Merkley, Bipartisan Group of Colleagues Request Review of Federal Wildland Firefighter Workforce

Press Release

Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley teamed up with a bipartisan group of colleagues this week in sending a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting an assessment of hiring and retention of federal firefighters at five agencies responsible for wildland fire management.

"As the fire season becomes more intense, it is also growing longer in duration as a result of climate change. The Forest Service estimates that current fire seasons are lasting 78 days longer than they did in 1970. Wildfires in the West are now a near-constant threat and we can no longer afford to rely on just a seasonal firefighting workforce," the senators wrote to GAO Comptroller General Gene Dodaro.

"Given the increasing threat, and the fact that the federal government is responsible for managing substantial areas of land within Western states, it is crucial that federal agencies have the firefighting capacity and resources they need," they continued.

In conducting its review, the senators urged GAO to:

Identify barriers to recruitment and retention of federal firefighters at the wildland fire agencies;
Assess the seasonal firefighter employment model used by wildland fire agencies, and make recommendations for transitioning to a full-time firefighting workforce; and,
Review the current job series and pay scale of Forest Service and Interior Department wildland firefighters to ensure their pay is commensurate with state firefighting agencies and reflects their training requirements and the hazardous conditions they must endure.
Merkley is the Chair of the Senate Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, which controls funding for wildfire management efforts undertaken by the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Department of the Interior. Prior to stepping into that role in January 2021, Merkley had been a leader in protecting Americans from wildfires, and in fighting for the bold, decisive action needed to address climate chaos, which is causing hotter and drier summers and fueling more catastrophic wildfires in the first place. That work includes introducing legislation to help communities harmed by wildfire smoke, as well as legislation to create economic opportunities in forest-dependent communities while reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfires. During the Trump administration, Merkley convinced Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to reverse course on a disastrous plan to shut down Civilian Conservation Centers, which are Job Corps sites operated by the U.S. Forest Service that help fight fires.

In addition to Merkley, the request to GAO was also made by Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Steve Daines (R-MT), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Patty Murray (D-WA), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), and Michael Bennet (D-CO).

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