Numerous public agencies, including the National Weather Service, issued warnings about extreme wildfire risk due to drought conditions and high winds (Berzon et. al., 2025). At the same time, the Santa Ynez Reservoir was empty during the firefighting efforts, and water levels at other reservoirs were already reported below emergency readiness thresholds.
Working-Age Populations Shrink While Older Populations Grow in Rural America: Between 2010 and 2023, the number of rural Americans between the ages of 15 and 64 decreased from more than 30 million to about 28 million, while the population age 65 and over grew from 7.4 million to 9.7 million. This is indicative of a shrinking working age population that must support child and older populations.
AFPI’s Center for Litigation has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review Lee v. Poudre School District R-1, a case that could significantly reshape the legal boundaries around parental rights in public schools.