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To require the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out activities to suppress wildfires, and for other purposes.

H.R. 178January 3, 2025Rep. McClintock, Tom [R-CA-5]View Original
Public Lands and Natural ResourcesEmergency planning and evacuationFiresFirst responders and emergency personnelForests, forestry, trees

Summary

This bill sets out requirements for wildfire suppression and management activities carried out by the Forest Service.These requirements apply to Forest Service land that (1) has a severe, extreme, or exceptional drought intensity rating; (2) has a National Wildland Fire Preparedness level of 5 (i.e., the highest level of wildland fire activity); or (3) is located in a fireshed ranked in the top 10% of wildfire exposure.Within 24 hours of detecting a wildfire on such Forest Service land, the service must use all available resources to extinguish the wildfire. Additionally, the service may not inhibit the firefighting activities of state and local agencies that are authorized to respond to wildfires on the Forest Service land.Further, the service may only initiate a backfire or burnout as part of a fire suppression strategy if it is ordered by the responsible incident commander or is necessary to protect the health and safety of firefighting personnel. The service must use all available resources to control any initiated fire until it is extinguished.The bill also limits the service's use of prescribed fires (i.e., the controlled application of fire by a team of experts under specified weather conditions to restore health to ecosystems that depend on fire). When using prescribed fires as a fire resource management tool, the service must comply with applicable laws and regulations and immediately suppress any prescribed fire that exceeds its prescription.

Full Text

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 178 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 178 To require the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out activities to suppress wildfires, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 3, 2025 Mr. McClintock (for himself, Mr. Calvert, Mr. LaMalfa, Mr. Biggs of Arizona, Mr. Stauber, and Mr. Issa) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To require the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out activities to suppress wildfires, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SUPPRESSION OF WILDFIRES.

(a) In General.--With respect to covered National Forest System lands, the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service-- (1) shall-- (A) use all available resources to carry out wildfire suppression with the purpose of extinguishing wildfires detected on such lands not later than 24 hours after such a wildfire is detected; and (B) immediately suppress any prescribed fire that exceeds prescription; (2) shall not inhibit the suppression efforts of State or local firefighting agencies that are authorized to respond to wildfire on such lands; (3) may only use fire as a resource management tool if the fire is a prescribed fire that complies with applicable law and regulations; (4) may only initiate a backfire or burnout during a wildfire-- (A) by order of the responsible incident commander; or (B) in instances that are necessary to protect the health and safety of firefighting personnel; and (5) shall use all available resources to control any such initiated backfire or burnout until extinguished. (b) Covered National Forest System Lands Defined.--In this section, the term ``covered National Forest System lands'' means any area-- (1) located within National Forest System lands; and (2) that-- (A) the U.S. Drought Monitor has rated as having a D2 (severe drought) intensity, D3 (extreme drought) intensity, or D4 (exceptional drought) intensity; (B) the National Interagency Fire Center declares has a National Wildland Fire Preparedness level of 5; or (C) the Forest Service has identified as being located in a fireshed ranked in the top 10 percent of wildfire exposure (as determined using the most recently published models of fireshed risk exposure published by the Forest Service). <all>