Wildfire & Rural Jobs | Gregory Burgess for Congress | CA-2
Gregory Burgess | CA-2 · R.O.A.R.
The Issues · Wildfire & Rural Jobs
R.O.A.R. — Restore Our American Republic

Forests That Work.
Jobs That Stay.

California went from 300 sawmills to fewer than 30. The fishing industry is collapsing. Insurance companies are abandoning fire-prone communities. These are connected crises — and they have a connected solution. Nine bills to rebuild working landscapes, create 100,000+ rural jobs, and protect the communities that steward the land.

9
Bills on
Wildfire & Jobs
100K+
Rural Jobs
Created
95%
North Coast
Kelp Collapse
$458B
CA FAIR Plan
Exposure
Read Seashore to Stockyard → All 38+ Bills
300→30
California sawmills
lost in 30 years
3yrs
Consecutive years CA
salmon fishery closed
$52M
Modoc grasshopper
losses — 2023
154%
CA FAIR Plan
growth since 2020
The Challenge

One District. Four Connected Crises.

🔥

Wildfire Insurance

Major insurers have left California. The state FAIR Plan now covers $458 billion in homes at 154% growth. Families in Shasta, Sonoma, and Siskiyou are one non-renewal away from being uninsurable. This is a federal-scale problem that requires a federal-scale solution.

🌲

Forest Economy & Jobs

300 sawmills became 30. Post-cannabis contraction hit Humboldt and Mendocino hard. Forest slash from wildfire prevention currently burns — wasting biomass that could become biochar, compost, and 100,000 rural jobs. The solution to wildfire risk creates the jobs.

🐟

Fisheries Collapse

CA salmon fisheries closed three years running. Kelp forests have shrunk 95% since 2014. Fort Bragg's fleet is struggling. Crescent City's waterfront is in decline. You can't fish a dead ocean — but you can restore it with the right policy, and pay fishermen while you do.

🌾

Agricultural Resilience

$52M in Modoc County grasshopper losses while the federal government delayed. The U.S. cattle herd at a 75-year low. Fertilizer prices up 30–40% from Strait of Hormuz disruptions. Ranchers and farmers need tools that work — not promises that don't arrive.

The Legislation

Nine Bills. Every Word Public.

Fully drafted legislation addressing wildfire, forests, fisheries, agriculture, and rural jobs across CA-2. Constitutional authority cited. Funding sources named. Sunset clauses included.

Wildfire Insurance · Primary
Federal Wildfire Insurance Stabilization Act
Creates a federal backup system — like the FDIC does for banks — so insurance stays available in fire-prone areas. Sets a national "Zone Zero" fire safety standard: a 5-foot non-combustible buffer around every home. Replaces secret proprietary risk models with an open-source National Wildfire Risk Model.
FDIC-style backstop · Zone Zero · Open-source risk model
 Insurance Market
Climate Resilience & Fire Reinsurance Act
The companion bill that builds the national reinsurance framework so private insurance markets can stay solvent in an era of worsening wildfires. Creates Firewise Community Certification — rewarding entire neighborhoods for collective fire safety action. Open-source risk models only — no more black-box pricing.
Reinsurance framework · Firewise Certification
 Forests & Agriculture · Primary
From Seashore to Stockyard
The CA-2 agricultural omnibus. Forest slash to farm soil: connects wildfire thinning to composting cooperatives — creating 100,000+ rural jobs while reducing wildfire costs. Working waterfront preservation. Fisheries disaster response. Wolf coexistence protocols. Post-cannabis diversification. Organic transition support.
100,000 rural jobs · Forest slash to biochar · Fisheries response
 Blue Economy
American Blue Economy, Working Waterfronts & Marine Ecosystem Restoration Act
California's salmon fishery closed three consecutive years. Kelp forests down 95%. This bill fixes aging fishing ports, pays out-of-work fishermen to restore the ocean while their fishery recovers, and creates a trust fund paid by offshore energy companies — not taxpayers. Rebuilds salmon habitat. Restores the Klamath.
$2.5B annual cap · Paid by industry fees
 Tribal Justice & Restoration
Klamath Basin Restoration & Tribal Justice Act
The four Klamath River dams have been removed — the largest dam removal in U.S. history. Now 400 miles of salmon habitat need to be restored. This bill funds that work and puts the Yurok, Karuk, Hoopa, and other tribes in charge of the restoration. Their knowledge of this river goes back thousands of years.
$100M/year · Tribal co-management
 Energy & Jobs Transition
American Coal Lands Transition & Renewable Energy Development Act
Coal communities are losing jobs through no fault of their own. This bill buys coal operations from willing sellers and converts land to solar, wind, battery storage, and advanced nuclear sites — creating new jobs in the same communities. Workers get full transition support and job training. No eminent domain.
New jobs · Same communities · No eminent domain
 Agriculture & Pest Management
American Agriculture Resilience & Pest Management Act
In 2023, Modoc County ranchers lost $52M to grasshopper outbreaks while the government was too slow to help. This bill creates a $5 billion trust fund and requires the government to respond to pest outbreaks fast enough to actually save crops. Modoc County ranchers named directly as a case study.
$5B trust fund · Fast response mandate · Modoc County
 Regenerative Agriculture
Ethical Livestock & Regenerative Agriculture Incentive Act
Ranchers who use humane practices, build healthy soil, and reduce emissions get paid extra for it. Connects biogas-composting systems to livestock operations so farm waste becomes clean energy — and ranchers earn income from both. The forest slash composting program is the core of the 100,000 jobs creation strategy.
Pay for good stewardship · Farm waste to energy
 Infrastructure & Public Lands
National Resilience, Parks & Infrastructure Act
CA-2 is 78% federal land in some counties. Our national parks and public lands need repair. This bill invests in resilient infrastructure — trails, facilities, visitor centers — while creating jobs in rural communities near public lands. Skills-based hiring so veterans and trade workers without four-year degrees can compete.
Skills-based hiring · Rural jobs · Federal land repair

"Forest slash that currently burns is soil that could rebuild degraded rangeland. That biomass is 100,000 rural jobs waiting to happen. The wildfire crisis and the rural jobs crisis have the same solution — if you're willing to connect the dots and write the legislation."

— Gregory Burgess, Candidate for CA-2 · No Party Preference · R.O.A.R.

These Bills Are Already Written

Every bill on this page is fully drafted, publicly available, and ready for the first day of the 120th Congress. No promises — actual legislation.

Read All 38+ Bills Volunteer or Connect
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