Wildfires

SACRAMENTO — Faced with hundreds of big, hard-to-control blazes, California is struggling with what could be its most expensive firefighting season ever, burning through $285 million in the last six weeks alone and up to $13 million a day. With the worst of the fire season still ahead, lawmakers are scrambling to find a way to pay for it all and are considering slapping homeowners with a disaster surcharge that asks those in fire-prone areas to pay the most. Since mid-May, 2,096 wildfires have burned more than 1.3 million acres and destroyed 306 homes. The crisis comes as California also deals with a $15.2 billion budget deficit.