Presidential Documents

Federal Register / Vol. 90, No. 20 / Friday, January 31, 2025 / Presidential Documents 8747 

Executive Order 14181 of January 24, 2025 

Emergency Measures To Provide Water Resources in California and Improve Disaster Response in Certain Areas 

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the 

laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered: 

Section 1. Policy. For weeks, residents of the Los Angeles area have watched 

raging fires consume their homes, belongings, beloved pets, and childhood 

memories. Almost immediately, firefighters were unable to fight the blaze 

due to dry hydrants, empty reservoirs, and inadequate water infrastructure. 

Today, at least 28 people have lost their lives and thousands more have 

lost everything else, with some damage estimates calculating hundreds of 

billions of dollars in damage. 

This tragedy affects the entire Nation, so it is in the Nation’s interest to 

ensure that California has what it needs to prevent and fight these fires 

and others in the future. Therefore, it is the policy of the United States 

to provide Southern California with necessary water resources, notwithstanding actively harmful State or local policies. And it is the policy of 

the United States to assist Americans in disaster areas through responsive 

policies that more effectively empower them to rebuild and regain their 

livelihoods. 

Sec. 2. Overriding Disastrous California Policies. (a) The Secretary of Defense, 

the Attorney General, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary 

of Commerce, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Secretary of Agriculture 

shall expeditiously take all measures, consistent with all applicable authorities, to ensure adequate water resources in Southern California. Each shall 

report to me within 15 days on all authorities, including emergency authorities, available to ensure, require, maintain, or use infrastructure necessary 

to fight and prevent massive wildfires in Southern California. 

(b) In particular, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce 

shall immediately take actions to override existing activities that unduly 

burden efforts to maximize water deliveries. The Secretary of the Interior 

and the Secretary of Commerce shall consider actions including those consistent with the ‘‘No Action Alternative’’ in the Final Environmental Impact 

Statement issued November 15, 2024, by the Bureau of Reclamation on 

Long-term Operation of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project. 

(c) The Secretary of the Interior, including through the Bureau of Reclamation, shall utilize his discretion to operate the CVP to deliver more water 

and produce additional hydropower, including by increasing storage and 

conveyance, and jointly operating federal and state facilities, to high-need 

communities, notwithstanding any contrary State or local laws. The Bureau 

of Reclamation shall take all available measures to ensure that State agencies—including the California Department of Water Resources—do not interfere with the Bureau of Reclamation’s operation of the project to maximize 

water delivery to high-need communities or otherwise, including but not 

limited to the issuance of a new Record of Decision maximizing water 

deliveries and consistent with the 2020 Record of Decision. 

(d) In accordance with section 6 of the Executive Order of January 20, 

2025 (Declaring a National Energy Emergency), the Secretary of the Interior, 

through the Bureau of Reclamation, and in accordance with section 1536 

of title 16 United States Code, shall expedite action related to any exemption 

under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA), 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq., 


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for the Long-Term Operation of the CVP and the State Water Project for 

all applicable threatened and endangered species. 

(e) The Secretary of the Interior shall promptly review, revise, or rescind 

any regulations or procedures specific to implementation of section 1536 

of title 16 United States Code, as needed and consistent with applicable 

law, to conform with the plain meaning of the statute. 

(f) The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce shall 

identify all ongoing or potential major water-supply and storage projects 

within the State of California for which they have joint responsibility under 

the ESA or individual responsibilities under the National Environmental 

Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. 

(g) For each such project identified under subsection (f), the Secretary 

of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce shall each designate one 

federal official to coordinate each agency’s respective NEPA and ESA compliance responsibilities. Within 30 days from the date of this order, each 

designated official shall identify any regulatory hurdles that unduly burden 

each respective water project, identify any recent changes in state or Federal 

law that may impact such projects from a regulatory perspective (including 

Public Law 118–5), and shall develop a proposed plan, for review by the 

Secretaries, to appropriately suspend, revise, or rescind any regulations or 

procedures that unduly burden such projects and are not necessary to protect 

the public interest or otherwise comply with the law. In so doing, each 

designated federal official will coordinate and share all appropriate information that will enable improved efficiencies. For the purposes of this order, 

‘‘unduly burden’’ means to unnecessarily obstruct, delay, curtail, impede 

or otherwise impose significant costs on the permitting, utilization, transmission, delivery, or supply of water resources and water infrastructure. 

Sec. 3. Ending the Subsidization of California’s Mismanagement. (a) The 

Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) shall review all 

Federal programs, projects, and activities for all relevant agencies that impact 

land management, water availability, water supply, water storage and delivery, water infrastructure, and disaster preparedness and response. 

(b) Within 30 days of the date of this order, to ensure that State and 

local jurisdictions promote sensible land management practices and reliable 

water supply for all Americans, the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary 

of Agriculture, and the Secretary of Commerce shall jointly report to the 

President, through the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy and 

Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, regarding California State 

and local policies or practices inconsistent with sound disaster prevention 

and response. 

(c) The Director of OMB, in consultation with the Assistant to the President 

for Domestic Policy and Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, 

shall recommend appropriate action to the President, regarding: 

(i) any lack of compliance by California with the terms of existing Federal 

grants, contracts, or other financial assistance to States or localities; and 

(ii) beneficial additional terms that may be added with respect to any 

future Federal programs, projects, or activities to ensure sound disaster 

prevention and response. 

Sec. 4. Additional Actions to Help Los Angeles Families. (a) Housing Displaced Families. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and 

the Secretary of Homeland Security, through the Administrator of FEMA, 

shall expeditiously provide an Integrated Federal Housing Strategy and Implementation Plan to the Director of OMB and the Assistant to the President 

for National Security Affairs that expedites options for housing relief to 

survivors displaced by wildfires in California. 

(b) Expediting Waste Removal. Within 5 days from the date of this order, 

to accelerate the rebuilding of areas devastated by the recent Los Angeles 

wildfires, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Homeland Security, 


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through the Administrator of FEMA, and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall develop and execute a plan to expedite 

the bulk removal of contaminated and general debris. 

(c) Effectively Using Grants to Improve Fire Preparedness. The Secretary 

of Homeland Security, through the Administrator of FEMA, shall immediately 

implement a plan to enable the timely and appropriate use of Federal 

preparedness grants for the City of Los Angeles. As of the date of this 

order, the city has yet to use the majority of its $213 million allotment 

that has accrued since fiscal year 2021. These Federal preparedness grants 

shall not be used to support illegal aliens. The Attorney General, in coordination with the FEMA Administrator, shall investigate the misuse of these 

grants by the City of Los Angeles and take appropriate action to address 

such misuse. 

Sec. 5. Additional Actions to Help North Carolina Families. (a) Clearing 

Roads. To accelerate rebuilding and community recovery, the Secretary of 

Transportation, the Secretary of Homeland Security, acting through the Administrator of FEMA, and the Administrator of the Small Business Administration shall immediately take all necessary and appropriate measures, including through direct assistance, loans, and other available means, to expedite 

roadway clearance or rebuilding, including the section of Interstate 40 in 

North Carolina that remains closed, and the repair or rebuilding of roads 

and bridges on private property in areas of North Carolina affected by 

Hurricane Helene. 

(b) Housing Displaced Families. The Secretary of Housing and Urban 

Development and the Secretary of Homeland Security, through the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, shall immediately 

provide an Integrated Federal Housing Strategy and Implementation Plan 

to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Assistant 

to the President for National Security Affairs that expedites options for 

housing relief to survivors displaced by Hurricane Helene. 

Sec. 6. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed 

to impair or otherwise affect: 

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, 

or the head thereof; or 

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget 

relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals. 

(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and 

subject to the availability of appropriations. 


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(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, 

substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party 

against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, 

employees, or agents, or any other person. 

THE WHITE HOUSE, 

January 24, 2025. 

[FR Doc. 2025–02174 

Filed 1–30–25; 11:15 am] 

Billing code 3395–F4–P 


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