(a) Subject to any other applicable law, a state or local fire official, at their discretion, may authorize an owner of property, or the owner’s agent, to construct a firebreak, or implement appropriate vegetation management techniques, to ensure that defensible space is adequate for the protection of a hospital, adult residential care facility, school, aboveground storage tank, hazardous materials facility, or similar facility on the property. The firebreak may be for a radius of up to 300 feet from the facility, or to the property line, whichever distance is shorter.

(b) The director may authorize an owner of a property not listed in subdivision (a) to construct a firebreak, or implement appropriate vegetation management techniques, within a radius of up to 300 feet from a structure, or to the property line, whichever distance is shorter, if it is determined by the director as necessary to protect life, property, and natural resources from unreasonable risks associated with wildland fires.

(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 133, Sec. 68. (SB 272) Effective July 23, 2021.)