They are some of the first personnel to set up shop on the site of a major California fire: the accountants.
Every taxpayer dollar spent battling Golden State blazes is tracked
against the state's budgeted amount. And so far, 2013 is on course to
be an expensive year.
State officials say that through late last week, firefighting costs
have totaled some $44.5 million for just the first seven weeks of the
new fiscal year. That's more than a quarter of the $172 million written
into the spending plan signed by Gov. Jerry Brown on June 27.
"Whatever it takes, I'm going to make sure that the resources are
deployed," said Brown in a news conference with firefighters Monday
morning in Tuolumne City.
The governor spoke on Sunday with President Obama regarding federal
assistance in battling the Rim Fire that now encompasses more than 234
square miles of California wilderness.
"The President reiterated his commitment to providing needed federal
resources to support the ongoing state and local response," said the
statement from the White House Press Office.
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