Gov. Gavin Newsom signed four wildfire recovery bills into law Tuesday, Sept. 15, in Altadena, giving LA County homeowners new protections for smoke-damaged properties and extended mortgage relief.

The package includes the nation's first enforceable standards for testing and cleaning homes contaminated by wildfire smoke, Spectrum News reported. The California Department of Insurance estimates more than 13,000 of the roughly 40,000 claims filed after the January 2025 Eaton and Palisades fires involve smoke damage to homes that never burned.

Two of the bills, Assembly Bills 1642 and 1795, direct the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) and the California Air Resources Board to develop standards for testing and remediating lead and asbestos contamination in homes within a fire's ZIP codes. AB 1795, authored by Assemblymember Mike A. Gipson of Carson, also requires DTSC to issue guidance for schools recovering after a wildfire.

Insurers must now pay for that testing and remediation, cover full cleanup to pre-loss condition and continue Additional Living Expense coverage until a home is actually safe to occupy.

"Families deserve science-based answers about whether their homes and their schools are safe, and until today no state in the nation had any to give them," Jane Lawton Potelle, executive director of Eaton Fire Residents United, said at the signing ceremony.

The other two bills address mortgage relief. AB 1842, authored by Assemblymember John Harabedian of Pasadena, creates a permanent framework for granting mortgage forbearance to future wildfire survivors statewide. AB 1847 extends the existing Mortgage Relief Act for Eaton and Palisades fire survivors, doubling the maximum forbearance period from 12 months to 24 months, according to the governor's press release.

Under AB 1847, the deadline to request forbearance moves from Jan. 7, 2027, to Jan. 7, 2029, or six months after the state of emergency ends, whichever comes first, according to Palisades News. Late fees and default interest rates are banned during the forbearance period. Lump-sum balloon payments remain prohibited for borrowers who were current when they entered forbearance.

LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who spoke at the signing, called the laws "meaningful progress" but said Eaton Fire survivors "will need sustained support and accountability for years to come."

The Eaton Fire killed 19 people in Altadena. Investigators determined a Southern California Edison transmission tower sparked the blaze. As of the week of the signing, local building departments had issued 8,450 permits since the January 2025 fires, according to the governor's office.

The state has also committed a $100 million Disaster Rebuilding Fund to help close the gap between insurance payouts and rebuilding costs. No deadline has been announced for when DTSC and the Air Resources Board must finalize the new smoke-damage testing standards.