[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 5 (Thursday, January 8, 2026)]
[House]
[Page H150]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        FIREFIGHTER PROTECTIONS

  (Mr. WHITESIDES asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. WHITESIDES. Madam Speaker, this week marks the first anniversary 
of the southern California wildfires that took lives, devastated 
communities, and left families across our region displaced.
  We are lucky that the damage was not worse, and that is only because 
of the wildland firefighters who run toward danger and risk their lives 
for all of us.
  For decades, these heroes were prohibited from wearing respiratory 
protection, even as the science made clear that wildfire smoke causes 
lasting lung damage and is linked to more than a dozen cancers.
  Firefighters' life expectancy is now nearly 10 years shorter than the 
average American. That is unacceptable.
  The Healthy Lungs for Heroes Act changes that. It directs our Federal 
land agencies to develop and require respiratory protection when smoke 
exposure becomes dangerous.
  Protecting our firefighters' lungs should not be controversial. This 
bill ensures that those who protect us are finally protected 
themselves.

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