EPA And Private Business Helps LA Wildfire Survivors Where City Won’t

The Environmental Protection Agency highlighted how Wells Fargo is helping survivors of last year’s Los Angeles wildfires rebuild their lives in a press release on Wednesday.

Wells Fargo customers whose homes were directly affected by the 2025 Los Angeles (LA) wildfires won’t have to make payments on their mortgages for a total of 27 months after the bank extended mortgage forbearance by another 12 months, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) stated in the press release.

Wells Fargo, California’s Department of Emergency Preparedness, and the LA mayor’s office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.

“EPA’s cleanup cleared the path to rebuild, and private partners like Wells Fargo stepping up to ease the financial burden on survivors is exactly the public-private effort this recovery needs,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin stated in the press release.

“Our emphasis has been on expanding small business capital and housing options, and we remain committed to supporting the Los Angeles area through this process,” Wells Fargo’s Head of Home Lending Serhat Oztop stated in the EPA press release.

“Beyond the forbearance extension, Wells Fargo has donated more than $5 million across nine nonprofits focused on small business capital and housing and offers free financial coaching to individuals and business owners through HOPE Inside centers in select branches. Together, the measures give impacted homeowners additional breathing room as reconstruction gets underway,” Oztop stated.

“In February, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler traveled to Los Angeles, California, meeting with local residents and government officials, including Mayor Karen Bass, to discuss ways to fast track the rebuilding of communities devastated by the Palisades and Eaton.,” an EPA spokesperson told the DCNF.

“This week’s announcement with Wells Fargo will measurably help Angelenos who are facing insurance payments and rental assistance challenges even as they have to pay for both a mortgage and rent while they wait for their homes to be rebuilt,” the spokesperson said. “Part of this problem is an enormous permitting backlog at the city and county level, an issue that the Trump Administration has tackled head-on. Since the Trump EPA got involved, the county has issued 1,412 permits, about a 104% increase, and the city issued 1,489 permits, about an 89% increase.”

The January 2025 LA wildfires was the 5th costliest natural disaster in history, Fortune reported Monday. It cost approximately $140 billion total, with only around $40 billion of that being insured.

With 13,612 residential and 305 commercial properties surveyed for hazardous debris in 28 days, the disaster led to the EPA’s largest wildfire cleanup in history.