Policy & Funding

The Fix Our Forests Act is gaining momentum with White House backing and a possible NDAA vehicle as Congress returns. The 2026 season's 7.9 million acres burned and rising suppression costs are adding urgency to long-stalled federal wildfire reform efforts.

The Trump White House has thrown its support behind the bipartisan Fix Our Forests Act as the record 2026 fire season forces Congress to confront wildfire policy. Meanwhile, Agriculture Secretary Rollins is moving to repeal the 25-year-old Roadless Rule, drawing immediate pushback from environmental groups.

The Fix Our Forests Act is gaining bipartisan traction in Congress as the 2026 fire season exposes structural gaps in federal wildfire policy. Meanwhile, federal workforce cuts and paused grant funding are drawing scrutiny from state foresters and fire management professionals who say agencies were left underprepared.

The Fix Our Forests Act is gaining bipartisan momentum, backed by the White House, as the 2026 fire season sets records. Congress is also wrestling with wildland firefighter pay, the underfunded National Fire Service, and prescribed burn permitting reform.

With over 7.7 million acres burned nationally, the 2026 wildfire season is fueling debate over federal firefighting policy, budget proposals that would cut state partnership programs, and long-term questions about prevention funding.

Washington State has spent more than $207 million fighting 20 large wildfires in just over a month, rapidly drawing down the $120 million legislative appropriation as costs continue to climb.

The White House endorsed the bipartisan Fix Our Forests Act on August 10, accelerating chances for legislation that would expand prescribed burning and streamline fuel-reduction projects on federal lands amid a record-breaking fire season.

The newly created U.S. Wildland Fire Service began operations in January 2026 without dedicated funding from Congress, even as the 2026 fire season tracks toward one of the most destructive on record. Interior and USDA secretaries have both issued directives emphasizing full suppression strategy and interagency cooperation.

A bipartisan wildland firefighting bill endorsed by the White House on August 10 is gaining steam in Congress. The measure would expand forest management and streamline prescribed burns, but debate continues over Forest Service budget cuts and the roadless rule.

As the 2026 wildfire season sets records across the West, a debate is simmering over federal firefighting strategy. The Interior and Agriculture departments have mandated full suppression on all fires — a shift that some experienced fire managers say may put crews at risk on extreme fire behavior days.

The FY2026 wildfire appropriations bill provides $4.25 billion for suppression — including a $2.85 billion reserve fund — as the Pacific Northwest fire siege tests federal resource capacity at National Preparedness Level 5. A federal wildland fire service consolidation is also advancing.

As Oregon battles its largest wildfire in state history, the Trump administration has denied FEMA cost-sharing assistance for two of the state's biggest blazes, while a newly created U.S. Wildland Fire Service still awaits congressional funding authorization nearly three months after its establishment.

The newly created U.S. Wildland Fire Service is running its first full season with a $6.55 billion budget. Meanwhile, Washington state doubled its fire budget to $120 million and passed dedicated wildfire funding legislation — all being tested in real time by 2026's historic season.

As fires rage across the Pacific Northwest, major structural changes to how the federal government fights and funds wildfires are moving through Washington, D.C. — including a controversial proposal to consolidate all federal wildfire responsibilities into a new agency.

Federal wildland firefighters are battling the worst fire season in years while simultaneously facing the effects of staffing cuts, budget uncertainty, and concerns about workforce retention — a convergence that fire unions and congressional critics say is dangerously timed.

Oregon's record-breaking 2026 fire season is renewing urgent questions about wildfire funding, firefighter retention, and investment in fuels treatments. Researchers say federal investments from the IRA and Infrastructure Law were insufficient, while a current continuing resolution holds agency budgets flat. The human cost is clear: Oregon's governor lowered flags after a firefighter died battling a Klamath County blaze.

Congress has approved $4.25 billion for wildfire suppression in FY2026, including a $2.85 billion reserve fund, while the administration advances plans to consolidate federal firefighting agencies into a new U.S. Wildland Fire Service.

The destructive 2026 fire season is renewing pressure on wildfire policy, federal budgets, and long-term resilience investment, as the nation holds at Preparedness Level 5 and communities count the cost of record fire activity.

The Trump administration has denied FEMA firefighting assistance grants for two of Oregon's biggest 2026 wildfires, even as Washington state received nine FMAGs and a federal emergency declaration. Senators Wyden and Merkley are challenging FEMA's approval criteria.

With suppression costs on track to shatter records, Congress’s wildfire funding structure — including a reserve fund set to expire in 2027 — is drawing intense scrutiny from lawmakers and fire policy experts.