Summary#
The National Prescribed Fire Act of 2025 directs the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture to encourage and expand the use of prescribed fire on land they manage. The bill emphasizes work on National Forest System units in the western and southeastern United States and acknowledges cultural burning by Indian Tribes and Indigenous practitioners.
Key elements in the bill include definitions of prescribed fire and landscape-scale prescribed fire plans; flexibility for using certain hazardous fuels funds for prescribed fire activities; a requirement to increase the number of acres treated by prescribed fire by 10 percent year over year for 10 years; creation of a Collaborative Prescribed Fire Program to select and fund multiowner, landscape-scale projects; and new workforce, training, liability, smoke management, environmental review, education, and reporting provisions.
The bill lists eligible activities that can be funded, such as contracts and cooperative agreements, grants to States, Tribes, local governments, prescribed burn associations, and nonprofits; training and technical assistance; outreach; site preparation; and post-fire monitoring.
What it means for you#
- Federal land managers must plan and carry out more prescribed fires and develop regional operational strategies.
- States, Tribes, local governments, nonprofit groups, prescribed burn associations, and private entities can apply for grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements to help plan or conduct prescribed fires.
- Indian Tribes and Indigenous practitioners are specifically acknowledged and may be included in collaborative planning and Indigenous-led training centers.
- Nearby communities may be affected by smoke; the bill directs coordination with air quality agencies and development of smoke management guidance and tools.
- Workers involved in ignition and management of prescribed fires may be eligible for pay differentials, training, and new career or conversion paths under rules set in the bill.
Expenses#
- The Secretaries may use up to 15 percent of annual hazardous fuels management funds in the Forest Service and up to 15 percent of annual hazardous fuels and post-fire funds in the Department of the Interior for described prescribed fire activities.
- The Collaborative Prescribed Fire Program may receive up to $10,000,000 per year from amounts made available under that 15 percent authority for fiscal years 2025 through 2034 (section 104(g)).
- The bill also sets a limit that the Secretary shall not provide more than $20,000,000 in total funding for projects under the Collaborative Program in any fiscal year, and not more than $1,000,000 for any one project in a fiscal year.
- Projects may receive funding for up to 10 fiscal years, and projects that miss annual targets for 3 consecutive years must cease receiving funds.
- The bill authorizes training centers, hazard pay differentials for certain duties, and requests that the Secretaries seek appropriations to reimburse the Treasury for FTCA claims paid for covered non-Federal entities; however, no overall federal cost estimate or total appropriation level is provided in the bill text.
Proponents' View#
No publicly available information.
Opponents' View#
No publicly available information.