President Biden said the federal government will provide one-time payments of $770 to people affected by the current wildfires in California to pay for essentials such as baby formula, prescriptions, clothing and food.
Biden announced this on Thursday evening during a briefing from the Oval Office on the situation in the Southern California. According to the president, nearly 6,000 people have been approved to receive payments so far, bringing the total to $5.1 million that has already gone through the program.
“We are not waiting until these fires are over to start helping the victims. We are helping them right now,” said Biden from The Oval Office.
President Biden asks a question while being briefed on the federal response to the Los Angeles wildfires during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025.
On January 8, the president approved a disaster declaration for California, opening up federal funding to affected individuals in Los Angeles for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the wildfires. In addition, the president promised that the federal government would cover 100% of the cost California’s Disaster Response for a period of six months.
Meanwhile, during a briefing Monday night, Biden urged Congress to increase funding for the wildfire and its victims.
NEWSOM DEFENDS FIRE RESPONSE WITH FACT CHECKING PAGE LINKING TO DEM PARTY FUNDRAISING PLATFORM
“It’s going to cost tens of billions of dollars to get Los Angeles back to what it was,” Biden said during a briefing with Vice President Kamala Harris and emergency officials. “We will need it Congress to step up with financing.”
Ari Rivera and Anderson Hao hold each other outside their destroyed home in Altadena, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Deanne Criswell indicated during a briefing Monday that a total of 33,000 people affected by the wildfires in California have requested federal assistance. She said that number is still growing and they don’t expect it to slow down anytime soon.
Criswell added during Monday’s Oval Office briefing that about 700 to 800 people are currently staying in eight wildfire emergency shelters, noting that means many people have taken refuge with family and friends or in hotel rooms. Criswell said if the federal government declares a disaster, people staying in hotels could be reimbursed for expenses.
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In addition to FEMA, the Department of Defense and the National Guard have also committed federal resources to help fight the fires, which have claimed at least 24 lives so far.
