Executive Order 14181

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

Signed January 24, 2025, printed at 90 FR 8747. 5 sections of substance, 1,666 words.

In plain English

This order is about the Los Angeles fires. It says water was short when crews needed it. It tells agencies to move more water south.

Read it at the Federal Register →

Sec. 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

In plain English

This sets out the case the order makes. It describes fires in the Los Angeles area. It says hydrants ran dry and reservoirs sat empty. It says at least 28 people died. It says damage may run to hundreds of billions. It says the state must get the water it needs.

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

In plain English

This tells six agency heads to act. They must find water for Southern California. Each must report within 15 days. The report lists every power they hold. Two of them must override steps that limit water. Those steps are said to cut deliveries.

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

In plain English

This is about federal money to the state. The budget office must review every program. That covers land, water and disaster work. Three agency heads must report in 30 days. The report names state and local practice they fault. It goes to two White House aides.

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, [[Page 8749]] 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

In plain English

This is about help for Los Angeles. Two agency heads must draw up a housing plan. It would house people burned out of homes. Within five days three agencies must plan debris removal. That covers waste that may be toxic. Grants for fire safety are also to be used better.

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

In plain English

This is about help for North Carolina. Three agencies must clear and rebuild roads. A closed stretch of Interstate 40 is named. Roads and bridges on private land are covered. Loans and direct aid may be used. A housing plan for displaced families is also due.

Sec. 6. General Provisions

Every order carries this. It is not what the order does.

(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. [[Page 8750]] (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. <GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT> (Presidential Sig.) THE WHITE HOUSE, January 24, 2025. [FR Doc. 2025-02174 Filed 1-30-25; 11:15 am] Billing code 3395-F4-P </pre></body>

In plain English

This is the closing clause that nearly every order carries. It says the order does not change what the law already allows. It also says no one can sue to enforce it.

How this order is quoted

Each section is quoted as the order prints it, under its own number and heading. Executive orders are United States government works and are not under copyright. Long sections are cut at a sentence and the whole order is a click away.