Polis, Ruiz Introduce Bill to Improve Wildfire Disaster Relief and Prevention

Press Release

Today, Representative Jared Polis (D-CO) and Dr. Raul Ruiz (D-CA) announced the introduction of the Wildfire Prevention Act of 2015, a bipartisan bill that would update the Federal Emergency Management Administration's (FEMA) guidelines for releasing disaster relief funds to ensure that victims of wildfires have access to the same resources as victims of other natural disasters.

"As a Representative, nothing frustrates me more than when I tour the aftermath of a wildfire, see the ruins of houses in communities near Fort Collins and Boulder, and then find out that the federal government has refused to provide disaster relief because of a technicality," said Rep. Polis. "This bill will ensure that those people or communities that have been devastated by wildfires will have access to the resources and relief that every other natural disaster victim can receive to rebuild their homes, towns, and lives."

"As the drought in California continues, our forestlands and surrounding communities are at an even greater risk of wildfire destruction," said Dr. Ruiz. "This bipartisan, pragmatic bill takes critical steps to proactively provide firefighters with the resources necessary to protect communities in the aftermath of a wildfire, and help stop the next fire before it starts to save lives, property, and resources."

"As Colorado specifically, and the West in general, face increasing threats of wildfires, it is ever more important to ensure that we are mitigating the threat of these blazes as much as possible," said Jeff Berino, Deputy Fire Chief, Lake Dillon. "This bill would help local officials manage land in a responsible way by providing resources for mitigation on the front-end so we can prevent damage from mega-fires on the back-end."

"It's not enough to help communities while a fire is raging -- we must do more to support them as they work to prevent future fires from happening in the first place," said Summit County Commissioner Dan Gibbs, a volunteer firefighter. "This common-sense measure would do exactly that by providing much-needed resources to communities doing the important work of fire mitigation."

"We've seen how wildfires in Colorado don't follow jurisdictional boundaries," said Tony Cheng the Director of the Colorado Forest Restoration Institute at CSU. "But reducing the fuels that support high-intensity fires is an expensive proposition, especially for local governments, community organizations, and private landowners. The funding authorized by this bill will complement existing federal, state, and local dollars and would incentivize actions to improve firefighter and community safety."

Under current law, victims of wildfires aren't eligible for the "post-disaster" mitigation resources that victims of other natural disasters, such as hurricanes and tornadoes, are. These resources can be used to mitigate the effects of wildfires, such as post-fire flooding and mudslides, and prevent future fires. The use of funds for these purposes has been shown to be particularly effective -- it's estimated that every dollar spent on mitigation saves four dollars in future disaster costs.

Under this bill, states, tribes, and local communities would be eligible to receive mitigation assistance grants for up to 15 percent of the total cost of fire suppression efforts. This extra amount for mitigation is cost-shared on a 75 percent federal, 25 percent state and local basis.

The Wildfire Prevention Act of 2015 is supported by International Association of Fire Chiefs, International Association of Fire Fighters, National Association of Counties, and the National Fire Protection Association

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