CalFire budget cuts would reduce staffing on engines
By Greg Welter, Chico Enterprise Record
SACRAMENTO — CalFire, the state’s firefighting agency, is facing a budget cut in excess of $30 million for fiscal year 2011-12, and will trim staffing on engines from four down to three to cover most of it.
Starting in 2003, former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issued an annual executive order bumping engine crews to four throughout the state, to meet the demands of approaching fire seasons.
H.D. Palmer, with the California State Budget Office, said studies since 2003 have shown that the wildfire containment rate in California has remained about the same using three-person crews versus four.