Wildfire Response and Readiness Act

Increased Wildfire Readiness through Prescribed Fire: The bill mandates that the total acreage of Federal land subjected to prescribed fires increases by 10 percent each year (Sec. 11103(a)). This is intended to address the fire deficit and manage hazardous fuels.

Support for Local Economies and Employment: The Collaborative Prescribed Fire Program is designed to benefit local economies by providing employment or training opportunities through various contracts and agreements (Sec. 11404(b)(7)).

Enhanced Community Protection and Home Hardening: The bill amends grant programs to allow for structure hardening, which includes constructing, modifying, or maintaining structures to make them resistant to flames or embers (Sec. 21102).

Homeowner Protection: The Individual Household Disaster Mitigation Program provides grants to States and Tribal governments to fund pre-disaster mitigation activities for individual residential households at risk of damage from major disasters (Section 207(a)).

Financial Assistance for Home Improvements: Households can receive up to $10,000 for qualifying mitigation activities, such as improving roof durability or installing fire-resistant wall components (Section 207(h), (i)).

Enhanced Wildfire Monitoring: The establishment of a competitive grant program for satellite monitoring will allow entities to better detect, assess, and respond to wildfires (Section 22001(b)(2)).

Wildfire Smoke Safety: A new national smoke monitoring and alert system will provide real-time information and forecasts on air quality to protect public health (Section 23001(a)).

Workforce Development and Pay Improvements: Federal employees engaged in the ignition, management, and control of prescribed fires are entitled to hazard pay (Sec. 11202(a)(1)(A)). The bill also seeks to provide career pathways and training for veterans and formerly incarcerated individuals (Sec. 11202(a)(4) and (6)).

Workforce Development for Youth: The Civilian Conservation Centers provide specialized training programs in forestry, rangeland management, and wildland firefighting for underserved youth (Section 302).

Veteran Employment Opportunities: A pilot program is established to employ veterans in wildland firefighting activities (Section 31004).

Firefighter Mental Health Support: The bill establishes a mental health program that includes awareness campaigns, peer-to-peer support networks, and specialized mental health professionals for wildland firefighters (Section 32103(b)(1)).

Firefighter Leave and Benefits: Wildland firefighters are granted paid rest and recuperation leave following qualifying incidents (Section 32102(b)) and increased retirement benefits through the inclusion of overtime pay in basic pay calculations (Section 32104(c)).

Retirement Security for Wildland Firefighters: Federal wildland firefighters who retain their coverage and rights will retain their enhanced retirement benefits even during periods of non-Federal service (Section (c)).

Employment Flexibility through Job-Sharing: Wildland firefighters or support personnel are permitted to hold a position with a Tribal Government alongside their Federal position through a job-share agreement, even if the Tribal position is at a higher classification level (Section (d)).

Support and Notification for Benefits: The Office of Personnel Management is required to inform individuals about their entitlements to service credits or annuity computations and assist them in obtaining necessary information from the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior (Section (4)(A) and (B)).

Job Stability for Interior Employees: The bill prohibits the Department of the Interior and the United States Forest Service from initiating reductions in force or carrying out involuntary separations, except for cause such as misconduct or performance, through September 30, 2030 (Section 32201(a)).

Preservation of Research Facilities: The Secretary of Agriculture is prohibited from closing Forest Service research and development facilities without prior notification and approval from the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations (Section 32202).

Improved Post-Fire Recovery for Landowners: The bill requires that payments for emergency measures to restore land after wildfire damage be provided to owners within 90 days of an approved application (Sec. 12107(a)).

Increased Accessibility to Grant Programs: Provisions are included to increase the accessibility of community wildfire risk reduction and post-fire recovery grant programs by reducing application complexity and administrative burden (Sec. 21104).

Environmental and Health Risks from Smoke: While the bill includes smoke management and research, the expansion of prescribed fires and the management of wildfires inherently involve smoke impacts on nearby communities (Sec. 11204(a)).

Potential for Landscape Alterations: The 10-year National Wildfire Plan involves significant landscape-scale restoration projects that can change ecosystems through the reintroduction of characteristic fire (Sec. 12202 and Sec. 12203).

Restrictions on Land Use: The bill maintains prohibitions on road construction, reconstruction, or logging in certain inventoried roadless areas (Sec. 12112).

Income Restrictions for Grants: Individuals with an adjusted gross income exceeding $250,000 (or $500,000 for joint returns) are ineligible to receive grants under the Individual Household Disaster Mitigation Program (Section 207(e)(2)).

Funding Caps for Households: The amount provided to an individual household for qualifying mitigation activities is capped at $10,000 (Section 207(h)).

Limitations on Firefighter Pay: There are special limitations on premium pay for covered employees to ensure their aggregate pay does not exceed certain federal pay levels (Section 32101(d)).

Unused Leave Forfeiture: Rest and recuperation leave for wildland firefighters must be used immediately after a qualifying incident and cannot be set aside for later use or compensated if unused (Section 32102(c)).

Financial Obligations for Service Credits: Individuals seeking to have service credited may be required to remit the total additional amount of Federal contributions that would have been paid under specific statutes, plus applicable interest, to the Office of Personnel Management (Section (3)).