[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6092 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6092

To implement updated pay and personnel policies in order to improve the 
 recruitment and retention of qualified Federal wildland firefighters 
  and to reduce the Federal Government's reliance on the more costly 
              services of non-Federal wildfire resources.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 10, 2012

 Ms. DeGette introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
              Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To implement updated pay and personnel policies in order to improve the 
 recruitment and retention of qualified Federal wildland firefighters 
  and to reduce the Federal Government's reliance on the more costly 
              services of non-Federal wildfire resources.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Wildland Firefighters Health 
Protection Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    For the purposes of this Act--
            (1) the term ``wildland firefighter'' means an employee of 
        a Federal land management agency, the duties of whose position 
        are primarily to perform work directly related to the 
        prevention, control, suppression, and management of wildfires, 
        including--
                    (A) an employee of a Federal land management agency 
                who is assigned to support wildland fire suppression 
                activities; and
                    (B) an employee who is transferred to a supervisory 
                or administrative position from a position of wildland 
                firefighter (as defined by the preceding provisions of 
                this paragraph);
            (2) the term ``Federal land management agency'' means--
                    (A) within the Department of the Interior, the 
                Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Indian 
                Affairs, the National Park Service, and the Fish and 
                Wildlife Service; and
                    (B) within the Department of Agriculture, the 
                Forest Service; and
            (3) the term ``employee'' has the meaning given such term 
        by section 2105 of title 5, United States Code.

SEC. 3. CLASSIFICATION OF WILDLAND FIREFIGHTERS.

    (a) Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--Within 30 days after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, the Office of Personnel Management, in 
        cooperation with the Federal land management agencies, shall 
        commence development of a separate and distinct wildland 
        firefighter occupational series that will more accurately 
        reflect the variety of duties performed by wildland 
        firefighters.
            (2) Designation.--The official title assigned to any 
        occupational series established pursuant to paragraph (1) shall 
        include the designation of ``Wildland Firefighter''.
            (3) Positions described.--Paragraph (1) applies with 
        respect to any class or other category of positions that 
        consists primarily or exclusively of forestry technician 
        positions, range technician positions, or any other positions 
        the duties and responsibilities of which include--
                    (A) significant wildfire preparedness and 
                suppression activities; or
                    (B) activities necessary to meet any other 
                emergency incident to which assigned.
            (4) Consultation.--Congress encourages the Office of 
        Personnel Management to consult with recognized employee 
        organizations, employee associations, and any other groups that 
        represent Federal wildland firefighters in carrying out this 
        subsection.
    (b) Hazardous Duty Differential Not Affected.--Section 5545(d)(1) 
of title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking all after 
``except'' and inserting an em dash and the following:
                    ``(A) an employee in an occupational series 
                covering positions for which the primary duties are 
                wildland firefighting, as determined by the Office; and
                    ``(B) in such other circumstances as the Office may 
                by regulation prescribe; and''.
    (c) Employees Currently in 401 Series.--Any individual who, as of 
the date of the enactment of this Act, holds a position of wildland 
firefighter shall have the option of either remaining in the 401 series 
(as in effect on such date under chapter 51 of title 5, United States 
Code) or being included in the new wildland firefighter series, as 
established pursuant to subsection (a).

SEC. 4. PAY AND BENEFITS.

    (a) In General.--In the case of a wildland firefighter, for full-
time, part-time, and intermittent tours of duty, hours of work 
officially ordered or approved in excess of 40 hours per week or 8 
hours per day shall be considered overtime work, inclusive of all time 
the firefighter is away from their official duty station assigned to an 
emergency incident, in support of an emergency incident, or pre-
positioned for emergency response, and shall be compensable as work 
time in accordance with section 5542(a) of title 5, United States Code, 
as amended by subsection (b)(1).
    (b) Requirements.--
            (1) Amendment to title 5.--Section 5542(a) of title 5, 
        United States Code, is amended by adding at the end (as a flush 
        left sentence) the following:
``Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) and (2), for a wildland firefighter 
assigned to an emergency incident, assigned in support of an emergency 
incident, or pre-positioned for emergency response, the overtime hourly 
rate of pay is an amount equal to one and one-half times the hourly 
rate of the basic pay of the employee, and that entire amount is 
premium pay.''.
            (2) Fair labor standards act of 1938.--For the purpose of 
        applying the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 
        (29 U.S.C. 201, et seq.) with respect to wildland firefighters, 
        no violation referred to in such provisions shall be considered 
        to have occurred if the requirements described in paragraph (1) 
        are met.
    (c) Portal-to-Portal Compensation Pilot Program.--
            (1) Funding.--There is authorized to be appropriated 
        $25,000,000 to initiate a portal-to-portal pilot program under 
        this subsection, commencing with the 2013 wildfire season. Any 
        sums required in addition to amounts appropriated pursuant to 
        the preceding sentence may be secured from the existing 
        wildfire suppression budget for the fiscal year in which the 
        season occurs.
            (2) Duration.--The pilot program shall be carried out by 
        the Department of the Interior and the Department of 
        Agriculture for a period not to exceed 3 calendar years 
        beginning as of the start of the 2013 wildfire season.
            (3) Report.--No later than 90 days after the completion of 
        the pilot program, the Secretary of the Interior and the 
        Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to Congress a joint 
        report on the effectiveness of the pilot program. Such report 
        shall address the effect of the program with respect to--
                    (A) recruitment and retention of wildland 
                firefighters; and
                    (B) any cost savings.
            (4) Additional requirements.--To ensure adequate funding 
        and to realize maximum wildfire suppression savings, the 
        Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture 
        shall take appropriate measures to ensure that total funding 
        for non-Federal fire suppression personnel and other resources, 
        by their respective Departments--
                    (A) for the first year of the pilot program, do not 
                exceed 90 percent of their combined non-Federal fire 
                suppression costs for the 2011 and 2012 wildfire 
                seasons;
                    (B) for the second year of the pilot program, do 
                not exceed 75 percent of their combined non-Federal 
                fire suppression costs for the 2011 and 2012 wildfire 
                seasons; and
                    (C) for the third year of the pilot program, do not 
                exceed 65 percent of their combined non-Federal fire 
                suppression costs for the 2011 and 2012 wildfire 
                seasons.
    (d) Hazardous Duty Differential To Be Treated as Part of a Wildland 
Firefighter's Base Pay for Retirement Purposes.--
            (1) In general.--Section 8331(3) of title 5, United States 
        Code is amended--
                    (A) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) in subparagraph (H), by inserting ``and'' at 
                the end; and
                    (C) by adding after subparagraph (H) the following:
                    ``(I) with respect to a wildland firefighter (as 
                defined by section 2 of the Wildland Firefighters 
                Health Protection Act), any pay differential received 
                under section 5545(d);''.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--Such section 8331(3) is further 
        amended, in the matter following subparagraph (I) (as added by 
        paragraph (1)(C)), by striking ``subparagraphs (B) through (H) 
        of this paragraph'' and inserting ``subparagraphs (B) through 
        (I),''.
    (e) Hazardous Duty Differential.--
            (1) In general.--In the administration of section 5545(d) 
        of title 5, United States Code, the Office of Personnel 
        Management shall take such measures as may be necessary to 
        ensure that, under the schedule or schedules of pay 
        differentials for duty involving unusual physical hardship or 
        hazard, a pay differential of 25 percent shall be payable to an 
        individual while serving as a member of a wildland firefighting 
        crew.
            (2) Definition.--For purposes of this subsection, the term 
        ``wildland firefighting crew'' includes ground (hand crew, 
        hotshot, engine, and other fire apparatus personnel) and 
        airborne (smoke jumper or helitack) firefighting personnel on 
        the fire line of any wildfire or prescribed fuel treatment burn 
        or fire, as further defined in regulations of the Office of 
        Personnel Management.
    (f) Benefits for Seasonal Wildland Firefighters.--
            (1) Provisions relating to life insurance.--Section 8716(b) 
        of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``or'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the 
                end and inserting ``; or''; and
                    (C) by adding after paragraph (3) the following:
            ``(4) a wildland firefighter within the meaning of section 
        2 of the Wildland Firefighters Health Protection Act.''.
            (2) Provisions relating to health benefits.--Section 
        8913(b) of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (3), by striking ``or'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at the 
                end and inserting ``; or''; and
                    (C) by adding after paragraph (4) the following:
            ``(5) a wildland firefighter within the meaning of section 
        2 of the Wildland Firefighters Health Protection Act.''.
    (g) Buy Back of Civilian Time After 1989.--
            (1) In general.--Any individual who is subject to the 
        Federal Employees' Retirement System as a firefighter (within 
        the meaning of section 8401 of title 5, United States Code) on 
        the date of the enactment of this Act shall be entitled to have 
        any qualifying firefighter service treated as creditable 
        service under section 8411 of such title.
            (2) Qualifying firefighter service.--For purposes of this 
        subsection, the term ``qualifying firefighter service'' means, 
        in connection with an individual, any service--
                    (A) which was performed by such individual, as a 
                wildland firefighter, after 1989 and before the date of 
                the enactment of this Act; and
                    (B) for which such individual was not allowed to 
                receive retirement credit by reason of section 8347(g) 
                or 8402(c) of such title 5.
            (3) Deposit requirement.--Credit for a period of service 
        may not be given under this subsection unless the individual 
        involved makes a deposit, in such manner as the Office of 
        Personnel Management may by regulation require, equal to the 
        employee contributions that would have been required (in the 
        case of a firefighter) for such period under section 8334(c) or 
        8422(a) of such title 5, with interest.
            (4) Certification.--The Office of Personnel Management 
        shall accept the certification of the Secretary of the Interior 
        or the Secretary of Agriculture, as the case may be, concerning 
        whether an individual performed qualifying firefighter service 
        and the length of the period of such service the individual 
        performed.
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