California Executive Order N-18-25 (2025): Urban Conflagration (Increasing Wildfire Resilience)

Following the devastating Los Angeles and Ventura County California wildfires in January 2025, the Executive Department of California under Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-18-25 (“Urban Conflagration”) to increase wildfire resilience for individual homeowners and neighborhoods, and improve mapping and communications around wildfire incident management. This Executive Order directs the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, the State Fire Marshal, and the Federal Interagency Resource Ordering Capability (IROC) to update regulations, resources, and operations to better prepare for future fire and windstorms in California. The order will also expedite aid and recovery efforts during future wildfires.

The January 2025 California wildfires burned nearly 50,000 acres of land and over 16,000 structures, and more than two dozen people died in the fires. Wildfires are becoming more frequent, severe, and damaging across the entire United States, with Southern California experiencing disproportionately larger fires. The California Executive Office has invested billions of dollars over the last 5+ years to optimize staffing, operations, technology, and firefighting equipment in the face of this threat. This investment is part of the 2021 California Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan, developed in response to previous record-breaking wildfires in California. 

The primary actions required by the EO N-18-25 are:

  • The Board of Forestry and Fire protection will create and enforce a “Zone Zero” regulation, which places a 5-foot buffer zone around homes where materials must be ember-resistant;
  • The State Fire Marshal must update the Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps for Local Responsibility Areas; and
  • The Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) identify strengths, weaknesses, and recommendations to improve IROC.

The “Zone Zero” ember-resistant zone regulation was initially established by California Assembly Bill 3074 in 2020 and became law in 2021. Vegetation and fences near homes, also known as “fuel”, can cause fire to spread from home to home when it is within 5 feet of a residence. This fuel was a chief concern during the January fires. “Zone Zero” is required for homes in “Fire Hazard Severity Zones” (FHSZs) per the California Public Resources Code Section 4291, and California Government Code Section 51182. Also per CA Government Code Sections 51178 and 51179, the State Fire Marshal is responsible for identifying FHSZs using statewide criteria, ranging from Moderate to Very High fire hazard, and local agencies must designate Very High FHSZs. LRA FHSZ maps were due to be updated in January 2025, and this Executive Order expedites the update process.

The IROC tool has been a part of wildland firefighting in California since 2020. CAL FIRE and Cal OES switched to this federally-managed system in March 2020, and have been using the web portal for hazard incidents since. EO N-18-25 points out that CAL FIRE and OES have reported a capacity gap between what IROC can offer and the need presented by large, damaging wildfires. In partnership with the federal government and other states that use IROC, Newsom ordered CAL FIRE and OES to workshop the pros, cons, and future directions of the resource ordering tool. Next steps for this EO involve the California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection holding public engagement events on defensible space regulation changes.

Publication Date: February 6, 2025

Related Organizations:

  • California Office of the Governor

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  • Executive order

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