[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8557 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8557

     To direct the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of 
Agriculture to encourage and expand the use of prescribed fire on land 
 managed by the Department of the Interior or the Forest Service, with 
   an emphasis on units of the National Forest System in the western 
  United States, to acknowledge and support the long-standing use of 
cultural burning by Tribes and Indigenous practitioners, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 23, 2024

  Ms. Schrier (for herself and Mr. Valadao) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in 
       addition to the Committees on Agriculture, Oversight and 
    Accountability, and the Budget, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To direct the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of 
Agriculture to encourage and expand the use of prescribed fire on land 
 managed by the Department of the Interior or the Forest Service, with 
   an emphasis on units of the National Forest System in the western 
  United States, to acknowledge and support the long-standing use of 
cultural burning by Tribes and Indigenous practitioners, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``National 
Prescribed Fire Act of 2024''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
                         TITLE I--USE OF FUNDS

Sec. 101. Prescribed fire accounts.
Sec. 102. Policies and practices.
Sec. 103. Collaborative prescribed fire program.
           TITLE II--FACILITATING IMPLEMENTATION AND OUTREACH

Sec. 201. Cooperative agreements and contracts.
Sec. 202. Human resources.
Sec. 203. Liability of certified prescribed fire managers.
Sec. 204. Prescribed fire claims fund study.
Sec. 205. Environmental review.
Sec. 206. Prescribed fire education program.
                          TITLE III--REPORTING

Sec. 301. Annual reports to the national fire planning and operations 
                            database.
Sec. 302. Annual implementation report.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) in 2018, the Forest Service Fire Modeling Institute 
        determined that 63,070,000 acres of National Forest System land 
        and 171,200,000 acres of other forest land were at high or very 
        high risk of experiencing a wildfire that would be difficult to 
        suppress;
            (2) according to the National Interagency Coordination 
        Center, between 2010 and 2019, in the United States, on 
        average--
                    (A) 64,000 wildfires burned 6,847,000 acres 
                annually; and
                    (B) 100,000 prescribed fires burned only 3,672,000 
                acres annually;
            (3) indigenous communities have used cultural burning to 
        manage landscapes since time immemorial;
            (4) according to the National Interagency Coordination 
        Center, the annual cost of suppressing wildfires in a State 
        with an active prescribed burning program is less than 1 
        percent of the annual cost of suppressing wildfires in a State 
        without an active prescribed burning program, despite each 
        State having the same number of wildfires;
            (5) according to a 2021 Environmental Protection Agency 
        report assessing the air quality and health impacts of 
        prescribed fire compared to wildfire, smoke impacts from 
        prescribed fire were found to be smaller in magnitude and 
        shorter in duration;
            (6) according to a 2019 study conducted by Stanford 
        University, smoke from prescribed fires exposes children to 
        fewer negative health effects than the detrimental smoke 
        generated by wildfires;
            (7) according to a 2015 study published in Ecology, trees 
        that have not been burnt by a low-intensity fire are unusually 
        prone to bark beetle attacks, and between 2000 and 2010, bark 
        beetles killed the majority of trees on 32,000,000 acres of the 
        193,000,000 acres of National Forest System land;
            (8) as of March 1, 2023, there were--
                    (A) 38 prescribed fire councils in 34 States; and
                    (B) 113 prescribed burn associations in 19 States;
            (9) according to the 2021 National Prescribed Fire Use 
        Survey Report--
                    (A) 41 States regulate prescribed fires by issuing 
                burn permits;
                    (B) 23 States offer prescribed burn manager 
                certification courses to facilitate responsible burning 
                on private land;
                    (C) only 5 States (Vermont, Massachusetts, 
                Missouri, Connecticut, and Rhode Island) lack laws to 
                reduce liability associated with the responsible use of 
                prescribed fire; and
                    (D) only 8 States (Florida, Montana, Nevada, 
                Colorado, Michigan, Georgia, South Carolina, and 
                Washington) have laws that use a standard of gross 
                negligence for determining liabilities for the 
                responsible use of prescribed fire; and
            (10) as of September 30, 2019, 31 States have a formal 
        process to track the number of acres treated for forestry 
        purposes using prescribed fire.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Federal land.--The term ``Federal land'' means--
                    (A) public lands (as defined in section 103 of the 
                Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 
                U.S.C. 1702));
                    (B) units of the National Park System;
                    (C) units of the National Wildlife Refuge System;
                    (D) land held in trust by the United States for the 
                benefit of Indian Tribes or members of an Indian Tribe; 
                and
                    (E) National Forest System land.
            (2) Landscape-scale prescribed fire plan.--The term 
        ``landscape-scale prescribed fire plan'' means a decision 
        document prepared pursuant to the National Environmental Policy 
        Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) that--
                    (A) covers a unit of the National Forest System, a 
                Bureau of Land Management district, or a subunit 
                thereof;
                    (B) analyzes the site-specific environmental 
                consequences of prescribed fire on the land described 
                in subparagraph (A); and
                    (C) obviates the need for subsequent decisions 
                pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 
                1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) with respect to the unit, 
                district, or subunit described in subparagraph (A).
            (3) National forest system.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``National Forest 
                System'' has the meaning given the term in section 
                11(a) of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources 
                Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1609(a)).
                    (B) Exclusion.--The term ``National Forest System'' 
                does not include the national grasslands and land 
                utilization projects administered under title III of 
                the Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act (7 U.S.C. 1010 et 
                seq.).
            (4) Prescribed fire.--The term ``prescribed fire'' means a 
        fire deliberately ignited to burn wildland fuels in a natural 
        or modified state--
                    (A) under specified environmental conditions that 
                are intended to allow the fire to be confined to a 
                predetermined area and produce the fireline intensity 
                and rate of spread required to attain planned resource 
                management objectives;
                    (B) that does not include pile burning; and
                    (C) in accordance with applicable law, including 
                applicable regulations.
            (5) Secretaries.--The term ``Secretaries'' means--
                    (A) the Secretary; and
                    (B) the Secretary of Agriculture.
            (6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.

                         TITLE I--USE OF FUNDS

SEC. 101. PRESCRIBED FIRE ACCOUNTS.

    (a) Definition of Secretary Concerned.--In this section, the term 
``Secretary concerned'' means--
            (1) the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to an 
        account established by this section for the Department of 
        Agriculture; and
            (2) the Secretary, with respect to an account established 
        by this section for the Department of the Interior.
    (b) Establishment of Accounts.--There are established in the 
Treasury of the United States the following accounts:
            (1) The Prescribed Fire account for the Department of 
        Agriculture.
            (2) The Prescribed Fire account for the Department of the 
        Interior.
    (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the accounts established by subsection (b) a total of 
$300,000,000 for fiscal year 2024 and each fiscal year thereafter.
    (d) Presidential Budget Requests.--For fiscal year 2024 and each 
fiscal year thereafter, each Secretary concerned shall submit, in the 
budget justification materials submitted to Congress in support of the 
budget of the relevant Department for each fiscal year (as submitted 
with the budget of the President under section 1105(a) of title 31, 
United States Code)--
            (1) a request for amounts in the Wildland Fire Management 
        appropriation account of the Secretary concerned to carry out 
        the activities described in subsection (e); and
            (2) an accounting of costs with respect to prescribed fire, 
        by region of the National Forest System or the Department of 
        the Interior, as applicable, for the previous 3 years, 
        including--
                    (A) the amount spent on prescribed fire;
                    (B) the number of acres treated with prescribed 
                fire; and
                    (C) the number of personnel dedicated to carrying 
                out prescribed fire.
    (e) Use of Funds.--
            (1) Mandatory activities.--The Secretary concerned shall 
        use amounts in the accounts established by subsection (b)--
                    (A) to develop, in coordination with State, local, 
                and Tribal governments, a prescribed fire operational 
                strategy for each region of the National Forest System 
                or the Department of the Interior, as applicable, 
                specifically for using funding provided through the 
                Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-
                58; 135 Stat. 429) and other additional sources of 
                funding, that describes--
                            (i) the fire deficit by region;
                            (ii) staffing and funding needs;
                            (iii) plans to apply prescribed fire; and
                            (iv) regional targets to demonstrate an 
                        increase in prescribed fire with respect to--
                                    (I) existing programs; and
                                    (II) activities carried out using 
                                additional funding sources;
                    (B) with respect to prescribed fires--
                            (i) to carry out necessary environmental 
                        reviews;
                            (ii) to conduct outreach to the public, 
                        Indian Tribes and beneficiaries, and adjacent 
                        landowners;
                            (iii) to conduct any required pre-ignition 
                        cultural and environmental surveys; and
                            (iv) to implement prescribed fires on 
                        Federal land;
                    (C) to hire additional, dedicated personnel and 
                procure additional equipment, including unmanned aerial 
                systems equipped with an aerial ignition system, to 
                implement a greater number of prescribed fires;
                    (D) to fund an increase in staffing (including in-
                person and hybrid staff) in order to provide training 
                for the implementation of prescribed fire and 
                management of smoke;
                    (E) to conduct post-prescribed fire activities, 
                such as--
                            (i) reseeding to prevent the spread of 
                        invasive species; and
                            (ii) recurring application of fire to 
                        maintain desired conditions;
                    (F) to conduct monitoring for safety and fire 
                effects on ecosystem resilience and risk mitigation; 
                and
                    (G) to use key performance indicators, including--
                            (i) the annual number of acres of National 
                        Forest System land or public lands, as 
                        applicable, where completed treatment 
                        effectively mitigates wildfire risk or 
                        maintains or restores ecological integrity with 
                        respect to--
                                    (I) land in the wildland-urban 
                                interface; and
                                    (II) land not in the wildland-urban 
                                interface;
                            (ii) the number of acres in a desired 
                        condition as a result of fire management 
                        objectives, as determined by the Secretary 
                        concerned;
                            (iii) the number of acres treated with 
                        prescribed fire and the quantity of emissions 
                        from prescribed fires;
                            (iv) the number of acres where treatment 
                        results in changes in fire regime condition 
                        class; and
                            (v) the number of burns conducted by Indian 
                        Tribes or Indigenous-led organizations or 
                        pursuant to an agreement with an Indian Tribe 
                        or Indigenous-led organization.
            (2) Joint coordination.--The Secretaries shall coordinate 
        to jointly develop a common data management and analysis system 
        for planning and post-treatment accountability.
            (3) Authorized activities.--The Secretary concerned may--
                    (A) assist State, Tribal, local government, or 
                private prescribed fire programs--
                            (i) to establish a training or 
                        certification program for teams comprised of 
                        citizens or local fire services to conduct 
                        prescribed fires on private land, consistent 
                        with any standards developed by the National 
                        Wildfire Coordinating Group or State prescribed 
                        fire standards;
                            (ii) to enable additional fire managers and 
                        apparatus, whether provided by the local 
                        resources of an agency, private contractors, 
                        nongovernmental organizations, Indian Tribes, 
                        local fire services, or qualified individuals, 
                        to assist in implementing a prescribed fire;
                            (iii) in funding the completion of the 
                        claims funds study under section 204; or
                            (iv) to finance the implementation of a 
                        prescribed fire on State, Tribal, or private 
                        land and any post-prescribed fire activities as 
                        are determined to be necessary by the Secretary 
                        concerned;
                    (B) provide technical or financial assistance to a 
                prescribed fire council or prescribed burn association 
                for the establishment or operation of the council or 
                association; and
                    (C) provide funding for the collaborative 
                prescribed fire program established under section 103.
    (f) Prioritization of Funding.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Secretary 
        concerned shall coordinate with Federal, State, and local 
        agencies, Indian Tribes, and nongovernmental organizations, 
        including through the Wildland Fire Leadership Council, to 
        establish prioritization criteria for expending funds under 
        this section for each activity described in subsection (e).
            (2) Requirement.--In establishing criteria under paragraph 
        (1), the Secretary concerned shall give priority to a project 
        that is--
                    (A) implemented across a large contiguous area;
                    (B) cross-boundary in nature;
                    (C) in an area that is--
                            (i) threatening to, or located in, the 
                        wildland-urban interface and identified as a 
                        priority area in a statewide forest resource 
                        assessment or Community Wildfire Protection 
                        Plan; or
                            (ii) identified as important to the 
                        protection of a Tribal trust resource or the 
                        reserved or treaty rights of an Indian Tribe;
                    (D) on acres at high or very high risk of 
                experiencing a wildfire that would be difficult to 
                suppress;
                    (E) in an area that is designated as critical 
                habitat and in need of ecological restoration or 
                enhancement that can be achieved with the aid of 
                prescribed fire; or
                    (F) supportive of potential operational 
                delineations or a strategic response zone.

SEC. 102. POLICIES AND PRACTICES.

    Beginning with the first fiscal year that begins after the date of 
enactment of this Act, and for each of the 9 fiscal years thereafter, 
the Secretaries shall conduct prescribed fires on Federal land such 
that the total number and combined size of all prescribed fires on 
Federal land is 10 percent greater than the total number and combined 
size of all prescribed fires on Federal land in the preceding fiscal 
year.

SEC. 103. COLLABORATIVE PRESCRIBED FIRE PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish within the 
Department of the Interior a collaborative prescribed fire program 
(referred to in this section as the ``program'') to provide financial 
assistance to eligible entities, including units of Federal land 
management agencies within the Department of Agriculture and the 
Department of the Interior, Indian Tribes, State or local governments, 
nongovernmental organizations, and prescribed fire councils, for the 
implementation of proposals to conduct prescribed fires in priority 
landscapes in accordance with applicable existing policies.
    (b) Proposal Criteria.--To be eligible for selection for the 
program, a proposal shall--
            (1) identify and prioritize planned prescribed fires for a 
        6-year period within a landscape;
            (2) establish annual accomplishment targets for prescribed 
        fires under the proposal;
            (3) be developed through a collaborative process;
            (4) be implemented across multiple jurisdictions;
            (5) provide an estimate of--
                    (A) the amount of annual Federal financial 
                assistance necessary to implement the proposal; and
                    (B) the amount of non-Federal funds that would be 
                leveraged to implement the proposal;
            (6) describe benefits to sensitive wildlife, invertebrate, 
        and plant species of concern; and
            (7) describe any established record of successful 
        collaborative planning or use of prescribed fire by the entity 
        submitting the proposal.
    (c) Selection Criteria.--Subject to the availability of 
appropriations, the Secretary shall select proposals for financial 
assistance under the program that, as determined by the Secretary, 
would likely treat the most strategic acres at high or very high risk 
of experiencing a wildfire that would threaten critical values and be 
difficult to suppress.
    (d) Limitations.--
            (1) Number of projects.--The Secretary may not provide more 
        than $20,000,000 in total funding under the program in any 
        fiscal year.
            (2) Project funding.--The Secretary may not provide more 
        than $1,000,000 to any 1 project under the program in any 
        fiscal year.
            (3) Project performance.--The Secretary shall cease funding 
        any proposal that, for 3 consecutive years, fails to meet the 
        annual accomplishment targets that were established under 
        subsection (b)(2).
    (e) Experiential Training Exchanges.--Not less frequently than once 
every 3 years, a recipient of financial assistance under the program 
shall provide to local entities and non-local entities an experiential, 
group training event, such as Prescribed Fire Training Exchange, 
relating to prescribed fires.
    (f) Reporting.--
            (1) Project reporting.--A recipient of financial assistance 
        under the program shall annually submit to the Secretary a 
        report summarizing, at a minimum--
                    (A) the number of acres mitigated with prescribed 
                fire by the recipient under the program;
                    (B) the amount of Federal and non-Federal funds 
                used by the recipient under the program; and
                    (C) the status and progress of any collaborative 
                relationships associated with the project.
            (2) Program reporting.--Not later than 2 years after the 
        first fiscal year in which funding is made available to carry 
        out prescribed fires under the program, and every 2 years 
        thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 
        Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on 
        Natural Resources of the House of Representatives a report on 
        the program.
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2024 through 2033, to remain available until expended.

           TITLE II--FACILITATING IMPLEMENTATION AND OUTREACH

SEC. 201. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS AND CONTRACTS.

    (a) Definition of Eligible Entity.--In this section, the term 
``eligible entity'' means--
            (1) a State;
            (2) an Indian Tribe;
            (3) a county or municipal government;
            (4) a fire district;
            (5) a nongovernmental organization; and
            (6) a private entity.
    (b) Authorization.--The Secretaries may enter into a cooperative 
agreement or contract with an eligible entity to authorize the eligible 
entity to coordinate, plan, or conduct a prescribed fire on Federal 
land.
    (c) Subcontracts.--A State, Indian Tribe, or county that enters 
into a cooperative agreement or contract under subsection (b) may enter 
into a subcontract, in accordance with applicable contracting 
procedures of the State, Indian Tribe, or county, to conduct a 
prescribed fire on Federal land pursuant to that cooperative agreement 
or contract.
    (d) Agent of Secretary.--A cooperative agreement or contract 
entered into under subsection (b) may authorize the eligible entity to 
serve as the agent for the Secretary or the Secretary of Agriculture in 
coordinating, planning, or conducting a prescribed fire--
            (1) on Federal land; or
            (2) across an area that--
                    (A) includes adjacent landowners; and
                    (B) includes Federal land.
    (e) Applicable Law.--A prescribed fire conducted under this section 
shall be carried out on a project-to-project basis under existing 
authorities of the applicable agency responsible for the management of 
the Federal land.
    (f) Preservation of Decision Authority.--No project authorized 
under this section may be undertaken without the prior written approval 
of the Secretary or the Secretary of Agriculture.
    (g) Long-Term Contracts.--A cooperative agreement or contract with 
an eligible entity under subsection (b) may authorize the eligible 
entity to conduct a series of prescribed fires on Federal land for a 
period of not longer than 10 years.

SEC. 202. HUMAN RESOURCES.

    (a) Prescribed Fire Workforce.--
            (1) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
                    (A) in order to develop a prescribed fire 
                workforce, training in prescribed fire should be 
                developed with an emphasis on ecological outcomes and 
                wildfire risk reduction and outside of the parameters 
                of suppression-oriented training;
                    (B) the Secretaries should hire additional 
                employees and provide or support training and 
                development activities, including through partnerships 
                with educational institutions, nongovernmental 
                organizations, States, and Tribal entities, to increase 
                the number of skilled and qualified practitioners 
                dedicated to prescribed fire with smoke management 
                skills;
                    (C) qualifications or certifications in prescribed 
                fire should be broad to support an all-hands, all-lands 
                approach to burning that is respectful of diverse 
                cultural traditions and other experiential learning; 
                and
                    (D) training in prescribed fire may be regionally 
                focused and should include topics of--
                            (i) cultural fire history and traditions, 
                        which should be provided by or with the consent 
                        of Indian Tribes or Indigenous-led 
                        organizations;
                            (ii) fire ecology; and
                            (iii) smoke management.
            (2) Overtime payments.--
                    (A) Purpose.--The purpose of the amendment made by 
                subparagraph (B) is to allow the Secretaries to use 
                additional new budget authority for wildfire 
                suppression for the cost of overtime payments to 
                employees implementing a prescribed fire.
                    (B) Amendment.--Section 251(b)(2)(F)(ii)(II) of the 
                Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 
                1985 (2 U.S.C. 901(b)(2)(F)(ii)(II)) is amended--
                            (i) in item (bb), by striking ``and'' at 
                        the end;
                            (ii) in item (cc), by striking the period 
                        at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(dd) overtime payments to employees (including individuals 
employed in carrying out a contract between an Indian Tribe and the 
Department of Agriculture or the Department of the Interior) 
implementing a prescribed fire (as defined in section 3 of the National 
Prescribed Fire Act of 2024).''.
            (3) Increasing workforce retention.--
                    (A) Purpose.--The purpose of this paragraph is to 
                require the Secretaries to carry out activities to 
                retain sufficient workforce to implement prescribed 
                fires and to remain competitive with other non-Federal 
                firefighting programs.
                    (B) Hazard pay.--
                            (i) In general.--Each Federal employee in 
                        any classification series carrying out work 
                        completed during prescribed fire, as identified 
                        by the Secretaries, shall be entitled to be 
                        paid the appropriate differential under 
                        subsection (d) of section 5545 of title 5, 
                        United States Code, as if such employee was 
                        covered by such subsection.
                            (ii) Regulations.--The Director of the 
                        Office of Personnel Management may prescribe 
                        regulations to carry out this subparagraph.
                    (C) Other benefits.--The Secretaries shall 
                implement measures to promote retention among Federal 
                wildland firefighters of any classification series 
                carrying out work related to wildland fire and 
                prescribed fire, such as portal-to-portal pay, 
                quarterly bonuses, or other benefits.
                    (D) Incentive payments for fuels assignments.--To 
                attract and retain a skilled fuels workforce, the 
                Secretaries shall implement pay incentives that account 
                for and offset the more competitive pay options offered 
                through wildfire suppression assignments, including 
                such options as bonus pay, per diem payments, or 
                grading-up fuels positions.
            (4) Dedicated prescribed fire task forces.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretaries shall--
                            (i) not later than 180 days after the date 
                        of enactment of this Act, establish at least 1 
                        multiparty task force of Federal employees and 
                        non-Federal entities within each Geographic 
                        Area Coordination Center to plan, lead, and 
                        support prescribed fire across ownership 
                        boundaries that are priorities at the 
                        landscape, region, State, or Federal level; and
                            (ii) support each task force established 
                        under clause (i) by assigning a dedicated 
                        Federal employee--
                                    (I) to aid necessary administrative 
                                functions relating to partnership 
                                agreements; and
                                    (II) to coordinate prescribed fire 
                                across ownership boundaries.
                    (B) Term of employment for federal task force 
                members.--Federal employees assigned under subparagraph 
                (A) may be hired as permanent, full-time employees 
                using direct hiring authority by the Secretaries.
                    (C) Cooperative agreements.--The Secretaries may 
                enter into 1 or more cooperative agreements to carry 
                out this paragraph.
            (5) Conversion of seasonal firefighters to permanent 
        employees.--The Secretaries may noncompetitively convert a 
        Federal seasonal employee to a Federal permanent employee if--
                    (A) the listed job duties of the employee include 
                wildland firefighting;
                    (B) the employee received a rating of at least 
                ``Fully Successful'' in each of the performance 
                appraisals of the employee for the 5 most recent 
                seasons of Federal employment of the employee; and
                    (C) the job duties and performance standards of the 
                position into which the permanent employee converts 
                emphasize implementing prescribed fires.
            (6) Employment of formerly incarcerated individuals.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretaries, in consultation 
                with the Attorney General and State departments of 
                corrections, shall seek to provide career pathways, 
                training, and wraparound support services, including 
                through partnerships with the Corps Network, to 
                individuals described in subparagraph (B) to work as 
                prescribed fire practitioners.
                    (B) Individuals described.--An individual referred 
                to in subparagraph (A) is an individual that--
                            (i) has been convicted in any court of a 
                        criminal offense, other than arson, and was 
                        sentenced to a term of imprisonment for that 
                        offense; and
                            (ii) during the term of imprisonment 
                        described in clause (i), served on a wildland 
                        firefighting crew or received other comparable 
                        training.
            (7) Underrepresented employees.--To further address the 
        gender disparity in wildland firefighting, the Secretaries 
        shall support the development and participation of women in 
        leadership opportunities, mentorship networks, and training in 
        prescribed fire, including the Fire Leadership for Women course 
        and Women-In-Fire Training Exchange and other related 
        opportunities--
                    (A) to develop strong leaders;
                    (B) to increase the number of women overseeing 
                prescribed fires; and
                    (C) to enhance the longevity and success of women 
                in wildland fire management.
            (8) Veterans crews.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretaries, in consultation 
                with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall seek--
                            (i) to provide a career pathway to 
                        individuals described in subparagraph (B) to 
                        work as prescribed fire practitioners; and
                            (ii) to establish crews composed 
                        predominantly of veterans to conduct prescribed 
                        fires.
                    (B) Individuals described.--An individual referred 
                to in subparagraph (A) is an individual who--
                            (i) served in the active military, naval, 
                        or air service; and
                            (ii) was discharged or released under 
                        conditions other than dishonorable.
            (9) Inter-tribal organizations.--The Secretaries may 
        provide funding to Tribal, Indigenous-led, and inter-Tribal 
        organizations, including the Intertribal Timber Council, to 
        provide training and workforce development opportunities in 
        wildland fire.
    (b) Additional Training Centers.--Subject to the availability of 
appropriations, not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary, in cooperation with the Secretary of 
Agriculture (and the Secretary of Defense in the case of a center 
located on a military installation), shall--
            (1) establish, operate, and facilitate a prescribed fire 
        training program or center in each Geographic Area Coordination 
        Center region where such a program or center does not exist on 
        the date of enactment of this Act;
            (2) support the establishment of an Indigenous-led 
        prescribed fire and cultural burning training center operated 
        by an Indian Tribe or partnership of Indian Tribes;
            (3) establish a virtual prescribed fire training center; 
        and
            (4) establish and operate a training center for managing 
        wildfire for resource objectives.
    (c) Competencies for Firefighters.--
            (1) Updates to required competencies for specific 
        firefighter positions.--The Secretaries, in coordination with 
        the Fire Executive Council, the National Association of State 
        Foresters, and the Intertribal Timber Council, shall task the 
        National Wildfire Coordinating Group to add a requirement for 
        an individual to obtain the necessary certification to serve 
        in--
                    (A) the position of a single-resource boss; and
                    (B) any other positions determined to be necessary 
                by the Secretaries.
            (2) Additional experience.--The Secretaries shall require 
        significant additional experience, gained exclusively during a 
        prescribed fire, to obtain a certification described in 
        paragraph (1).
    (d) Indemnity of Federal and Tribal Employees.--Except in the case 
of gross negligence, a Federal employee, an employee contracted by an 
Indian Tribe, or an Indian Tribe as a contracting entity, acting 
pursuant to a contract under the Indian Self-Determination Act (25 
U.S.C. 5321 et seq.) overseeing a prescribed fire, if that prescribed 
fire escaped or caused loss or damage--
            (1) shall not be subject to criminal prosecution; and
            (2) shall not be subject to civil proceedings, except in 
        accordance with section 2672 of title 28, United States Code.
    (e) Indemnity of Other Cooperators.--Except in the case of gross 
negligence, an individual or entity involved in a prescribed fire on 
Federal land or under Federal authority, if that prescribed fire 
escaped or caused loss or damage--
            (1) shall not be subject to criminal prosecution; and
            (2) shall not be subject to civil proceedings, except in 
        accordance with section 2672 of title 28, United States Code.
    (f) Indemnity for Prescribed Fires.--Except in the case of gross 
negligence, an individual or entity involved in a prescribed fire on 
any land, if that prescribed fire escaped, caused harm or damage, or 
required suppression resources--
            (1) shall not be liable for or subject to recovery of 
        Federal fire suppression costs and costs of investigation 
        incurred by Federal agencies; and
            (2) shall not be liable for monetary damages for loss or 
        damage to any natural resource or timber values on Federal 
        land.
    (g) Enhancing Interoperability Between Federal and Non-Federal 
Practitioners.--
            (1) Qualification databases and dispatch systems.--The 
        Secretaries shall establish a collaborative process to create 
        mechanisms for non-Federal-agency fire practitioners, including 
        those without jurisdictional authority, to be included in 
        wildfire resource ordering and reimbursement processes.
            (2) Partnership agreements.--The Secretaries shall--
                    (A) develop partnership agreements for prescribed 
                fire with all relevant State, Federal, Tribal, 
                university, and nongovernmental entities that choose to 
                be included in resource ordering and reimbursement 
                processes under paragraph (1);
                    (B) create agreements and structures necessary to 
                include non-Federal-agency and other nontraditional 
                partners in direct work with Federal agencies to 
                address prescribed fires; and
                    (C) treat any prescribed fire practitioner meeting 
                the National Wildfire Coordinating Group standards as 
                eligible to be included in statewide participating 
                agreements.

SEC. 203. LIABILITY OF CERTIFIED PRESCRIBED FIRE MANAGERS.

    (a) Definition of Covered Law.--In this section, the term ``covered 
law'' means a State law that establishes the standard of care in a 
civil suit against a certified prescribed fire manager for an escaped 
prescribed fire to be ``gross negligence'', if the certified prescribed 
fire manager--
            (1) obtained a permit for the prescribed fire;
            (2) conducted the prescribed fire consistent with a written 
        prescribed fire plan;
            (3) was at the site of the prescribed fire for the duration 
        of the prescribed fire;
            (4) ensured adequate personnel, equipment, and firebreaks 
        were in place during the prescribed fire, in accordance with 
        the written prescribed fire plan; and
            (5) complied with any applicable Federal, Tribal, State, 
        and local laws.
    (b) Memorandum of Agreement.--Subject to the availability of 
appropriations, in accordance with recommendation A3C of the special 
report of the Western Governors' National Forest and Rangeland 
Management Initiative, dated June 2017, the Secretary may enter into a 
memorandum of agreement with the National Governors' Association to 
host a conference, at which governors can meet to discuss the benefits 
of addressing liability protection and possible incentives for States 
to enact a covered law.
    (c) Funding.--The Secretary may provide not more than $1,000,000 
under the memorandum of agreement under subsection (b).

SEC. 204. PRESCRIBED FIRE CLAIMS FUND STUDY.

    (a) Commissioning of Study.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Secretaries, in coordination with the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget, shall complete a study 
of the feasibility, design, and effectiveness of a national prescribed 
fire claims fund (or similar mechanism) to increase the pace and scale 
of prescribed fire across all lands by multiple users and for multiple 
objectives.
    (b) Elements.--The study required under subsection (a) shall 
include an analysis of the following:
            (1) The feasibility at the national level of a claims fund 
        or other mechanism to supplement, replace, or backstop private 
        insurance for prescribed fire and adverse smoke impacts.
            (2) The design and administration of such a fund.
            (3) The effectiveness of a national claims fund or other 
        mechanism to supplement, replace, or backstop private market 
        insurance for non-Federal or State government prescribed fire 
        practitioners.
            (4) The eligibility requirements for submission of claims 
        to such a fund with an emphasis on equity and inclusivity of 
        all types of prescribed fire practitioners and methods of 
        practice.
            (5)(A) The role and influence of State liability laws on 
        prescribed fire practitioner liability;
                    (B) the impact of State liability laws on the 
                availability and affordability of insurance for 
                prescribed fire; and
                    (C) how States may be incentivized to enact laws 
                clearly establishing and reducing practitioner 
                liability for civil suits and suppression and 
                investigation cost recovery.

SEC. 205. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW.

    (a) Smoke Management Agencies.--
            (1) Policy.--The Secretaries shall ensure that policies, 
        training, and programs of the Secretaries are consistent with 
        this subsection--
                    (A) to facilitate greater use of prescribed fire; 
                and
                    (B) to address public health and safety, including 
                impacts from smoke from wildfires and prescribed fires.
            (2) Expenditure of funds.--The Secretaries may expend 
        funding appropriated for hazardous fuel reduction to mitigate 
        the impacts of smoke from prescribed fire.
            (3) Coordination among federal, tribal, and state air 
        quality agencies and federal, tribal, and state land management 
        agencies.--The Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
        Agency, in cooperation with Federal and State land management 
        agencies, shall coordinate with State, Tribal, and local air 
        quality agencies that regulate smoke under the Clean Air Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.) to facilitate the use of prescribed 
        fire on Federal land and State, Tribal, and private land, 
        including by--
                    (A) streamlining the decision-making process for 
                approving the use of prescribed fire under a State, 
                Tribal, or local government smoke management program; 
                and
                    (B)(i) promoting basic smoke management practices;
                            (ii) disseminating information about basic 
                        smoke management practices; and
                            (iii) educating landowners that use 
                        prescribed fire about the importance of--
                                    (I) using basic smoke management 
                                practices; and
                                    (II) including basic smoke 
                                management practices as a component of 
                                a prescribed fire plan.
            (4) Exceptional event demonstrations.--
                    (A) Requirement to seek exceptional event 
                demonstration.--Subject to subparagraph (C), the 
                appropriate State or Tribal air quality agency shall 
                develop and submit to the Administrator of the 
                Environmental Protection Agency a demonstration in 
                accordance with section 50.14 of title 40, Code of 
                Federal Regulations (or successor regulations), if--
                            (i) the Secretary, the Secretary of 
                        Agriculture, a State land management agency, or 
                        an Indian Tribe conducts a prescribed fire on 
                        Federal land, Tribally owned fee land, or State 
                        land, as applicable, in accordance with a State 
                        or Tribal smoke management program that 
                        incorporates basic smoke management practices; 
                        and
                            (ii) the prescribed fire described in 
                        clause (i) contributes to an exceedance or 
                        other violation of a national ambient air 
                        quality standard under section 109 of the Clean 
                        Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7409), as measured using a 
                        Federal reference monitor or an equivalent 
                        method.
                    (B) Demonstration assistance.--For an exceedance or 
                other violation described in clause (ii) of 
                subparagraph (A), the Secretary or Secretary of 
                Agriculture, with the concurrence of the State or 
                Tribal air quality agency, shall assist with the 
                development of the demonstration under that 
                subparagraph.
                    (C) Savings provision.--Subparagraph (A) shall not 
                apply if the exceedance or other violation described in 
                clause (ii) of that subparagraph is the result of--
                            (i) a violation of a smoke management 
                        program;
                            (ii) a failure to use basic smoke 
                        management practices; or
                            (iii) a violation of permit conditions 
                        relating to the protection of air quality and 
                        public health.
            (5) Exemption for large prescribed fires.--
                    (A) Federal land management agency exemption.--
                Consistent with subsection (b) of section 118 of the 
                Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7418), a prescribed fire 
                conducted on Federal land by the Secretary or the 
                Secretary of Agriculture that burns more than 1,000 
                acres per day shall be deemed to be in the paramount 
                interest of the United States and shall be exempt from 
                requirements with respect to the control of pollution 
                from Federal facilities under that Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 
                et seq.) if the Secretary or the Secretary of 
                Agriculture determines that the prescribed fire--
                            (i) will be conducted in an area where the 
                        terrain or fuel load makes the area 
                        inaccessible or unsafe for firefighting 
                        personnel;
                            (ii) is necessary to reduce hazardous 
                        fuels;
                            (iii) will be conducted to minimize smoke 
                        impacts on populated areas through the use of 
                        basic smoke management practices; and
                            (iv) will be conducted under a smoke 
                        management program, if applicable.
                    (B) State exemption.--If the Secretary concerned 
                conducts a prescribed fire that is deemed to be in the 
                paramount interest of the United States under 
                subparagraph (A) on Federal land, a prescribed fire 
                conducted by a State land management agency on State or 
                private land that is contiguous to that Federal land 
                shall be exempt from any applicable national ambient 
                air quality standards under section 109 of the Clean 
                Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7409).
                    (C) Tribal exemption.--Consistent with subsection 
                (b) of section 118 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 
                7418), a prescribed fire conducted on Tribal land by, 
                or in accordance with an agreement with, an Indian 
                Tribe that burns more than 1,000 acres per day shall be 
                deemed to be in the paramount interest of the United 
                States and shall be exempt from requirements with 
                respect to the control of pollution from Federal 
                facilities under that Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.) if 
                the Indian Tribe determines that the prescribed fire--
                            (i) will be conducted in an area where the 
                        terrain or fuel load makes the area 
                        inaccessible or unsafe for firefighting 
                        personnel;
                            (ii) is necessary to reduce hazardous 
                        fuels;
                            (iii) will be conducted to minimize smoke 
                        impacts on populated areas through the use of 
                        basic smoke management practices; and
                            (iv) will be conducted under a smoke 
                        management program, if applicable.
                    (D) Savings provision.--Consistent with section 
                118(b) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7418(b))--
                            (i) an exemption granted under this 
                        paragraph shall apply to the applicable entity 
                        for a period of not more than 1 year; and
                            (ii) on a new determination of the 
                        Secretary, the Secretary of Agriculture, or an 
                        Indian Tribe under subparagraph (A) or (C), as 
                        applicable, additional exemptions under this 
                        paragraph may be granted for subsequent periods 
                        after the expiration of the exemption described 
                        in clause (i), each of which shall apply for a 
                        period of not more than 1 year.
            (6) State and tribal standards.--
                    (A) Approval of state or tribal standards.--
                Notwithstanding section 110 of the Clean Air Act (42 
                U.S.C. 7410), when approving a State or Tribal 
                implementation plan under that section, the 
                Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 
                may not approve any standards with respect to--
                            (i) preventing nuisance impacts that result 
                        from prescribed fires that incorporate basic 
                        smoke management practices; or
                            (ii) criteria pollutants that result from 
                        prescribed fires that are more stringent than 
                        what is required to meet the national ambient 
                        air quality standards for those pollutants 
                        under section 109 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 7409), 
                        as measured using a Federal reference monitor 
                        or an equivalent method.
                    (B) State and tribal enforcement.--A State or an 
                Indian Tribe may not enforce standards in a State or 
                Tribal implementation plan that was approved under the 
                Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.) before the date 
                of enactment of this Act with respect to--
                            (i) preventing nuisance impacts that result 
                        from prescribed fires that incorporate basic 
                        smoke management practices; or
                            (ii) criteria pollutants that result from 
                        prescribed fires that are more stringent than 
                        what is required to meet the national ambient 
                        air quality standards for those pollutants 
                        under section 109 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 7409), 
                        as measured using a Federal reference monitor 
                        or an equivalent method.
                    (C) Amendment to anti-backsliding provision.--If a 
                State or Tribal implementation plan under section 110 
                of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7410) is revised to 
                include a smoke management program for prescribed fires 
                in that implementation plan, subsection (l) of that 
                section shall not apply with respect to that revision.
            (7) Evaluation.--The Secretary or the Secretary of 
        Agriculture, as applicable, shall conduct an evaluation to 
        facilitate learning new approaches for predicting and 
        preventing exceedances during subsequent prescribed fires if 
        the Secretary or the Secretary of Agriculture--
                    (A) conducts a prescribed fire on Federal land--
                            (i) for which a demonstration is developed 
                        and submitted under paragraph (4)(A); or
                            (ii) that is subject to an exemption under 
                        paragraph (5)(A); and
                    (B) the prescribed fire described in subparagraph 
                (A) contributes to an exceedance of a national ambient 
                air quality standard under section 109 of the Clean Air 
                Act (42 U.S.C. 7409).
            (8) Programs and research.--To address the public health 
        and safety risk of the expanded use of prescribed fire under 
        this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary, in 
        coordination with the Administrator of the Environmental 
        Protection Agency and the Director of the Centers for Disease 
        Control and Prevention, shall conduct research to improve or 
        develop--
                    (A) wildland fire smoke prediction models;
                    (B) smoke impact display tools for the public and 
                decisionmakers;
                    (C) appropriate, cost-effective, and consistent 
                mitigation strategies for communities impacted 
                adversely by smoke from prescribed fire;
                    (D) consistent nationally and scientifically 
                supported messages regarding personal protection 
                equipment for the public; and
                    (E) prescribed fire activity tracking and emission 
                inventory systems for planning and post-treatment 
                accountability.
    (b) Development of Landscape-Scale Federal Prescribed Fire Plans.--
            (1) Definition of secretary concerned.--In this subsection, 
        the term ``Secretary concerned'' means--
                    (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to a 
                unit of the National Forest System; and
                    (B) the Secretary, with respect to a Bureau of Land 
                Management district.
            (2) Inclusion of landscape-scale prescribed fire plans.--
        The Secretary concerned shall, with respect to units of the 
        National Forest System and Bureau of Land Management districts 
        with existing prescribed fire programs--
                    (A) not later than 1 year after the date of 
                enactment of this Act, determine which of those units 
                or districts have landscape-scale prescribed fire 
                plans; and
                    (B) not later than 2 years after the date of 
                enactment of this Act--
                            (i) determine whether each plan described 
                        in subparagraph (A) requires revision;
                            (ii) establish a schedule for the revision 
                        of each plan described in subparagraph (A) that 
                        requires revision; and
                            (iii) develop landscape-scale prescribed 
                        fire plans for any units or districts that do 
                        not have landscape-scale fire plans.
            (3) Environmental compliance.--In carrying out paragraph 
        (2), the Secretary concerned shall--
                    (A) comply with--
                            (i) the National Environmental Policy Act 
                        of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.);
                            (ii) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 
                        U.S.C. 1531 et seq.);
                            (iii) division A of subtitle III of title 
                        54, United States Code; and
                            (iv) any other applicable laws; and
                    (B) consider the site-specific environmental 
                consequences of the landscape-scale prescribed fire 
                decisions under this subsection.
            (4) Collaborative development.--In carrying out paragraph 
        (2), the Secretary concerned shall collaborate with diverse 
        actors from academia, the Forest Service and Bureau of Land 
        Management research and development, nongovernmental 
        organizations, cultural fire practitioners, and other entities, 
        as determined appropriate by the Secretary concerned.
            (5) Consultation with indian tribes.--The Secretary 
        concerned shall engage in government-to-government consultation 
        with Indian Tribes in complying with this subsection.
            (6) Reports.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary 
        concerned shall submit to Congress a report on the progress of 
        the Secretary concerned with respect to carrying out this 
        subsection.

SEC. 206. PRESCRIBED FIRE EDUCATION PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the 
Chief of the Forest Service, and the Secretary, acting through the 
Director of the Office of Wildland Fire, shall carry out a national 
prescribed fire education program focused on fire ecology and 
prescribed fire planning and implementation.
    (b) Program Elements.--A prescribed fire education program 
authorized under subsection (a) may include--
            (1) public service advertisements;
            (2) the use of social media;
            (3) campaign and educational activities and materials;
            (4) commercial licensing;
            (5) character images and appearances; and
            (6) awards and recognition.

                          TITLE III--REPORTING

SEC. 301. ANNUAL REPORTS TO THE NATIONAL FIRE PLANNING AND OPERATIONS 
              DATABASE.

    (a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to ensure an accurate 
reporting of annual prescribed fire accomplishments in the United 
States.
    (b) Cost-Share.--Subject to the availability of appropriations, the 
Secretary may provide financial assistance to States to pay a portion 
of the costs associated with annually reporting prescribed fire 
accomplishments.
    (c) Eligibility for Funds.--If, by December 31 of each year, a 
State has not reported to the National Fire Planning and Operations 
Database, at a minimum, the number of acres mitigated using prescribed 
fire in the State, the State shall not be eligible to receive any 
amounts made available under this Act for the previous fiscal year.

SEC. 302. ANNUAL IMPLEMENTATION REPORT.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and 
annually thereafter, the Secretaries shall each submit to Congress a 
report on the activities carried out under this Act.
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