California to require insurance discounts for property owners who reduce wildfire risk

The change also arrives amid a larger conversation about how best to address the state’s catastrophic wildfires — and whether and when it makes sense to rebuild in their wake. Some experts say forest management is the key to protecting more Californians, while others say time, money and energy are better spent on home hardening and making communities less vulnerable to flames.

“Home-hardening retrofits, along with defensible space, significantly increase a home’s chance of surviving a wildfire,” Berlant said. “Using the latest fire science and recent wildfire data, these retrofits and landscaping requirements provide a strong path to structure survivability.”