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.
The California Fire Safe Council: initially an inclusive coalition
A need develops: prior to 1993
In the early 1990s, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (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,Fire Prevention: An Uphill Battle, Tracy Rogers, student assistant, Communiqué, June–July 1991, CDF Public Affairs Office 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.Fire Safe - Inside and Out, Assistant Education Officer Bruce Turbeville, Communiqué, June–July 1991, CDF Public Affairs Office 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.Bronze Smokeys presented to two CDFers, Communiqué, August 1991, CDF Public Affairs Office
The Fire Safe Advisory Council: 1993 to 1995
In 1993 the State 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,A changing CDF, from Director Wilson, Communiqué, May 1993, CDF Public Affairs Office 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."Comments of Bruce Turbeville, Chairman, California Fire Safe Council to the Governor's Blue Ribbon Fire Commission, January 7, 2004 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."Rich Just fills fire prevention chief position, Communiqué, March–April–May 1994, CDF Public Affairs Office
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.Shasta-Trinity is becoming Fire Safe!, Battalion Chief Ralph Minnick, Shasta-Trinity Ranger Unit, Communiqué, September 1995, CDF Public Affairs Office Another was the Oakhurst-Ahwahnee Basin Community Fire Protection Project in the Madera-Mariposa-Merced Ranger Unit.Madera-Mariposa-Merced hosts Board of Forestry, Jeff Millar, State Forest Ranger I, Madera-Mariposa-Merced Ranger Unit, Communiqué, February–March 1995, CDF Public Affairs Office 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 be 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."Wildfire is everyone's problem, Bruce Turbeville, Deputy Chief, CDF Fire Prevention, Communiqué, October–November–December 1995, CDF Public Affairs Office
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: 1997–2001
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.Fire Safe Council rings in 1997 with new local councils, Bruce Turbeville, CDF Public Education Officer, Sacramento Headquarters, Communiqué, March–April 1997, CDF Public Affairs Office 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.Fire Safe Council Update, Communiqué, January 1998, CDF Public Affairs Office 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 corporation. 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." 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 reduced funding Due to the state of California's financial situation in 2001, CDF was facing a significant budget reduction,Summer/Fall 2001 Communique , retrieved on August 18, 2008 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 programsCFSC White Paper
New funding In response to the wildland fires of 2000, President Bill Clinton 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 .