_______________________________
Kathleen Ward
Mayor, City of San Clemente
Attachment 1
City Hall ● 910 Calle Negocio, San Clemente CA 92673 ● (949) 361-8200 ● www.san-clemente.org Page PAGE \* MERGEFORMAT 2
March 17, 2026
The Honorable Lisa Calderon
Member, California State Assembly
1021 O Street, Suite 4650
Sacramento, CA 95814
RE: AB 2517 (Calderon) Fire Hazard Severity Zones.
Notice of SUPPORT (As Introduced on February 20, 2026)
Dear Assemblymember Calderon,
The City of San Clemente is pleased to support AB 2517 (Calderon), which would improve the Fire Hazard Severity Zone (FHSZ) designation process by ensuring consistent updates to Local Responsibility Area (LRA) maps and establishing a more transparent, publicly accessible process for developing and releasing these critical designations.
Under current law, fire hazard severity zone designations are applied in both state responsibility areas and local responsibility areas to reflect the state’s best available science regarding environmental conditions such as slope, vegetation, and wind patterns, that influence wildfire spread. While LRA FHSZ maps are required to be periodically reviewed, statute does not require a comprehensive update, and prior to the most recent release in 2025, the LRA maps had not been updated for more than 15 years.
With the 2025 release, significant concerns were raised regarding the accuracy of underlying land use information, including split parcels with multiple designations and the classification of developed areas such as parking lots and bodies of water as very high fire hazard severity zones. Cities are required to adopt these maps by ordinance and conduct public hearings locally yet currently have no formal opportunity to meaningfully engage in or respond to concerns about the state’s model, data, or methodology before adoption.
AB 2517 would clarify how and when FHSZ maps are updated and ensure meaningful public engagement prior to local adoption. Specifically, the bill would establish a five-year update cycle for LRA FHSZ maps, require a preliminary public release of updated maps, mandate disclosure of the data, models, and methodology used to develop the designations, and provide opportunities for regional workshops and public comment before the maps are transmitted to local agencies for ordinance adoption.
For cities like ours, greater transparency and predictability in the FHSZ process would improve public trust, enhance local implementation, and ensure that wildfire risk designations are based on accurate and up-to-date information before being codified into local law.
The City of San Clemente and its residents are actively engaged in wildfire prevention and mitigation efforts within the City. The City of San Clemente welcomes and encourages the opportunity for additional workshops and public review prior to maps being transmitted to local agencies for adoption. This effort aligns with the City’s continued emergency planning and wildfire mitigation efforts to keep its residents safe and informed.
Respectfully,
Rick Loeffler, Mayor
CELEBRATING 90 YEARS OF INCORPORATION
OFFICE OF THE MAYOR
AND CITY COUNCIL
Rick Loeffler
Mayor
Steve Knoblock
Mayor Pro Tem
Victor Cabral
Mark Enmeier
Zhen Wu
CITY MANAGER
Andy Hall
910 Calle Negocio
San Clemente, CA 92673
Phone: (949) 361-8200
“The Spanish Village
by the Sea”