Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today applauded the passage of his bipartisan legislation through the Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee that would increase funding and resources for prescribed fires during colder, wetter months, to reduce wildfire risk during the hotter, drier months of fire season.
“I’ve long believed that the federal government needs to be in the business of wildfire prevention, not just after-the-fact recovery,” Wyden said. “My legislation will make much-needed investments in smart, science-backed prevention tools that reduce the risk of infernos that grow more dangerous and destructive each year. I’ll be working as hard as I can to get this legislation passed into law ahead of the next fire season to protect communities across Oregon and the nation.”
The National Prescribed Fire Act of 2025 would invest in hazardous fuels management to reduce the risk of blistering infernos by increasing the pace and scale of prescribed burns during cooler, wetter months. The legislation would boost a prescribed fire workforce and provide new tools to aid in smoke management and prescribed fire permitting during cooler, wetter months to reduce catastrophic fires and smoke in the summer.
Passage of Wyden’s legislation through the ENR Committee comes amid reports that current hazardous fuels reduction levels are lagging behind previous years due to the longest government shutdown in history, coupled with staffing shortages and funding cuts.
More information about Wyden’s bill can be found here.
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