H.R. 4038: Wildfire Response and Preparedness Act of 2025

This bill is titled the Wildfire Response and Preparedness Act of 2025. The primary focus of the bill is to establish standards for the response times to wildfires on federal land managed by the Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior.

Key Provisions

1. Response Time Standards: The bill requires the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior to create a response time standard for wildfires occurring on federal land. This standard must be established within 90 days of the bill's enactment.
2. Target Times: The response time standard should aim for a maximum response time of 30 minutes for assessing a wildfire after it starts and include the deployment of firefighting resources to occur within 3 hours.
3. Report Requirement: Within one year of enactment, the Secretaries must submit a report to relevant congressional committees. This report should include:
• A single point of contact for federal wildfire response.
• A unified budget request that covers all wildland fire activities.
• Key performance indicators for wildfire response for agencies such as the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management.
• A description of the current aviation and ground firefighting fleets, along with projections for the necessary fleet size to meet the new response time requirements.
• Necessary changes to the federal dispatch system to enhance response speed.
• Streamlining of federal contracting mechanisms for wildfire resources.
• Identification of resources and authorities needed for the availability of firefighting assets year-round.

Definitions

• Response Time: The time between the ignition of a wildfire and the evaluation of its suppression by appropriate authorities.
• Secretary Concerned: Refers to the Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior, responsible for lands under their jurisdiction, and in some aspects, the Administrator of FEMA for related cooperation on wildfire incidents.
• Relevant Congressional Committees: Includes several committees from both the Senate and House of Representatives that oversee related legislation and areas of concern.

Goals of the Bill

The overall goal of the bill is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of wildfire response efforts on federal lands. By establishing clear and measurable response times, the intention is to enhance preparedness and mitigate the impacts of wildfires. This could potentially lead to quicker containment of wildfires, thereby reducing damage to natural resources, property, and communities in affected areas.

Relevant Companies

None found