PG&E and California Fire Foundation Open Applications for Wildfire Safety and Preparedness Grants

Yahoo

02-06-2025

More than $1 million in grants, public education, and outreach funded in 2025; Applications Accepted May 30 through June 30
OAKLAND, Calif., June 2, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Ahead of California's peak fire season, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) and the California Fire Foundation (CFF) are encouraging California-based fire departments and community-based organizations to apply for grants for wildfire safety and preparedness programs and projects. Applications must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on June 30, 2025, through the CFF website. Award notification will begin July 31, 2025.
The grant program continues an eight-year partnership between PG&E and CFF. PG&E and The PG&E Corporation Foundation (PG&E Foundation) are providing a total of $1.65 million to CFF's Wildfire Safety and Preparedness Program (WSPP). The program continues to raise public awareness about wildfire safety and deliver resources to underserved communities in high fire-risk areas.
The program includes a competitive grant program that last year awarded 55 local fire departments and community groups $750,000 in funding. This year's program includes increased funding for $950,000 in grant awards. Funding for these charitable donations comes from PG&E shareholders, not customers.
In 2024, funding supported:
Purchasing approximately 7,560 pieces of personal protection equipment including helmets, boots, gloves, goggles and fire shelters
Removing over 21 acres of hazardous tree and brush
Chipping and hauling of 1.5 million pounds of tree limbs, branches and other combustibles
Conducting 22 prescribed fires or pile burns for forest management
"Now in its eighth year, the Wildfire Safety and Preparedness Program serves as a constant reminder to Californians of the recurring and deadly nature of wildfires," said Angie Carmignani, Executive Director of the California Fire Foundation. "Whether during historic wildfire seasons or quieter periods, the program has remains steadfast – reaching communities year after year to ensure they're prepared for wildfire. Our partnership with PG&E has been instrumental in making this life-saving work possible and directly supports CFF's mission to strengthen disaster preparedness across our state."
Since 2018, CFF, which administers and manages the program, has awarded 368 grants to fire departments and community organizations statewide, focusing its efforts in Northern and Central California. Funding targets communities identified as having extreme or elevated fire risk as identified by the California Public Utilities Commission.
"PG&E is grateful for our ongoing partnership with the California Fire Foundation as we share the goal of helping our hometowns do everything possible to prevent wildfires. The projects that these grants fund, such as creating defensible space, enabling fuel-reduction programs and conducting fire-safety outreach campaigns, are essential across our service area and especially within underserved communities," said Mark Quinlan, PG&E's Senior Vice President, Wildfire, Emergency & Operations.
How the Grants Help Communities
From 2018 to the present, PG&E and the PG&E Foundation have provided $10.45 million in total support for fire safety awareness through the program. The charitable contributions are shareholder-funded, not paid for by PG&E customers.
Since 2018, WSPP has funded:
Specialized fire equipment and personal protective equipment
Defensible space and vegetation management efforts
Fuel/hazard reduction programs
Fire prevention and emergency preparedness education, including senior citizen wildfire preparedness programs
Partnerships with community groups in high fire-risk areas to distribute fire-safety information
Fire safety outreach campaigns, including 12,000 multi-lingual brochures targeting under-resourced communities in English, Spanish, Chinese, Hmong, and Vietnamese
The program develops and distributes in-language fire-safety messaging targeting Spanish, Chinese, Hmong, and Vietnamese communities. These efforts include a comprehensive media campaign consisting of outdoor billboards and in-language television, radio, and digital ads.
The California Fire Foundation, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, aids firefighters, their families, and the communities they protect. CFF's Firefighters on Your Side program, also supported by PG&E, provides multi-lingual, culturally relevant fire safety messaging in both digital and print forms to assist the public in staying safe.
About PG&E Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit pge.com and pge.com/news.
About The PG&E Corporation Foundation The PG&E Corporation Foundation is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, separate from PG&E and sponsored by PG&E Corporation.
About California Fire FoundationThe California Fire Foundation, a nonprofit 501 (c)(3) organization, provides emotional and financial assistance to families of fallen firefighters, firefighters, and the communities they protect. Formed in 1987 by California Professional Firefighters, the California Fire Foundation's mandate includes an array of survivor and victim assistance projects and community initiatives. cafirefoundation.org
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SOURCE Pacific Gas and Electric Company