[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Pages 13702-13703]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                            MORNING BUSINESS

                                 ______
                                 

                            WILDFIRE FUNDING

 Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, Congress needs to find a fiscally-
responsible solution to wildfire funding and fire borrowing. While the 
Forest Service still has half a billion dollars remaining for fire 
suppression, there are years when firefighting costs exceed predicted 
funding levels. We need a focused discussion on this issue and I plan 
to begin the conversation with key offices and States--Wyoming, Oregon, 
Idaho, Arizona, Alaska, Washington, California, Nevada, Montana, 
Colorado, and others that would like to join and will be constructive 
to its resolution. I know there are differences of opinion out there as 
to how to solve this problem, but the key to solving it is getting 
everyone in a room to discuss it. As cap adjustments are under the 
jurisdiction of the Budget Committee, I look forward to working with my 
colleagues on a durable and long-lasting solution that fits our fiscal 
priorities and is responsible budgeting.
 Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I agree with the Senator from 
Wyoming that we need to find a solution to this problem and I have 
introduced legislation with Senator Crapo that currently sits in the 
Budget Committee. Oregon is on fire and the Forest Service tells me 
that with current fire seasons getting longer and current budgetary 
constraints, the days of spending over 50 percent of their budget on 
suppressing fires is here to stay. The time for talking is coming to an 
end and the time to negotiate a fix to this very serious problem is at 
hand. I would like to work under the leadership of my friend, the 
chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, over the summer, on an answer 
to this chronic problem.
 Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I agree with the Senator from 
Wyoming. Senator Murkowski and I have been working together to propose 
a solution to this problem as well, and I am proud to be able to say 
that we have been working with Senator Enzi, Senator Wyden, and our 
other colleagues. We have to enable the Forest Service to have both the 
resources it needs to deal with wildfires, but also the resources it 
needs to manage the National forests. The current system of paying for 
wildfires by, perpetually, taking funding away from the programs that 
enable the Agency to maintain recreation facilities and complete 
important restoration projects is simply unacceptable. We can't sit 
idle and expect this budget issue to fix itself. We all agree a budget 
cap adjustment of some sort is the solution needed to end the practice 
of fire borrowing. I appreciate Senator Wyden's efforts to fix this 
problem, and I appreciate Senator Murkowski's recent work to fix this 
problem. Most of these solutions have the common theme of requiring a 
budget cap adjustment, and we are looking to your leadership, Senator 
Enzi, to assist us with that. People's homes are burning because of 
these wildfires. We need to get the Forest Service and the Department 
of the Interior the money they need to respond to wildfires, but we 
also need to ensure the money is being well spent. We have a number of 
ideas to round out the solution. I will be working over the summer with 
my colleagues to develop comprehensive legislation that solves this 
budget problem, but also ensures we see fewer large wildfires and fewer 
houses being lost to them. Our solution--and I want to emphasize our--
will be a solution that is easy to explain to the public and that is 
able to get to the President's desk to be enacted.
 Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I want to thank the chairman of 
the Budget Committee for his leadership on the important issue of 
wildfire budgeting. I think we all agree that the way wildfire 
management has been funded is broken and that it is past time that we 
fix it. Earlier this year, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee that 
I chair reported the Interior Appropriations bill. My bill provided 
full funding for the average annual cost of fire fighting over the past 
10 years, and included a limited cap adjustment to access disaster 
relief funding only if the agencies exhaust 100 percent of that 10-year 
average of wildfire suppression funds. This proposal would end the 
disruptive and unsustainable practice of borrowing from, and later 
repaying money to, other government programs to deal with fire 
emergencies, while also providing up front the resources the agencies 
need to fight fires in all but the most extreme years. But there is 
more to the issue of wildfire budgeting as my colleague, Senator 
Cantwell, points out. We need to ensure the dollars Congress 
appropriates are well spent. Senator Cantwell has some good ideas on 
how to do that. I stand ready to work with my colleagues to advance a 
solution that will finally fix this longstanding problem in a fiscally 
responsible manner.
 Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I rise to support the efforts of the 
Senator from Wyoming to address budgetary issues impacting how our 
Nation fights wildfires. Like the State of Wyoming, Idaho's forested 
lands are consistently under threat of catastrophic wildfires. 
According to the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, in the last 
year alone there were 1,456 wildland fires in Idaho that burned 714,057 
acres. As more resources go toward fire suppression, resources that 
could be used to implement projects that improve forest health, benefit 
forest communities, and enhance public safety are squeezed. We know 
that wildfires are going to continue to be a threat, and we can better 
prepare for the increasing costs of wildland fire management by making 
needed changes that will support the preparation of firefighters and 
land managers. That is why I partnered with Senator Ron Wyden in 
introducing legislation, the Wildfire Disaster Funding Act, to provide 
for more efficient and effective fire management. I look forward to 
working with my colleagues across the West, and in the Senate Budget 
Committee in particular, on legislation that would better budget for 
our Nation's fire suppression activities.
 Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I want to commend the Budget 
Committee chairman for his ongoing efforts to tackle the fire-borrowing 
issue. We all agree that the Forest Service should receive the funding 
it needs to fight fires. I am also glad that there is growing agreement 
that the Forest Service should budget for 100 percent of its wildfire 
suppression costs as proposed in legislation introduced by me and my

[[Page 13703]]

colleagues, Senator Flake and Senator Barrasso. We also know that 
science has shown how forest restoration is highly effective in 
reducing wildfire severity. I look forward to working with Senator 
Wyden and the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee on an agreeable 
solution that protects wildfire prevention and wildfire suppression as 
the two top priorities of the Forest Service.
 Mr. FLAKE. Mr. President, there is wide agreement that the 
current wildfire funding system is broken. There is no doubt that 
wildfires are disastrous and the cost to suppress them continues to 
grow. But we cannot let the costly and disastrous nature of wildfire 
make us lose sight that many of the costs of fighting fire can be 
anticipated. Like Senator McCain, I am pleased that there is growing 
consensus that the fiscally responsible way to deal with these 
wildfires is to allow access to additional funds through a limited 
process only after agencies have been appropriated for 100 percent of 
the anticipated costs of suppression. I look forward to working with my 
colleagues on enacting this funding fix as well as incorporating 
provisions that ease the removal of the hazardous fuels that create 
fire-prone landscapes.
 Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I want to thank the senior 
Senator from Wyoming and chairman of the Senate Budget Committee for 
his steadfast approach to addressing budget priorities in a responsible 
and fiscally sound manner. There is bipartisan agreement to end the 
practice of fire borrowing. If Congress is going to consider budgetary 
cap adjustments under the jurisdiction of the Budget Committee, the 
Forest Service should first budget for 100 percent of its wildfire 
suppression costs before cap adjustments are made. In order to bring 
down the long-term cost of wildfire suppression, Congress should also 
actively engage in supporting activities which reduce the cost and 
severity of wildfire such as hazardous fuels treatments, thinning, and 
other active forest management projects. I have joined with Senators 
McCain and Flake on legislation to address these issues. I have also 
put forward legislation to treat more acres to improve forest health 
and reduce the risk of wildfire. I want to work with my colleagues in 
the Senate, and specifically Chairman Enzi, to prevent future fire 
borrowing and reduce the long-term economic and ecological costs 
associated with wildfires.
 Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, yesterday, the Forest Service 
announced that for the first time in its 110-year history, it is 
spending more than 50 percent of its budget just to fight wildfires. 
The Forest Service expects this problem to keep getting worse. Within a 
decade, they are projecting that firefighting costs will rise to two 
thirds of the Forest Service budget. The Forest Service can no longer 
sustain these costs of fighting wildfires while continuing other 
critical functions of managing our Federal forests. It is long overdue 
that Congress eliminate the vicious cycle of fire borrowing, where the 
Forest Service is forced to dig further and further into its budget to 
fight fires at the expense of critical work to reduce hazardous fuels 
from the forest and other forest management. I am very grateful that we 
have such a strong bipartisan group of colleagues working together on 
this critical matter. I thank my colleagues who are joining me today, 
and I note that it is this kind of bipartisan cooperation that gets the 
issues done, along with the strong leadership of Senator Wyden who has 
championed this issue with a bipartisan bill for the last two 
Congresses, in addition to the strong leadership of Senator Murkowski 
which allowed us to take a big step in the right direction in the 
Interior Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2016. It is crucial to our 
communities facing threats of wildfire that we keep this cooperation 
going. I will keep working with my colleagues to solve this urgent 
budgetary crisis.
 Mr. DAINES. I want to thank Chairman Enzi for his commitment 
to solving the wildfire funding challenge that is increasingly forcing 
the Forest Service to spend more of its budget suppressing fires rather 
than preventing them through enhanced management. Like many other 
Western States, Montana has already experienced several high-intensity 
fires this year. The fire season thus far has been one of the worst in 
the past decade and has only made more evident the urgent need for a 
wildfire funding solution. As a cosponsor of the Wildfire Disaster 
Funding Act, I believe it is critical that Congress end fire borrowing 
and ensure that the Forest Service can spend more of its budget on 
making our National forests more resilient to fire, while also 
equipping the Agency with the tools and authorities it needs to restore 
active management. I look forward to working with Chairman Enzi, other 
Budget Committee members, and fellow colleagues to find consensus on 
these high-priority reforms.
 Mr. TESTER. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in wanting to 
fix the way we fund fire. We have to start using common sense and 
budget for catastrophic wildfires like we do for other natural 
disasters. Unfortunately, due to congressional inaction and growing 
costs associated with fighting wildfires, the Forest Service is 
increasingly turning into a firefighting agency. This means fewer 
resources for smart public land management. Montana's National forests 
benefit our outdoor recreation economy, support timber jobs in rural 
communities, and preserve the drinking water that Montanans rely on. I 
look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle 
to address both the issues of fire borrowing and the increasing costs 
of fighting fires. The Forest Service cannot continue to absorb these 
increasing costs without undermining other critical priorities, from 
timber harvest and research to conservation and recreation management. 
There is real bipartisan support for getting something done on this 
issue and I am confident a growing number of our colleagues will join 
us as we push forward this fall.

                          ____________________