Dear Friend,
As 2025 winds down, I wanted to update you on what I am working on to support rural families, strengthen our economy, and protect the freedoms and livelihoods that matter most as your representative in Congress. From restoring critical rural programs in Northern California to defending Americans’ vehicle choices on the road, this year has been about delivering results that make a real difference in people’s lives.
Fix Our Forest Act
The Fix Our Forests Act, which passed the House at the beginning of the year, streamlines the process for the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management to get real forest management work done. It prevents environmental groups from needlessly stalling projects or forcing unnecessary revisions to management plans. The bill includes language I negotiated in last year’s farm bill to more than double the size of forestry projects that can be done in an expedited way to protect adjacent towns. It also incorporates my language to expand the clearance zone for hazardous trees around electric power lines and directs the U.S. Forest Service sensibly to expand the use of livestock grazing in fuels management programs. It’s already passed out of committee in the Senate and should be on the Senate Floor in the new year.
Watch my floor remarks here.
Ending California’s EV Mandate
Congress blocked California’s attempt to impose a pseudo-nationwide electric vehicle mandate on consumers. This plan would have forced all new car sales to be electric by 2035, raising costs and limiting choices. This law that I helped write ensures one state – in this case, California – cannot dictate what the rest of the country drives, repealing mandates on electric trucks, buses, and personal vehicles, and protects Americans’ freedom to choose the vehicles that work best for their lives.
Watch my floor remarks here.
Working Families Tax Cut
The budget reconciliation law delivered strong tax relief, making the 2017 tax cuts permanent, protecting family farms from the death tax, and locking in deductions for small businesses. Workers benefit from no tax on tips or overtime, bigger child tax credits, and new savings incentives. Seniors get larger tax breaks to offset taxes on Social Security, and buyers of American-made cars won’t pay tax on loan interest. These changes allow Americans to keep more of their own hard-earned money and are expected to raise wages and create more full-time jobs.
Water
Protecting and expanding our water supplies in Northern California and across the state is always a top priority of mine. That is why I am working in Congress to raise Shasta Dam, expand Black Butte Reservoir, and get Sites reservoir built – including obtaining more than $300 million for Sites – because we must be able to store more water so that our families, towns, and farms don’t suffer devastating shortages but can prosper instead. We were able to include $1 billion in funding for California water infrastructure, including building reservoirs and repairing subsided canals, in this year’s reconciliation law.
Disaster Mitigation and Tax Parity
The Disaster Mitigation and Tax Parity Act that I introduced would exempt rebates that homeowners receive through state programs for hardening homes against natural disasters from Federal taxation. These rebates, like clearing fire-prone vegetation, reinforcing foundations, or installing impact-resistant roofing, would be protected under this legislation, ensuring mitigation efforts reduce risk without added tax burdens.
Protect Innocent Victims of Taxation After Fire Extension Act
The Protect Innocent Victims of Taxation After Fire Extension Act would extend Federal tax exemptions included in the 2024 Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act for certain payments to wildfire survivors for covering disaster losses, living expenses, lost wages, or compensation for injury or emotional distress. Victims would be able to claim exemptions in the year payments are received, providing certainty and letting families focus on rebuilding, rather than wrestling with the IRS to get refunds at a later date. After recent negotiations, I hope to see this legislation move forward in the new year.
Fire Retardant Bill
The Forest Protection and Wildland Firefighter Safety Act that I led was included in the PERMIT Act that passed the House. This bill lets the U.S. Forest Service use aerial fire retardant without needing unnecessary and burdensome permits that can complicate and slow response times. With over 13.5 million acres burned in California over the past decade, including four of the five of the largest fires devastating portions of our district, this reform is critical. The bill builds on Clean Water Act exemptions already in law thereby allowing firefighters to act and use this proven material quickly and save lives and property. This has passed the House and is under consideration in the Senate.
Watch my floor remarks here.
Specialty Crop & Wine Tariff Relief
The bipartisan Specialty Crop & Wine Producer Tariff Relief Act, which I introduced with my colleagues, provides direct support to growers and wine producers impacted by trade-related losses. It also serves as a blueprint for supporting all of farm country as I continue working with the Trump Administration and Secretary Rollins to include specialty crops in future trade relief efforts.
Wolves
Gray wolf populations have exceeded recovery targets, but federal restrictions block states and localities from managing them responsibly, creating risks for ranchers, families, and schools. The House passed the Pet and Livestock Protection Act, which removes outdated Federal protections for gray wolves so their populations can be actually managed instead of the hands-off approach that California enforces. It will help protect devastated wildlife populations families, livestock, pets and even human interaction that these apex predators are currently preying on. The House passed this legislation.
Watch my remarks in debate here.
Secure Rural Schools (SRS)
The Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025 restored vital payments to rural counties in Northern California and across the nation. After devastating cuts when the program expired in 2023, this bipartisan law that I led through the House ensures missed 2024 payments are made, as well as payments in 2025 and 2026, supporting schools, roads, law enforcement, and emergency services. In the First District alone, counties lost over $12.6 million when this program expired. This law restores that essential support. I was happy to author the House Bill and fight to get this reauthorization signed into law.
You can watch floor debate here.
Western Caucus
As Chairman of the Congressional Western Caucus, I spent this year focused on elevating the voices of rural America and the West, where decisions made in Washington often hit hardest. Through successful field tours and regular meetings with Cabinet Secretaries and executive branch administrators, we pressed for practical policies on land management, water, energy, and agriculture. The Western Caucus played a key role in keeping these priorities front and center, pushing back on one-size-fits-all federal policies, crushing regulations, and making sure the realities of rural and Western states are always part of the conversation.
| Merry Christmas & Happy New YearAs we celebrate Christmas with family and friends, we reflect on the challenges, perseverance, and accomplishments of the past year. In 2026, I will continue working to support rural families, strengthen local economies, and advance commonsense policies that make life better for hardworking Americans.May your Christmas be full of joy and blessings, and may the New Year bring renewed hope, peace, and opportunity. |
Sincerely, Doug LaMalfa Member of Congress |
