ICYMI: Senator Murray Announces Nearly $25 Million in Funding to Reduce Wildfire Risks Across Washington State – MORE HERE
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Murray helped pass invested more than $14 billion in wildfire suppression and mitigation; Interior Appropriations bill Senator Murray wrote and passed through committee as Chair provides over $4 billion for wildfire preparedness and suppression
Senator Murray: “Firefighters are on the frontline protecting Washington state families from wildfires, and I am determined to make sure they have everything they need for that important job.”
***PHOTOS AND B-ROLL OF THE EVENT HERE***
Leavenworth, WA – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, met with Chelan County firefighters and U.S. Forest Service representatives and received a briefing on wildfire activity in the Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest and across Washington state. Murray discussed major investments she helped secure for wildfire prevention—including in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—and how the federal government can continue to support firefighting efforts and firefighters in Washington state. Senator Murray was also joined by representatives from the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, the Wildland Fire Mitigation and Management Commission, the Washington Resource Conservation and Development Council, and the Washington State Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network
“Firefighters are on the frontline protecting Washington state families from wildfires, and I am determined to make sure they have everything they need for that important job. If we don’t give firefighters the resources they need to prevent fires, mitigate them, and put them out—then even the smallest spark can become a big threat,” said Senator Murray. “The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act I helped to pass included billions in funding for a range of activities for wildfire risk reduction—but as you all know, our work is far from done. As Chair of the Appropriations Committee, I’m working to secure more resources for our heroic firefighters—and I’m fighting to make sure that, come fall, no firefighter faces a pay cut.“
“Investments in communities take the most time, energy, and people, and are the most complex—so supporting local community-based organizations before, during, and after fires is critical to building community resilience and supporting forest restoration efforts,” said Hilary Lundgren, Executive Director for the Washington Resource Conservation and Development Council that hosts the Washington State Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network. “Our organization works with over 41 local organizations across Washington state who are leading community fire adaptation efforts—and it’s great to have this opportunity to connect with Senator Murray about how to align local work with national initiatives and equip and empower communities. Federal support for both community fire adaptation and forest restoration response is essential to addressing the wildfire crisis.”
The National Interagency Fire Center forecasts that Washington state is especially vulnerable to wildfires in 2023. Already this year, the state has experienced 986 fires and 85,043 acres burned. The U.S. Forest Service is putting together a 10-Year Wildfire Crisis Strategy—funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Murray was a leader in passing—which includes a major focus on the Central Washington region, including the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest.
Senator Murray was a leader in passing the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which invested more than $14 billion in programs to help state and local governments, public lands managers, homeowners, and private landowners mitigate the risk of catastrophic wildfires, including $3.3 billion for wildfire risk reduction efforts, $5 billion for utilities and grid operators to bury power lines and install fire-resistant technologies to reduce wildfires, $2 billion for the Interior Department and U.S. Forest Service to carry out ecological restoration projects on public and private lands in order to remove the fuel that feeds wildfires, $3.5 billion to help homeowners fireproof their homes, and $600 million to increase salaries for firefighters. Murray also helped pass the Inflation Reduction Act—the largest-ever investment in climate action in U.S. history—which included $5 billion in grants to support healthy, fire resilient forests, forest conservation, and drought and fire resilient agricultural practices.
Senator Murray is also working to protect and expand investments in wildfire suppression and mitigation—and in our firefighters—as Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. The Senate Interior and Environment appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2024 that Senator Murray helped write and unanimously pass out of Committee as Chair protects essential investments in wildfire preparedness and suppression, providing $4.045 billion, and creates a $2 million health and wellness program for federal firefighters to provide support to combat the real danger of injury and fatigue. Critically, Senator Murray is also committed to ensuring wildland firefighters who are protecting communities and lands from wildfire do not see their pay cut and is working to ensure Congress takes action by the end of September. Senator Murray also secured key investments in wildfire prevention and mitigation in last year’s government funding package.
And earlier this year, Senator Murray announced nearly $25 million in funding for wildfire mitigation projects across Washington state funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Murray highlighted the economic costs of wildfires at a Senate Budget Committee hearing in March and underscored the importance of federal investments to prevent and fight wildfires.
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