[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 140 (Tuesday, September 10, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5146-H5149]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        WILDFIRE FIREFIGHTER PAY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 9, 2023, the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Schrier) is 
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.


                             General Leave

  Ms. SCHRIER. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and to submit extraneous material into the Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Washington?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. SCHRIER. Madam Speaker, I just want to say that I am really 
honored to be here today to talk about wildfires and our firefighters, 
how noble they are, how much support they need, and how grateful we are 
to them. That is why we are devoting this hour to the topic of 
wildfires.
  Let me just start by thanking our brave firefighters and first 
responders for the work they do to keep us safe in all sorts of 
emergencies.
  The last few years in Washington State and, frankly, the whole West 
of the United States have shown that as climate change accelerates 
making for hotter days and weakened trees in overcrowded forests, so 
does the risk of catastrophic wildfires.
  All across the West, we are seeing wildfires that have grown in 
intensity and frequency, and our State has some of the highest risk of 
what we call firesheds in the entire country.
  We have all felt the impact of wildfires through the damage they have 
caused in our communities, the smoke in the air that we all breathe and 
choke on every summer, and for some of us, our homes. This is 
especially true in places like Stehekin and Lake Chelan where the 
Pioneer fire just burnt for months in my district, threatening an 
entire community and causing evacuations. I am so grateful to the 
firefighters on the ground in Lake Chelan who worked tirelessly and put 
themselves at risk to stop the spread of that devastating fire wherever 
they could and to protect the residents who needed to be evacuated.
  Because wildfires are an ever-increasing threat, I worked in Congress 
with Members of both parties to address this issue. I will talk about a 
couple of examples.
  In Congress I am proud to have recently introduced the National 
Prescribed Fire Act. I introduced this bipartisan, bicameral bill along 
with Senator Ron Wyden from Oregon and  David Valadao from California. 
This legislation would invest in hazardous fuels management, including 
prescribed fire, which is an effective, underutilized method of forest 
management that helps to reduce the risk of catastrophic fires and 
choking on smoke in the summer.
  More specifically, this bill would authorize $300 million in total 
for the Forest Service and the Department of the Interior to plan, 
prepare, and conduct prescribed burns on Federal, State, and private 
lands.
  It would require the Forest Service and the Department of the 
Interior to increase the number of acres treated each year with 
prescribed fire.
  It would establish a $10 million collaborative program based on the 
successful collaborative forest landscape restoration program to 
implement prescribed burns on county, State, and private land at high 
risk of burning in a wildfire.
  This bill would also establish a workforce development program at the 
Forest Service and the Department of the Interior to develop, train, 
and hire prescribed fire practitioners, because not all firefighters do 
this. It would establish employment programs for Tribes, for veterans, 
for women, and for those formerly incarcerated.
  It would also require State air quality agencies to use current and 
often more relaxed, as in our State of Washington, Federal laws and 
regulations to allow larger prescribed burns and give States a bit more 
flexibility in the winter months when there is low risk of catastrophic 
fire to conduct these prescribed burns that reduce the risk of choking 
on smoke all summer.
  It would also prescribe direction for setting clear standards for 
prescribed fire practitioner liability and studying the merits of a 
claims fund to aid with cross-jurisdictional wildfire efforts.
  I have also worked on some other legislation that goes hand in hand 
with this.
  One is the Forest Data Modernization Act.
  This bill simply lets us know data about our forests and which ones 
are at the highest risk for catastrophic fire. I have also voted for 
landmark legislation like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law which 
incorporated many elements of the previously discussed National 
Prescribed Fire Act, like historic investments to remove underbrush and 
use prescribed fire to reduce these risks of catastrophic wildfire.
  As an achievement in my own district, just last year the Kittitas 
County Conservation District received $10 million through these 
infrastructure funds.
  Investments like this in firesheds like those in my district make 
tangible differences and allow communities throughout the Eighth 
District to be better prepared for wildfires.
  However, I have to say that even with these steps, wildfires are a 
reality now and in the future that we are going to have to grapple 
with. I also want to note that in addition to doing prevention, we have 
a shortage of these first responders, both career and volunteer 
firefighters, right now. They are our heroes, and we need to take care 
of them the way that they take care of us.
  That is why I voted for several bills to increase firefighter pay and 
benefits to make firefighting a year-round job and to get grants to 
local fire departments so that they can hire and retain new 
firefighters.
  Wildfires aren't just an issue east of the Cascades in Washington 
State anymore, a notoriously wet State west of the Cascades, we are 
seeing these fires in the wet part of our State, including in Olympic 
National Forest which is a rain forest.

  So I will continue to work with my colleagues on both sides of the 
aisle to push forward meaningful legislation that will keep the Eighth 
District and the entire Western United States safe.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr.

[[Page H5147]]

Carbajal). He is from one of our Western States. Santa Barbara has 
suffered some dramatic wildfires, as well.
  Mr. CARBAJAL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to stand with our Nation's 
firefighters, including our Federal and wildland firefighters and to 
thank them for the tireless and dangerous work they are doing in 
California at this very moment.
  In the past week alone, there have been more than a dozen new 
wildfires in California totaling nearly 50,000 acres across our State.
  In San Bernardino, the Line fire has burned and has forced thousands 
to evacuate. The Bridge fire, the Davis fire, the Boyles fire, the 
Airport fire, and the Chimineas fire in my region near the Carrizo 
Plain is, thankfully, nearly contained.
  However, consider this: as Californians have been baking this week in 
an extreme heat wave, our brave Federal firefighters choose to put on 
heavy gear and head into that heat.
  They spend these scorching months cutting down trees, digging lines, 
and sleeping yards away from these deadly wildfires to keep us safe. If 
we don't act soon, Congress is going to thank these brave firefighters 
for their service with a pay cut.
  We took a great step in 2021 with our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law 
which provided a 50 percent pay raise to these heroes, but we cannot 
let that vital provision expire now.
  The Forest Service predicts that this pay cut and loss of benefits 
could lead to one-half of our Federal and wildland firefighters leaving 
their jobs, leaving the entire American West at risk.
  In closing, Madam Speaker, I thank my friend, Assistant Leader 
Neguse, for hosting this critical session tonight. Our firefighters 
have an exceptional champion in the gentleman. Let's get this done for 
our heroes who put their lives on the line every single day.
  Ms. SCHRIER. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from New 
Mexico (Ms. Stansbury) to speak about the Southwest of our country 
where they also have suffered devastating fires.
  Ms. STANSBURY. Madam Speaker, wildfires are devastating our 
communities across the country. In fact, just 3 months ago, one of the 
largest and most destructive fires in New Mexico's history tore through 
Lincoln and Otero Counties, over 24,000 acres were burned, 1,400 
structures were lost, over 900 homes were burnt to the ground, and 
hundreds more were lost in devastating floods that have torn through 
Ruidoso and Mescalero Apache in the months since.
  These fires will change forever the fabric of our communities. Homes 
and businesses were lost costing millions in damages and there will be 
years of recovery to come.
  There is no question that climate change is here, and climate change 
is intensifying these fires. They are linked. Their intensity, their 
frequency, and the events are coming in the aftermath. We must support 
our communities. We must support them as they recover from these 
devastating fires, and we must support them as they chart a future to a 
more resilient future.
  That is why I have been working with State leadership to help secure 
$100 million to recover from the Salt and South Fork fires, why we are 
fighting to make sure that our communities do not get left behind in 
the disaster relief funds that we must pass this session here on this 
House floor this month with the CR.
  It is why I am leading and cosponsoring legislation for wildfire 
recovery and resilience, why I am leading and cosponsoring legislation 
to protect and restore our watersheds, and, of course, to support our 
firefighters and first responders.
  It is why we are working to ensure that FEMA, the Forest Service, and 
other Federal agencies are held to account and have the tools and 
resources they need to support our communities. It is why my staff and 
all the people in our communities who are leading are on the ground 
serving our communities and helping the families who have been impacted 
by these fires every day because our communities and their future 
literally depend on it.
  The time to act is now, so let's do this.

                              {time}  1915

  Ms. SCHRIER. Madam Speaker, I am so glad that my colleague, 
Representative Stansbury, mentioned the aftereffects of these 
wildfires. We all think about smoke and about forests, but we don't 
think about what happens when the rain comes and the mudslides that 
follow that cause so much destruction, as well.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stanton).
  Mr. STANTON. Madam Speaker, I thank Dr. Schrier for her leadership on 
this critically important issue to her State, my State of Arizona, and 
the entire United States of America. I also thank Assistant Leader 
Neguse for hosting this special hour.
  Prolonged drought and extreme heat are causing wildfires across the 
West. In my home State of Arizona, things are only getting worse. Last 
year, more than 150,000 acres burned in Arizona. This year, it is more 
than 250,000 acres, and the fire season is not yet over.
  This isn't and shouldn't become the new normal, but wildfires are now 
breaking records every year, becoming more frequent and more 
destructive. We need a bold approach to protect lives and livelihoods.
  That is why I am proud to support the bipartisan Modernizing Wildfire 
Safety and Prevention Act, legislation to combat firefighter shortages, 
including retaining expert wildland firefighters and improving fire 
response times with updated technology. It also takes steps to address 
the public health crisis caused by wildfire smoke by establishing a 
nationwide, real-time air quality monitoring and alert system.
  Containing wildfires is priority number one, but post-fire risks are 
incredibly dangerous, as well. Burn scars after a blaze can lead to 
life-threatening mudslides and flooding, particularly in rural 
communities and on Tribal lands.
  One Northern Arizona University study predicted devastating economic 
losses from post-fire flooding. Even a small fire, when coupled with a 
typical summer thunderstorm, could cost local governments and the 
Federal Government more than $500 million and, under severe weather 
events, up to $3 billion in evacuation costs and lost property values.
  That is why I worked with Congressman Doug LaMalfa from northern 
California to introduce the bipartisan Wildfire Response Improvement 
Act. This bill would update FEMA's fire management assistance grant and 
help communities responding to and recovering from wildfires.
  Ms. SCHRIER. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from 
California (Mrs. Torres), another Western State. We have a theme here.
  Mrs. TORRES of California. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague, Dr. 
Schrier, and also Assistant Leader   Joe Neguse for holding this 
wildfire Special Order tonight.
  I rise to speak on the devastating impact that wildfires have in my 
district, in the Inland Empire, southern California.
  Right now, there are two devastating wildfires surrounding my entire 
district: the Bridge fire that has burned over 4,000 acres so far, and 
the Line fire that has burned over 27,000 acres to date. My heart goes 
out to the families and all the communities affected.
  I thank our firefighters and first responders for their selfless 
sacrifice, putting themselves in harm's way to save lives. I also thank 
the city of Fontana and all of their employees helping to evacuate as 
they host families at the Jessie Turner Health & Fitness Community 
Center.
  As our region continues to experience record-breaking heat waves, 
extremely dry conditions, and other unprecedented weather, it is so 
important to ensure the public has the resources necessary to prepare 
for these disasters.
  In 2005, I lost my own home to a fire. I had to live in a hotel in 
temporary housing for 14 months with my husband, my three sons, and my 
pets, all while running to be the mayor of my home city of Pomona. I 
know all too well the great financial, physical, and emotional impacts 
of losing your home in a fire.
  It is my goal that by raising awareness and providing the appropriate 
tools and resources to prepare for and recover from fires, we can help 
people adequately prepare and avoid similar devastation.

[[Page H5148]]

  That is why I have introduced multiple wildfire and mudslide bills, 
including my annual Wildfire Preparedness Week resolution to protect 
and evacuate our communities and to educate our communities on the 
impacts of wildfires.
  Our Federal firefighters do increasingly dangerous work to save lives 
and protect property, and many of them sleep in cars, tents, and man-
made holes when they are responding to wildfires. These shelters fail 
to adequately protect them or provide the necessary rest and 
nourishment needed when responding to wildfires.
  We need to do more to support these local heroes, and I urge my 
colleagues to provide more resources to support these Americans. Since 
January, there have been over 6,000 wildfires in California with our 
firefighters on the front lines. We cannot over-prepare or be overly 
cautious when it comes to wildfires.
  Ms. SCHRIER. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman. I am so sorry to 
hear that she lost her own home in a wildfire, and I thank her for 
pointing out firewise and things that people can do to at least 
mitigate their own risk, although these fires are out of control.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to my colleague from Nevada (Ms. Titus), 
another State with record hot temperatures.
  Ms. TITUS. Madam Speaker, you are so right that, since Saturday, 
multiple agencies from several States have been coordinating just south 
of Reno to fight the Davis fire.

  Among those on the front line is the Silver State Interagency Hotshot 
Crew. Just as it sounds, the hotshot crew is a group of brave wildland 
firefighters who, day in and day out, put their lives on the line to 
fight and suppress wildfires.
  Certainly, we know that climate change, including increased heat, 
extended drought, and a thirsty atmosphere, is what has been the key 
driver in increasing the risk and intensity of wildfires in the West, 
at least over the last two decades when fires have gotten more 
frequent, more intense, more expensive, and more difficult to put out.
  That is true in Nevada, where we have been experiencing record 
extreme heat. We hit 120 degrees just last month. That is a record for 
Nevada, which is always hot but certainly not 120 degrees, and we have 
ongoing drought.
  Now, these conditions have a significant impact on the surrounding 
environment, and as hotter temperatures increase, they dry out moisture 
from leaves and branches, and they provide kindling to fuel these more 
intense wildfires.
  When many of these wildfires occur, we rely on a response from the 
Federal wildland firefighters, but they are paid, as you have heard, 
significantly less than their counterparts at State and local agencies.
  It is obvious that we need to do more to remedy this situation so we 
cannot only retain the firefighters who are in the force but can also 
recruit more to their ranks.
  That is why I am proud to join my colleague, Representative Neguse, 
on legislation to increase the base pay and retirement benefits for 
wildland firefighters, as well as provide greater access to mental 
health and wellness services as they put themselves on the line for us.
  We owe a great debt of gratitude to these heroes, and the reforms 
that are in this legislation are the least that we can do in response 
and in return for their service and sacrifice.
  I thank our Nevada hotshot crew, all the firefighting agencies at the 
Federal level who are working together to try to keep our community 
safe, and Representative Neguse for his leadership on this important 
issue.
  Ms. SCHRIER. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for sharing her 
experiences, and I hope those fires are extinguished soon.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Neguse), 
one of my colleagues who has been an incredible partner when it comes 
to managing our forests, protecting them from catastrophic wildfire, to 
really thinking forward about how we use prescribed fire. I believe 
that is because Colorado and Washington State face very similar risks.
  Mr. NEGUSE. Madam Speaker, I thank my distinguished colleague and 
classmate from the great State of Washington. Dr. Schrier has been a 
tireless advocate for our wildland firefighters, effective forest 
management, and ensuring that we make the necessary investments that we 
know must be made for wildfire resiliency and mitigation.
  Of course, all of those issues are incredibly important to the people 
of her great State and, as she mentioned, certainly incredibly 
important to the people of Colorado, the State that I am privileged to 
represent in the United States Congress.
  In particular, I thank Representative Schrier for hosting and 
facilitating this opportunity on the House floor. Madam Speaker, you 
heard from so many of our colleagues, each of whom are leaders in their 
own right, particularly from the Rocky Mountain West and the Western 
United States, from Nevada, California, Arizona, of course, and many 
other States in the Intermountain West, all of which are grappling with 
these challenges that have become so prevalent and pernicious in our 
part of the country.
  I am grateful that House Democrats are working really hard across 
party lines because, of course, none of these issues are partisan in 
nature. Wildfires don't respect political boundaries or jurisdictional 
limitations. They impact every citizen of the West and every citizen of 
our country. It is critical for us to marshal the necessary resources 
to ultimately address those challenges.
  The particular challenge that I want to call attention to tonight, 
Madam Speaker, is one, of course, that you are familiar with and one 
that you have heard from many other of my colleagues this evening: The 
way in which Federal wildland firefighters are treated, in my view, by 
the Federal Government is patently unfair and unconscionable.
  For years, we have relied on these first responders, these brave 
public servants, these courageous individuals, to protect our homes, 
our small businesses, our communities, and our States. They risk life 
and limb to protect us.
  I say that having had multiple historic wildfires in my district back 
home in Colorado. The largest wildfire in the history of our State, the 
second largest wildfire in history of our State, the most destructive 
wildfire in the history of our State all happened within the last 4 
years in the congressional district that I call home.
  I have seen firsthand the sacrifices made by these wildland 
firefighters, and it is unconscionable that we don't pay them a living 
wage.
  Now, we made a lot of progress because of Dr. Schrier's work leading 
the way with others, myself included, to ensure that, in the bipartisan 
infrastructure law, we finally provided a holistic pay structure that 
compensates our wildland firefighters. Not a panacea, didn't solve the 
problem, but it made progress, progress that we could build on.
  Instead, unfortunately, right now we are poised to potentially go 
backward because, as you know, Madam Speaker, those core provisions of 
the bipartisan infrastructure law that largely codify the executive 
order that President Biden had issued previously to increase wildland 
firefighter pay, those provisions which were enhanced by a variety of 
other statutory provisions that we were able to enact through the NDAA 
last year to provide, as I said, more comprehensive pay scales for our 
wildland firefighters, are set to expire at the end of the month.

                              {time}  1930

  The clock is ticking, Madam Speaker, and it is incumbent upon every 
Member of this august body to come together, to work together, to find 
common ground, and do what is right by these wildland firefighters. 
They deserve it. They have earned it. The time for excuses, in my view, 
is long past gone.
  I am committed, Madam Speaker, to working in good faith with anyone 
of either party to address this challenge and to ensure that our 
wildland firefighters are paid what they are owed. I am going to keep 
at it, working with Dr. Schrier and my many colleagues, and hope 
springs eternal that we will get this done because, of course, the 
stakes are too high for us not to get it done.
  Madam Speaker, I give my gratitude to Representative Schrier for her 
leadership.

[[Page H5149]]

  

  Ms. SCHRIER. Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Neguse. I cannot 
overstate what an excellent partner the gentleman has been to work with 
and to fight for managing our forests and for our firefighters.
  Madam Speaker, we feel that appreciation for our first responders in 
our hearts, but that is just not enough. We need to find that in our 
appropriations as well. As my colleague, Mr. Neguse, just pointed out, 
the pay isn't high enough. These are high-risk jobs.
  We have turned them into year-round jobs for forest management. That 
is helpful. We have gotten pensions and Federal benefits. That is 
helpful. Yet think about what they do. Think about what their families 
go through. Think about housing. How are they supposed to find housing 
when they don't know where the next fire is going to be and when they 
don't have a salary to support themselves.
  There is a way to combine all of these efforts of higher pay, more 
recognition, and better benefits. Frankly, we should have a path to 
allow firefighters to buy into Medicare early, and I have cosponsored 
this. We can't expect people to fight fires until they are 65 years 
old. It just doesn't make sense. Just like we did for veterans, we also 
need to have some presumption that illnesses later in life likely came 
from inhalation of smoke.
  I also mention that there is a real need to sort of complete the 
cycle. It is one thing to pull underbrush out, to bring small-diameter 
trees out of our forests in order to protect the forests, but then 
there are all kinds of uses for those. We need more small-diameter 
mills. We need guarantees from the Forest Service that those small-
diameter, 8 inches or less, trees will go and be processed.
  We can create cross-laminated timber that is strong enough that we 
could build housing and build it more affordably with materials grown 
right here at home. There is a cycle there.
  We can use it for biochar. All of these Western States, they are dry, 
too. Biochar will hold moisture in the ground and can help complete 
this cycle. I have a business in my district that creates something 
called wood straw. It works better than regular hay or straw in 
stabilizing a hillside because it kind of sticks into that mud and 
allows seeds to germinate more quickly. We can use these products and 
complete that cycle and make it pencil out financially.
  I also give a nod to a community in my district, the community of 
Roslyn. Roslyn, a small town, absolutely adorable, sits surrounded by 
forest. It is one road in, one road out. That is it.
  This community is really just waiting for a disaster to happen, but 
they didn't just sit back and wait. They put in for community project 
funding and got a good chunk of Federal dollars so that they could 
manage the forests surrounding their town. That means that there could 
be a catastrophic wildfire, but it would slow or, hopefully, stop by 
the time it got near the town.
  The community got so involved and excited about this, the forest 
management, that they each took it upon themselves to firewise their 
homes, and this has become part of the culture, and it is what we need 
to do throughout the West to protect our forests and to protect our 
communities.
  I don't believe I have any speakers left, and so I just emphasize 
that gratitude to our firefighters and my commitment to continuing to 
work for healthier forests, for the wood products industry, for good 
environmental stewardship, and for protecting the West and the entire 
planet from escalating and accelerating climate change.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________