Wildfire Risk Evaluation Act
The Wildfire Risk Evaluation Act would require the U.S. Secretaries of Agriculture, the Interior, and Homeland Security to jointly conduct a quadrennial review of the nationwide wildfire environment. Through their respective agencies (Forest Service, the Department of the Interior, FEMA, and the United States Fire Administration, plus other appropriate entities), they would analyze how changes in built and natural environments affect pre-fire mitigation, incident response, and recovery, and they would study how wildfire intersects with public health. A comprehensive report would be due within one year of enactment and then every four years for 20 years, outlining findings, challenges, progress toward established wildfire-management goals, and recommendations for laws and actions. The bill ties this process to prior strategic plans and expert commissions’ recommendations, urging cross-agency collaboration across federal, state, tribal, and local governments to improve long-term wildfire management. In short, the bill creates a formal, regular, cross-government review intended to forecast future wildfire challenges, assess progress on existing national fire goals, and guide strategic actions and program realignments over the next two decades.
Key Points
- 1Establishes a quadrennial, joint fire review process led by the Secretaries of Agriculture, the Interior, and Homeland Security, conducted through the Forest Service, the Department of the Interior, FEMA, and the U.S. Fire Administration (plus other entities the Secretaries deem appropriate).
- 2Requires a scope that includes:
- 3- Quantitative analysis of changes to built and natural environments since the last quadrennial review and how those changes affect pre-fire mitigation, incident response, and proactive recovery.
- 4- Analysis of the intersection between wildfire and public health, coordinated with the EPA and the CDC/Health and Human Services.
- 5Reporting cadence and content:
- 6- A report due within 1 year of enactment, and every 4 years for the next 20 years.
- 7- Each report must present the review results, challenges anticipated over the next 20 years, and recommended Federal legislative and administrative actions.
- 8- An evaluation of progress toward the 3 goals in the 2014 National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy (resilient landscapes, fire-adapted communities, safe and effective wildfire response), updated by the 2023 addendum, and progress on implementing the 2023 ON FIRE Commission recommendations.
- 9- Projections and scenarios to help realign programs, strategies, capabilities, and the wildfire-management workforce.
- 10Definitions and governance:
- 11- Defines “qualified agencies,” “relevant committees,” and “Secretaries” for the purposes of the review.
- 12- Emphasizes a sense-of-the-nation, cross-boundary, whole-of-government approach that includes federal, state, tribal, and local governments in planning and response.