cooperators implementing the National Fire Plan."
- The CFSCI is not statewide. It is a business with headquarters in Glendora, California.
- The CFSCI is not an umbrella organization. It is an independent business.
- The CFSCI does not create consensus among diverse audiences because it is no longer a confederation.
- The CFSCI is not a "community level cooperator." It is the local fire safe councils which operate at the community level.
- The CFSCI does not implement the National Fire Plan. It channels funding to the local FSCs, who are the implementers on private lands, while the Federal agencies implement the NFP on Federal lands.
"The Fire Safe Council is a coalition of public and private sector organizations that share a common, vested interest in reducing losses from wildfire.
- The current CFSCI is not a coalition. It is an independent 501(c)(3) business.
- Calling the CFSCI "the" Fire Safe Council ignores the fact that it is one of over a hundred fire safe organizations in California and Nevada.
"The Fire Safe Council empowers communities to become fire safe."
- It is the local community-based fire safe councils that empower their communities.
Relationship with local fire safe councils
The CFSCI is one entity among the over 100 independent organizations that focus on wildfire safety throughout the state of California. It has a somewhat different function from local fire safe councilsFire safe councils
Fire safe councils are grassroots community-based organizations which share the objective of making California's communities less vulnerable to catastrophic wildfire...
in that its primary role is to administer Federal funding through the Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse
Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse
The Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse was created by the members of the California Fire Alliance in order to facilitate the process of applying for Federal grants to do wildfire prevention projects on private lands in California and Nevada. This process is also referred to as "one-stop...
on behalf of the members of the California Fire Alliance.
There was nothing in the Bylaws that created the CFSCI about the CFSCI having any control over local FSCs. Local FSCs are independent organizations, as is the CFSCI. Bruce Turbeville himself said in his April 2002 White Paper that he wrote during the process of forming the CFSCI: “Once formed, the local Councils did not want the [C]FSC telling them how to conduct their business, but did want the FSC to provide them with tools they couldn’t create on their own to facilitate the success of their Councils.”
However, in the past the CFSCI has made several attempts to establish a top-down organizational structure with itself at the head. All of these were eventually abandonded, and local fire safe councils have retained their indepencence.
- 2006: Trademark applications submitted to restrict use of the fire safe logo and the phrase "Fire Safe Council"
- 2006: "Code of Conduct" for local fire safe councils proposed
- 2006: "Affiliate Structure" proposed
- 2007: “Smart Growth Program” to certify local Fire Safe Councils proposed
Federal funding
The California Fire Safe Council, Inc. receives reimbursement for direct and indirect expenses for administering the block grants that go through the Clearinghouse. These funds are "restricted" in that they can only be used for activities associated with administering the Clearinghouse funds. These activities include conducting grant writing workshops on how to apply for Clearinghouse grants, convening the annual Review Committee that selects projects to fund and providing administrative support for that Committee, disbursing funds to the grant recipients, processing status reports from recipients, and other tasks required by the funding agencies. Operating expenses incurred by the CFSCI outside of grant administration, such as lobbying and fund raising, must be funded from other sources.In addition, the CFSCI has received direct grants, both for Clearinghouse operation and for other projects.
In 2009 and 2010, an attempt was made to obtain details on the various Federal grants the CFSCI has received so that an analysis could be done of how much Federal money has gone to the CFSCI itself for overhead, versus the funding that went to “on-the-ground” projects. This effort was only moderately successful. Three of the four agencies provided partial information: the Bureau of Land Management only provided information about indirect expense reimbursement. The US Forest Service and the National Park Service provided both direct and indirect reimbursement data, but not about all of their grants. Fish & Wildlife, alone among the four agencies, refused to grant a fee waiver. As of June 2010, an appeal is pending.
An analysis of the grants where full data was available on both direct and indirect expenses, about three-quarters of total Clearinghouse funding through 2010, showed that nearly 15% of the Federal funding went to the CFSCI rather than to “on-the-ground” projects. This included a previously unannounced total of $370,000 in grants, including indirect expenses, to the CFSCI by the USFS ‘’in addition to’’ reimbursement for direct and indirect expenses in the 2005 and 2006 Clearinghouse cycles. Further, the USFS gave the CFSCI a direct grant in the 2003 cycle to set up the Clearinghouse in the amount of $60,000 in direct and indirect dollars. The existence of these grants, which came directly from the block grant funds intended for subgrants, only became known when the final list of recipients was received under the FOIA request.
This 15% overhead contrasts with claims by the CFSCI that administration is only 6 or 7%. While it's true that most expenses go to programs, which is how they're reported to the Internal Revenue Service on the Form 990, every dollar that is spent on running programs is one dollar less that is available for actual on-the-ground fire prevention and should be considered overhead, regardless of how the cost is recorded on the Form 990.
Non-governmental funding
From time to time the CFSCI has received grants from non-Federal sources, primarily insurance organizations. These funds may be restricted to specific activities or unrestricted. In some cases, funds that were originally restricted were changed to unrestricted at the request of the CFSCI so that the monies could be used for CFSCI operating expenses other than those associated with grant administration. Through 2008, some of the non-Federal funds received include:- 2003: $200,000 from Pacific Gas & Electric for the development of an updated "Fire Safe Inside and Out" video [This video was released under the title “Controlling Nature’s Wrath”]
- 2003: $2,500 from Chemco
- 2003: $3000 from Thermo Gel
- 2006: $100,000 from AllstateAllstateThe Allstate Corporation is the second-largest personal lines insurer in the United States and the largest that is publicly held. The company also has personal lines insurance operations in Canada. Allstate was founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., and was spun off in 1993...
to conduct three media and safety fairs and to provide capacity building grants to several local fire safe councils
- 2007: $5,000 from Farmers Insurance
- 2008: $250,000 from State Farm Insurance, with $150,000 to go to CAL FIRE for hydration packs and fire shelter holsters. The CFSCI will act as the fiscal agent for the CAL FIRE funds. Uses for the remaining $100,000 include newsletters, regional public relations and media workshops, and distribution of excess copies of the “Controlling Nature’s Wrath” DVD to local FSCs.
- 2008: $150,000 grant from Farmers Insurance for 4-5 workshops on effective partnerships, including partnering with Farmers, for fire prevention activities.
- 2011: $4,000 grant from Pacific Gas & Electric for the complete redesign and update of the CFSC organizational website, among other uses.
The Million Who Dare to Care Program
In August 2007, the CFSCI announced the Million Who Dare to Care Program. The announcement http://www.firesafecouncil.org/articles.cfm?article=240 said: "Join "The Million Who Dare to Care" program of the California Fire Safe Council to help raise funds to provide services to homeowners and local Fire Safe Councils for fuels reduction around homes and in our communities." The flyer http://www.firesafecouncil.org/news/attachments/Dare_to_Care_dollar_campaign_flyerREV1_8_07240.pdf stated "Your gift of just one dollar means the California Fire Safe Council can help homeowners prepare ahead of time for a wildfire." Thus the program was publicly positioned as a funding source for community fire safe projects.However, internally the CFSCI Board of Directors appears to have considered the funds as being for its use as a source of unrestricted funds. The minutes from the August 2, 2007 Board meeting read: "Dr. Horne [the CFSCI Treasurer] asked the Board to recognize the efforts of Ms. Rightmyer in conceiving of and implementing the “Million Who Dare to Care” fundraising program. ... Ms. Rightmyer ... commented that these are unrestricted funds…"
As of September 2011 there has been no public accounting of how much money was raised or how these funds were used.
Attempts to acquire state funding for the Grants Clearinghouse
While local units of CAL FIRE, which is a State agency, often provide "in-kind" matches for federal grants obtained by their local fire safe councils, the State of CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
has yet to supply a formal funding stream through the Grants Clearinghouse for community fire safe projects, such as is provided by Federal agencies.
As of September 2011, the CFSCI has made two known attempts, both unsuccessful, to obtain formal funding from the State of California, which the CFSCI would then administer through the Grants Clearinghouse, for its usual fee.
$26 million proposal to the Governor
In 2006, a package submitted to California Governor Arnold SchwarzeneggerArnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
included the cover letter "Funding Allocation for Fire Safe Councils" signed by 10 members of the California Legislature and the associated document "Proposal for General Budget Funding of California's Fire Safe Councils." The reason for the failure of the proposal is unclear.
SB 838 proposed legislation
On February 23, 2007, the bill SB 838, "An act to add Sections 4742 and 4743 to the Public Resources Code, relating to fire prevention and protection"http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=sb_838&sess=0708&house=B&author=cogdill was introduced by Dave CogdillDave Cogdill
David Ellis Cogdill, Sr. is a Republican politician who served as a State Senator from California's 14th State Senate district from December 2006 to December 2010...
, the Representative for California State Senate
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
District 14, and one of the signatories to the 2006 cover letter to the Governor. The bill failed in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Similarities
The California Fire Safe Council, Inc. (CFSCI) and the Fire Safe Council (NVFSC) are both 501(c)(3) non-profit corporations. Both are focused on reducing the wildfire hazard in their respective states. Like local fire safe councils in California, the NVFSC is eligible to receive Federal funding through the Grants Clearinghouse.Differences
The NVFSC is structured as a membership organization. The local fire safe councils in Nevada are all members of the NVFSC and determine how it operates. Businesses and other organizations, as well as individuals, can also join.In contrast, the CFSCI is a non-membership organization within the meaning of Nonprofit Corporation Law. While the CFSCI Board has amended the bylaws to create a class of "at-large members," these members have no voting rights.
The NVFSC is statewide while the CFSCI is one of over 100 organizations in California focusing on reducing the wildfire threat.
In 2005, "the Nevada Fire Safe Council received an appropriation from the Nevada State Legislature for $1,546,775 to establish a cost share, community-based wildfire threat reduction project, and to assist in the implementation of the recommended wildfire threat reduction projects as described in Community Wildfire Protection Plans." As of September 2011, the State of California has not provided funding through the Grants Clearinghouse. However, most CAL FIRE Units do supply in-kind matching funds for grants received by their local fire safe council(s).
Prior to incorporation
1996: CDF and the California Fire Safe Council created and distributed the Fire Safe California Community Action Kit to assist with the formation of local community-based Fire Safe Councils.1998: The Bronze Smokey Award was given to the California Fire Safe Council for the Fire Safe California Community Action Kit. The Bronze Smokey is earned by outstanding contributions to local or statewide wildland fire prevention efforts over 2 years or more.
1998: The CFSC was honored by the Public Relations Society of America for its role in the "El Fuego" campaign. "El Fuego" won the top award, Best of Show, surpassing more than 100 other corporate, governmental and organizational public outreach programs.
2001: The CFSC received the prestigious Francis H. Raymond Award, which has been given annually since 1987 to the individual(s), organization, agency, or company achieving excellence in forestry in California over five years or more. The award is named in honor of Francis H. Raymond, director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection from 1953 to 1970, and one of the primary advocates for the passage of the Professional Foresters Law in 1973.
2001: The CFSC set up a the first Community-Based Wildfire Prevention Grants Program to funnel Bureau of Land Management National Fire Plan funding to implement fire safe projects on private lands. This concept has since expanded to other agencies in the California Fire Alliance and is now known as the "Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse
Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse
The Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse was created by the members of the California Fire Alliance in order to facilitate the process of applying for Federal grants to do wildfire prevention projects on private lands in California and Nevada. This process is also referred to as "one-stop...
."
2002: The "Homeowner's Checklist" from the "Fire Safe Inside and Out" program won the first place trophy in the Governor’s Clarity Awards competition. The goal of the award was to promote clear, concise and understandable language in state government documents. The program gave out 16 awards in 2002 when there were 111 entries from 33 departments in 10 agencies.
2002: Created its successor organization, the independent California Fire Safe Council, Inc. (CFSCI)
Since incorporation
The list below is based primarily, although not exclusively, on the minutes for CFSCI Board of Directors Meetings that were available online through December 2008 and the 2002 and 2003-2004 Annual Reports, which were the only ones available online as of May 2009. Where possible, supplemental web searches were done, and the links included. As of December 2008, approximately 50% of Board meetings either had no posted minutes or bad links, and portions of meetings that were held in Executive Session were not posted, so this list of accomplishments below may not be complete. Note that several non-Federal grants have been received for specific activities; these are listed in the section "Funding for the CFSCI."- 2002: Received a communications industry honor, the PRSA Prism, for the revised California Fire Safe Council web site.
- 2003: Held a "National Fire Safe Council Conference" (also called "Fire Summit 2003") co-sponsored by the California Fire Alliance and Firewise.
- 2003: Established, with the California Fire Alliance, the “one stop shopping” Fire Safe California Grants ClearinghouseFire Safe California Grants ClearinghouseThe Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse was created by the members of the California Fire Alliance in order to facilitate the process of applying for Federal grants to do wildfire prevention projects on private lands in California and Nevada. This process is also referred to as "one-stop...
- 2004: Held a banquet and awards ceremony in recognition of fire safe council volunteers and firefighters
- 2004: Successfully lobbied U.S. SenatorUnited States SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Dianne FeinsteinDianne FeinsteinDianne Goldman Berman Feinstein is the senior U.S. Senator from California. A member of the Democratic Party, she has served in the Senate since 1992. She also served as 38th Mayor of San Francisco from 1978 to 1988....
for a $3.9 million earmarkEarmark (politics)In United States politics, an earmark is a legislative provision that directs approved funds to be spent on specific projects, or that directs specific exemptions from taxes or mandated fees...
, which was included in the budget for fiscal year 2006.
- 2005: Released the "California Living: Fire Safe - Controlling Nature’s Wrath" DVD with CDF & PG&E http://www.pge.com/myhome/customerservice/other/treetrimming/community/index.shtml The video won a Bronze Telly Award in 2006.
- 2008: Worked with the California Legislature to pass a joint resolution recognizing "that Fire Safe Councils serve as leading community-based wildfire preparedness organizations and the vital services provided by Fire Safe Councils for the citizens of California."
- 2008: Obtained another $3.9 million earmark from Senator Feinstein.
External links
- California Fire Safe Council
- CAL FIRE also called CDF or California Department of Forestry and Fire ProtectionCalifornia Department of Forestry and Fire ProtectionThe California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is the State of California's agency responsible for fire protection in State Responsibility Areas of California as well as the administration of the state's private and public forests. It is often referred to as The California Department of...
- California Fire Alliance
- Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse
- Nevada Fire Safe Council