Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year
October 28, 2020
Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)
Katie Hoover
Wildfire management is a series of coordinated activities to prepare for, resolve, and recover
Specialist in Natural
from wildfire events. The federal agencies responsible for wildfire management include the U.S.
Resources Policy
Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service (FS) and the Department of the Interior (DOI). FS

carries out wildfire response and management across the 193 million acres of national forests and
national grasslands; DOI carries out these activities on more than 400 million acres of national

parks, wildlife refuges and preserves, Indian reservations, and other public lands. The federal
agencies also coordinate wildfire response activities with state and local governments as needed.
Both FS and DOI generally receive annual discretionary appropriations for wildfire management activities through the
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bills. Wildfire management funding for DOI is provided to the
Office of Wildland Fire (a department-level office). Both FS and DOI receive wildfire appropriations through similarly
structured accounts, programs, and activities, though FS’s account structure changed several times between FY2011 and
FY2020. The funding generally falls into four categories: suppression, preparedness, reduction of wildland fuel (e.g.,
biomass, vegetation), and other wildfire activities . Suppression is the work associated with wildfire response and includes
postfire emergency stabilization measures. Preparedness comprises a range of tasks to ensure readiness for wildfire response,
including workforce preparation, equipment and resource management, and wildfire outlook conditions forecasting. Fuel
reduction is a wildfire prevention activity intended to mitigate the risk of catastrophic fires. Other wildfire activities include
site rehabilitation, federal assistance programs, wildfire research, and facility maintenance, among others; the activities
funded in this category varied between FS and DOI over the 10-year period.
Total combined FS and DOI wildfire appropriations
FS and DOI Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020
fluctuated annually but increased from FY2011 to FY2020.
On average, combined wildfire appropriations were $4.48
billion annually in inflation-adjusted constant FY2020
dollars, and the appropriations nearly doubled over the 10-
year period. The FY2020 wildfire appropriation was $6.11
billion, the highest appropriation to date. Over the time
period, the majority of the funding went to FS. Funding for
suppression was $2.20 billion combined annually on
average from FY2011 to FY2020, in constant dollars, and
the FY2020 appropriation for suppression was $3.65 billion
combined. On average, the agencies combined received
$1.52 billion annually for preparedness, $590.7 million
annually for fuel reduction, and $174.1 million annually for

other wildfire activities (in constant dollars) over the period
in question.
Source: CRS. Data are derived from annual appropriations
acts, supplemental appropriations acts, committee reports,
explanatory statements, and the detailed funding tables
The funding trends over the FY2011-FY2020 period are
prepared by the House and Senate Committees on
attributable primarily to fluctuations and increases in
Appropriations.
appropriations for suppression, which accounted for nearly
half of the average annual wildfire appropriation. During
Notes: Figures include appropriations to FS’s and DOI’s WFM
and FLAME Act accounts, the wildfire adjustment, and any
this period, Congress provided suppression funding to FS
other appropriations enacted for wildfire purposes for the two
and DOI through multiple accounts, including the agencies’
agencies, and reflect supplemental and emergency-designated
respective Wildland Fire Management (WFM) and Federal
appropriations, sequestration, and rescissions. Figures were
Land Assistance, Management, and Enhancement
adjusted to estimated FY2020 constant dol ars using the GDP
(FLAME) Act accounts. The FLAME accounts received
Chained Price Index from the White House Office of
funding from FY2010 through FY2018. In addition,
Management and Budget, Table 10.1, “Gross Domestic Product
Congress provided suppression funding pursuant to the
and Deflators Used in the Historical Tables—1940-2025,” in
wildfire adjustment (also known as the wildfire funding fix),
Historical Tables.
a budgetary mechanism that allows for an upward
adjustment of the discretionary spending limits to accommodate a specific amount of spending for wildfire suppression. This
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Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

mechanism, which first became available in FY2020, is most easily thought of as providing funds that are exempt from
discretionary spending limits.
In addition to regular discretionary appropriations, at times Congress provided FS and DOI with additional, or supplemental,
wildfire funding for a fiscal year between FY2011 and FY2020. Congress typically provided this funding to replenish an
agency’s suppression accounts or to repay funds transferred from other agency accounts to cover emergency suppression
costs. Congress provided supplemental appropriations in 7 of the 10 years from FY2011 through FY2020. In some years, this
funding was designated as emergency spending and, as such, essentially was exempt from discretionary spending limits
under a separate adjustment; in other years, the funding was not designated as emergency spending.
Debates on whether, where, and how to provide additional funding for wildfire management have persisted for decades. From
FY2011 to FY2020, congressional interest focused on the adequacy of program funding and the extent to which increasing
suppression costs have reduced the availability of funding for other wildfire programs (and other FS or DOI programs more
generally). The wildfire adjustment was intended to alleviate some of these concerns, at least temporarily. Issues pertaining to
preparedness funding involve the number and effectiveness of aircraft available for wildfire suppression and the adequacy of
efforts to recruit and retain federal firefighters. Issues related to fuel reduction funding include the scope and scale of fuel
reduction needs, prioritization of treatments to the highest-risk locations, and effectiveness of treatments. Other wildfire
funding issues include how much funding to provide for wildfire research, assistance programs, and postfire restoration.
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Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1
Historical Context...................................................................................................... 2
Wildfire Accounts and Activities ....................................................................................... 3
Suppression .............................................................................................................. 5
Wildland Fire Management Suppression .................................................................. 6
FLAME Accounts ................................................................................................ 6
Wildfire Adjustment ............................................................................................. 7
Supplemental Appropriations ................................................................................. 8
Preparedness............................................................................................................. 9
Fuel Reduction ........................................................................................................ 10
Other Wildfire Activities ........................................................................................... 11
Wildfire Appropriations Data .......................................................................................... 12
Issues for Congress ....................................................................................................... 18
Suppression ............................................................................................................ 19
Preparedness........................................................................................................... 20
Aviation ............................................................................................................ 20
Workforce ......................................................................................................... 21
Fuel Reduction ........................................................................................................ 22
Other Wildfire Activities ........................................................................................... 22

Figures
Figure 1. Forest Service (FS) and Department of the Interior (DOI) Wildfire Management
Appropriations, FY1994-FY2020 ................................................................................... 3
Figure 2. FS and DOI Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020 ......................................... 14
Figure 3. Regular and Supplemental Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020...................... 15
Figure 4. Suppression Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020...................................................... 16
Figure 5. Distribution of FS and DOI Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020 .................... 18

Tables
Table 1. Forest Service (FS) and Department of the Interior (DOI) Total Wildfire
Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020.................................................................................. 13
Table 2. FS and DOI Wildfire Appropriations by Category, FY2011-FY2020 ......................... 17

Table A-1. Forest Service (FS) Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020 ............................. 25
Table A-2. Department of the Interior (DOI) Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020........... 27
Table A-3. Combined FS and DOI Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020 ........................ 29
Table B-1. Changes to the FS Wildland Fire Management Account (WFM) for Other
Operations ................................................................................................................ 31

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Appendixes
Appendix A. Detailed Wildfire Appropriations Data ........................................................... 24
Appendix B. Structural Changes to Forest Service’s Wildland Fire Management Other
Operations Program ................................................................................................... 31

Contacts
Author Information ....................................................................................................... 31

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Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

Introduction
Wildfire (or wildland fire),1 an unplanned and unwanted fire, can have beneficial and harmful
effects on human, historical, cultural, and ecological resources. Wildfires can reduce fuel loads,
increase ecosystem health and functioning, and restore fire-adapted ecosystems. At the same time,
they can damage timber resources and soils, degrade water quality, and impair watershed
functions. Wildfires also can damage communities, destroy homes, and lead to loss of human life.
Wildfire management is a series of coordinated activities undertaken by federal, state, and local
authorities to prepare for, resolve, and recover from wildfire events. These activities general y
include prevention, preparedness, suppression, and postfire site rehabilitation.2 At the federal
level, prevention activities primarily focus on altering the characteristics of wildland fuels (e.g.,
vegetation, biomass) in an effort to mitigate the risk of catastrophic fires.3 These activities
general y are referred to as fuel reduction.
A number of federal, state, and local agencies can and do respond to wildfires.4 States are
responsible for responding to wildfires that begin on nonfederal (state, local, and private) lands,
except for lands protected by federal agencies under cooperative agreements. The federal
government is responsible for responding to wildfires that begin on federal lands. The U.S.
Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service (FS) carries out wildfire response and management
across the 193 mil ion acres of national forests and national grasslands. The Department of the
Interior (DOI) carries out wildfire management and response on more than 400 mil ion acres of
national parks, wildlife refuges and preserves, Indian reservations, and other public lands.
Sometimes more than one agency may respond, depending on where the fire occurs and spreads,
the potential threats, and the expertise required. In these cases, the response is coordinated
regional y through Geographic Area Coordination Centers and national y through the National
Interagency Coordination Center, based at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, ID.5

1 T he terms wildland fire and wildfire often are used interchangeably, although each term has a distinct definition. T he
National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) defines wildland fire as any non-structure fire that occurs in vegetation
or natural fuels, including prescribed fire and wildfire. NWCG defines wildfire as an unplanned, unwanted wildland
fire, including unauthorized human-caused fires, escaped prescribed fire projects, and all other wildland fires where the
objective is to put out the fire. See NWCG, “ Glossary of Wildland Fire T erminology,” September 2020, at
https://www.nwcg.gov/glossary/a-z (hereinafter cited as NWCG, “ Glossary”). T his report will use the term wildfire for
both terms.
2 T he federal government funds wildland fire management in similar categories: fuel reduction, preparedness, and
suppression. Other prevention and site-rehabilitation activities are funded through more than one budget line item;
these activities are grouped together and referred to as other wildfire activities for purposes of this report .
3 T he size, distribution, and total quantity of wildland fuels significantly affect wildfire behavior and impacts. For more
information on wildland fuels, see CRS Report R40811, Wildfire Fuels and Fuel Reduction, by Katie Hoover. Other
types of prevention efforts are needed to protect structures and other resources located adjacent to or within wildland
(e.g., undeveloped, vegetated wildland) areas. For more information, see CRS Report RS21880, Wildfire Protection in
the Wildland-Urban Interface, by Katie Hoover and Kelsi Bracmort .
4 For more information on federal assistance, see CRS In Focus IF10732, Federal Assistance for Wildfire Response and
Recovery, by Katie Hoover.
5 T he National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) comprises eight agencies and organizations: the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM), the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, the
U.S. Forest Service (FS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Business Center, and the
U.S. Fire Administration. A representative from the National Association of State Foresters also is located at NIFC. For
more information on coordination procedures and logistics, see the National Interagency Coordination Center, 2020
National Interagency Mobilization Guide, at https://www.nifc.gov/nicc/mobguide/index.html.
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Both FS and DOI general y receive annual discretionary appropriations for wildfire management
activities through the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bil s. Wildfire
management funding for DOI is provided to the Office of Wildland Fire (a department-level
office), which then al ocates the funding to four DOI agencies—Bureau of Land Management,
Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Park Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.6
Appropriations laws also provide funding for wildfire-related activities to agencies other than FS
and DOI. For example, appropriations laws provide funding to the Federal Emergency
Management Agency for emergency financial assistance for some nonfederal wildfires through
Fire Management Assistance Grants and the Disaster Relief Fund; those funds and activities are
discussed in other CRS products.7
This report begins with an overview of wildfire funding trends since FY1994 to provide some
historical context. It focuses on data and analysis on discretionary wildfire appropriations for FS
and DOI for the 10-year period from FY2011 through FY2020.8 Detailed appropriations data by
agency are shown in Appendix A, but the trends and analysis general y are based on total
combined appropriations to FS and DOI. For purposes of this report, FS and DOI funding is
grouped in categories related to specific wildfire management activities: suppression,
preparedness, fuel reduction, and other wildfire activities. The report summarizes the funding
levels for each of those categories over the time period and compares the two agencies’ funding
structures.
The report concludes with a discussion of selected policy issues related to the four different
categories of wildfire appropriations. This discussion addresses issues related to the extent to
which increasing suppression costs have come at the expense of other FS or DOI programs; the
size and effectiveness of aircraft for wildfire suppression; the adequacy of efforts to recruit and
retain federal firefighters; the scope and scale of fuel reduction needs and how to prioritize
treatments to the highest-risk locations; and how much funding to provide for wildfire research,
assistance programs, and postfire restoration activities.
Historical Context
Wildfire management appropriations fluctuated annual y from FY1994 through FY2020 but
began to increase in the late 1990s and rose markedly after FY2000, beginning with a severe fire
season in 2000 (see Figure 1). In the 20 years since FY2001, wildfire appropriations have ranged
from a low of $3.05 bil ion in FY2012 to a high of $6.11 bil ion in FY2020 (as measured in
inflation-adjusted constant FY2020 dollars).9 A significant portion of the annual fluctuations and

6 T hrough FY2008, wildfire funding for the Department of the Interior (DOI) was appropriated directly to BLM and
then allocated among the other bureaus. Since FY2009, appropriations have been made to the DOI department -level
Office of Wildland Fire for allocation among the agencies.
7 For more information, see CRS Report R43738, Fire Management Assistance Grants: Frequently Asked Questions,
by Bruce R. Lindsay and Katie Hoover, and CRS Report R43537, FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund: Overview and
Selected Issues, by Bruce R. Lindsay.
8 FS and DOI also receive mandatory appropriations, some of which may be used for wildfire-related activities,
specifically for fuel reduction or postfire rehabilitatio n and restoration. For more information on the agencies’
respective mandatory appropriations accounts, see CRS Report R45994, Federal Land Managem ent Agencies’
Mandatory Appropriations Accounts, coordinated by Carol Hardy Vincent .
9 T he figures and tables in this report generally reflect applicable supplemental and emergency -designated
appropriations, sequestration, and rescissions. Figures include appropriations to FS’s and DOI’s Wildland Fire
Management (WFM) and Federal Land Assistance, Management, and Enhancement (FLAME) Act accounts, the
wildfire adjustment , and any additional or other appropriations enacted for wildfire purposes for the two agencies. T op -
line figures for FS, DOI, and combined total ap propriations are inflated to estimated FY2020 constant dollars to enable
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the overal increase in funding are related to rising suppression costs. Suppression costs vary
considerably and may be high even during years of relatively mild wildfire activity, because these
costs are driven in part by fire location and, in particular, by the proximity to populated areas.
Over time, most wildfire management funding has gone to FS, which received, on average,
around 72% of total wildfire management appropriations annual y from FY1994 to FY2020; DOI
received the remaining 28%. From FY2011 to FY2020, FS received an even larger share—78%
annual y on average—whereas DOI’s share decreased to 22%.
Figure 1. Forest Service (FS) and Department of the Interior (DOI) Wildfire
Management Appropriations, FY1994-FY2020

Sources: Congressional Research Service (CRS). Data compiled from agency budget justifications, annual
appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations acts, committee reports, explanatory statements, and detailed
funding tables prepared by the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
Notes: Figures include appropriations to FS’s and DOI’s Wildland Fire Management (WFM) accounts, the
FLAME suppression reserve accounts, the wildfire adjustment, and any additional or other appropriations
enacted for wildfire purposes for FS and DOI. See footnote 9 for additional information about this figure.
Wildfire Accounts and Activities
Both FS and DOI receive funding for wildfire management through accounts, programs, projects
and activities that general y correspond to different categories of wildland fire management:
suppression, preparedness, fuel reduction, and other wildfire activities.10 Other wildfire activities,
for purposes of this report, refers to site rehabilitation, assistance programs, wildfire research, and

comparisons across time. Figures were adjusted to estimated FY2020 dollars using the GDP Chained Price Index from
the White House Office of Management and Budget, T able 10.1, “Gross Domestic Product and Deflators Used in the
Historical T ables—1940-2025,” in Historical Tables, at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/Historicals. FY2020
appropriation figures could change, for instance, if a rescission were to be enacted for the fiscal year.
10 An appropriations account is the basic unit of an appropriation, generally reflecting each unnumbered paragraph in
an appropriation act, and typically includes elements such as progr ams, projects, or activities. A budget line item
generally refers to an individual account or part of an account (e.g., program, project, or activity) for which a specific
amount is available. T his report may refer to some of these terms interchangeably. For more information, see U.S.
Government Accountability Office (GAO), A Glossary of Term s Used in the Federal Budget Process, GAO-05-734SP,
September 2005, https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-05-734SP.
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maintenance, which are funded through multiple programs and/or funded differently between the
agencies.
Congress has provided funding to both agencies through three similarly structured accounts, as
listed below. Over the 10 years from FY2011 to FY2020, however, the specific funding structure
varied from year to year and between FS and DOI. Thus, this report endeavors to describe and
analyze the funding both by purpose and by account.
 Wildland Fire Management (WFM) account. The WFM account is the primary
wildfire account for both FS and DOI. Between FY2011 and FY2020, in both
agencies, the bulk of WFM appropriations went to the FS and DOI Fire
Operations programs, which funded preparedness and suppression activities. In
some years, each agency’s respective WFM accounts also included an Other
Operations program, which funded fuel reduction activities, wildfire science and
research, and assistance programs. The activities funded through the Other
Operations program varied, however, both between FS and DOI and during
FY2011 through FY2020.
 Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve Fund (referred to as the wildfire
adjustment account in this report). The funds appropriated to FS’s and DOI’s
respective accounts were permitted to use the wildfire adjustment, a budgetary
mechanism that became available in FY2020 and al ows for certain funds to be
essential y exempt from the discretionary spending limit under specified
circumstances.11 These funds may be transferred to the WFM account for
emergency suppression purposes. (See the “Discretionary Spending Limits” text
box below and the “Wildfire Adjustment” section for additional discussion.)
 Federal Land Assistance, Management, and Enhancement (FLAME) Act
Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund (referred to as the FLAME account in this
report).12 This account was established for both FS and DOI in FY2010; the DOI
FLAME account last received appropriations in FY2017, and the FS FLAME
account last received appropriations in FY2018. Funds from an agency’s
FLAME account may be transferred under specified conditions to its WFM
account for emergency suppression purposes. (See the “FLAME Accounts”
section for additional discussion.)
From FY2011 to FY2020, Congress made three major changes to the availability and structure of
wildfire funding, two of which applied only to FS.
First, starting in the FY2017 appropriations law (and continuing through FY2020), Congress
specified that funds in many FS accounts—including the WFM account—were to remain
available for four years.13 Prior to FY2017, appropriations to FS (and DOI) wildfire accounts
typical y were designated to remain available until expended, meaning those funds were “no-
year” appropriations (i.e., appropriations without fiscal-year limitations) available in future years.

11 P.L. 115-141, Division O, §102(a), 2 U.S.C. §901(b)(2)(F).
12 T he Federal Land Assistance, Management, and Enhancement (FLAME) Act, P.L. 111-88 Division A, T itle V (43
U.S.C. §§1748a et seq.).
13 T he FY2017 appropriations law (P.L. 115-31) provided no-year funds to the FLAME account, but the FY2018
appropriations law (P.L. 115-141)—the last year in which FS received a FLAME appropriation—provided the funds
through the end of FY2021. T hese changes started prior to the establishment of the wildfire adjustment . Appropriations
to the wildfire adjustment are no-year funds.
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Second, starting in the FY2018 appropriations law (and continuing through FY2020), Congress
eliminated FS’s Other Operations program (within the WFM account) and funded most of those
activities through other FS accounts.14 For example, starting in FY2018, Congress provided
funding for fuel reduction activities in FS’s National Forest System (NFS) account and funding
for wildfire assistance programs in FS’s State and Private Forestry (SPF) account.15 In addition,
Congress did not provide specific funding al ocations for various research activities (e.g., the
National Fire Plan) but directed that some of the associated activities be conducted using funds
appropriated to FS’s Forest and Rangeland Research (FRR) account. For more information on
these changes—and other changes enacted to FS’s Other Operations program prior to FY2018—
see Appendix B.
Third, for both DOI and FS, Congress authorized the wildfire adjustment to become available
starting in FY2020. Congress also stopped appropriating to DOI’s FLAME account in FY2017
and to FS’s FLAME account in FY2018. (These changes are discussed in more detail in the
“Suppression” section, below.)
The following sections provide more information on funding to FS and DOI for suppression,
preparedness, fuel reduction, and other wildfire activities. The information includes an overview
of the activities covered by each funding category, the accounts and programs through which
Congress provides funding to each agency, and any changes that occurred to the funding structure
between FY2011 and FY2020. In addition to regular discretionary appropriations, at times
appropriations laws have provided FS and DOI with additional—or supplemental—wildfire
funding, general y for suppression purposes; the suppression section includes an overview of
these additional appropriations (see “Supplemental Appropriations,” below).
Discretionary Spending Limits
The Budget Control Act of 2011 (BCA; P.L. 112-25) established statutory limits on discretionary spending for
FY2012-FY2021 (sometimes referred to as spending caps) and processes to enforce those limits. The Balanced
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act (Title II of P.L. 99-177, 2 U.S.C. §§900-922, as amended by the BCA)
specified that spending for certain activities would receive special budgetary treatment. This spending is most
easily thought of as being effectively exempt from the discretionary spending limits. Formal y, however, the law
states that the enactment of such spending al ows for a subsequent upward adjustment of the discretionary limits
to accommodate the spending; as a result, these types of spending are referred to as adjustments. The wildfire
adjustment is one example of such spending (2 U.S.C. §901(b)(2)(F)). Another example is spending that is
designated as an emergency requirement (2 U.S.C. §901(b)(2)(A)(i)). (This spending is sometimes referred to as
emergency or emergency-designated in this report.) For more information on discretionary spending limits, see CRS
Report R45778, Exceptions to the Budget Control Act’s Discretionary Spending Limits, by Megan S. Lynch, or CRS
Report R44874, The Budget Control Act: Frequently Asked Questions, by Grant A. Driessen and Megan S. Lynch.
From FY2011 through FY2020, the Forest Service and the Department of the Interior received funding that had
been designated as an emergency requirement and funding provided pursuant to the wildfire adjustment. This
report general y refers to the funding provided through those adjustments as exempt from or not subject to
discretionary spending limits.
Suppression
Suppression is the work associated with extinguishing or confining a fire. Resolution of a wildfire
incident may include activities ranging from immediate and aggressive measures to suppress a
wildfire (e.g., personnel and large air tanker response for a wildfire moving quickly toward a

14 P.L. 115-141 Division G.
15 For more information on these changes, see CRS Report R46557, Forest Service Appropriations: Ten-Year Data and
Trends (FY2011-FY2020), by Katie Hoover.
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populated area) to immediate but less intense measures (e.g., monitoring a grassland wildfire
where there is no immediate threat to humans or other resource values).
From FY2011 through FY2020, FS’s and DOI’s suppression activities were funded through
multiple accounts: each agency’s respective WFM, FLAME, and wildfire adjustment accounts.
The DOI FLAME account was active through FY2017, the FS FLAME account was active
through FY2018, and the wildfire adjustment first became available in FY2020. The following
sections describe each of these accounts. In addition, one section describes supplemental
appropriations provided between FY2011 and FY2020; Congress general y provided these
additional appropriations for suppression purposes.
Wildland Fire Management Suppression
FS and DOI primarily use WFM suppression appropriations for wildfire response. These
appropriations fund firefighter salaries (above the baseline funded through preparedness),
aviation asset operations, other functions in direct support of wildfire incidents, and postfire
emergency stabilization activities. FS and DOI also may assist each other with suppression
activities, on a reciprocal nonreimbursement basis up to $50 mil ion annual y.16 If the funding in
an agency’s WFM suppression account (and, when active, FLAME account) is exhausted during
any given fiscal year, FS and DOI are authorized to transfer funds from their other accounts to
pay for continued suppression activities.17 This practice is sometimes referred to as fire borrowing
or fire transfers. When such transfers occurred between FY2011 and FY2020, Congress typical y
enacted supplemental appropriations to repay the transferred funds and/or replenish the agency’s
suppression accounts.18
Whereas FS and DOI currently use suppression funding similarly, the two agencies used this
funding in different ways prior to FY2018. These differences primarily related to FS using
suppression funds to cover certain costs that DOI funded through preparedness. In FY2012, FS
shifted some aviation costs from suppression to preparedness. In addition, in FY2018, FS made
further changes and shifted certain personnel charges from suppression to preparedness in an
effort to conform to DOI’s budget practices.19
FLAME Accounts
FS’s and DOI’s FLAME accounts, both established in FY2010, fund emergency wildfire
suppression activities under specified circumstances.20 Funds in an agency’s FLAME account
may be used to cover the costs of large or complex fires and are to be used when amounts
provided for suppression in the WFM account are exhausted. Upon a secretarial declaration, the

16 T his means FS and DOI may assist each other, as needed, without requiring the other agency to reimburse the cost of
such services. See, for example, provisions of the FY2020 Interior appropriations law ( P.L. 116-94, Division D)
included in the appropriation for DOI’s WFM account and the administrative provisions for FS.
17 T he transfer authority has been granted annually in the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appr opriations
act. See, for example, provisions of the FY2020 Interior appropriations law ( P.L. 116-94, Division D included in §102
(DOI) and administrative provisions (FS).
18 Appropriations laws have specified that such transferred funds “must be replenished by a supplemental
appropriation.” See, for example, provisions of the FY2020 Interior appropriations law ( P.L. 116-94, Division D)
included in §102 (DOI) and administrative provisions (FS).
19 FS, FY2018 Budget Justification, May 2017, p. 146, at https://www.fs.usda.gov/about-agency/budget-performance.
20 FLAME Act, P.L. 111-88 Division A, T itle V (43 U.S.C. §§1748a et seq.).
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appropriate secretary (i.e., the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior) may
transfer funds from an agency’s FLAME account to its WFM account for suppression activities.
The two agencies received appropriations to their respective FLAME accounts starting in
FY2010. DOI’s FLAME account last received appropriations in FY2017, and FS’s FLAME
account last received appropriations in FY2018. Under law, a FLAME account is to be terminated
after three consecutive years without an appropriation or withdrawal.21 DOI’s FLAME account
was eligible for termination at the end of FY2020, and DOI indicated its intention to close out the
account in its FY2019 budget justification.22 The FS FLAME account is to be terminated if no
appropriations or withdrawals are made through the end of FY2021.23
Wildfire Adjustment
The wildfire adjustment is a budgetary mechanism that gives special budgetary treatment to
certain funding for wildfire suppression. The mechanism al ows such funds to be effectively
exempt from the discretionary spending limits.24 (Formal y, the law states that the enactment of
such spending al ows for a subsequent upward adjustment of the discretionary limits to
accommodate the spending. As a result, these types of spending are referred to as adjustments.)
The wildfire adjustment is also sometimes referred to as the wildfire funding fix or the
suppression cap adjustment.
There is a precondition for using the wildfire adjustment—that a baseline amount of funding must
be appropriated subject to the discretionary spending limits. For the purposes of the wildfire
adjustment, the baseline is the 10-year suppression obligation average, as reported in FY2015
($1.39 bil ion combined).25 Once the precondition is met, the law also places restrictions on the
level of funding that can be provided under the adjustment and therefore can be exempt from the
discretionary spending limits. The maximum amount available pursuant to the wildfire
adjustment starts at $2.25 bil ion combined in FY2020 and increases annual y to $2.95 bil ion in
FY2027.26 Up to the specified annual maximum, any amount that is enacted for a fiscal year that
is over the FY2015 baseline would cause the discretionary spending limit to be adjusted upward
by that amount. This mechanism al ows Congress to effectively provide additional funding for
wildfire suppression for the same discretionary budget score as was provided in the FY2015
baseline year. The wildfire adjustment is available annual y from FY2020 through FY2027,
although the statutory limits for discretionary spending currently are in effect only through
FY2021.27

21 43 U.S.C. §§1748a(i).
22 DOI, FY2019 Budget Justification for Wildland Fire Management, p. 34.
23 FS reports the last withdrawal from the FLAME account occurred in FY2018 (FS, FY2021 Budget Justification,
February 2020, p. 103, at https://www.fs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2020-02/usfs-fy-2021-budget-justification.pdf).
24 T he discretionary spending limit refers to certain procedural and budgetary controls over discretionary spending for
each of the fiscal years between FY2012 and FY2021, as established by the Budget Control Act of 2011 (BCA; P.L.
112-25). T he Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act (BBEDCA; T itle II of P.L. 99-177, 2 U.S.C. §§900-
922, as amended by the BCA) provides for certain types of spending to be effectively exempt from those limits. T he
wildfire adjustment was established through an amendment to the BBEDCA ( P.L. 115-141, Division O, §102(a), 2
U.S.C. §901(b)(2)(F)). For more information on discretionary spending limits, see CRS Report R44874, The Budget
Control Act: Frequently Asked Questions, by Grant A. Driessen and Megan S. Lynch.
25 T he $1.39 billion figure reflects the 10-year suppression obligation averages for FY2015 as reported by FS ($1.01
billion) and DOI ($383.7 million).
26 2 U.S.C. §901(b)(2)(F)(i)).
27 For more information on discretionary spending limits, see CRS Report R44874, The Budget Control Act: Frequently
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In FY2020, the funds appropriated pursuant to the wildfire adjustment were appropriated to FS’s
and DOI’s respective Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve Fund accounts. The FY2020
appropriations law specified that the funds appropriated pursuant to the wildfire adjustment may
be transferred to each agency’s respective WFM account for wildfire suppression operations.28
Wildfire suppression operations include spending for the purposes of “the emergency and
unpredictable aspects of wildland firefighting, including support, response, and emergency
stabilization activities; other emergency management activities; and funds necessary to repay any
transfers needed” for these costs.29
Suppression Ten-Year Obligation Average
Prior to FY2020, both the Forest Service (FS) and the Department of the Interior (DOI) typical y would request
and receive appropriations for suppression funds based on the average of the previous 10 years of suppression
obligations. For many of the years when the FLAME account was used (FY2010-FY2018), Congress would
appropriate about 70% of the 10-year obligation average to each agency’s Wildland Fire Management (WFM)
suppression activity and the remaining 30% to each agency’s FLAME account.
Due to the timing of the budget process, the suppression budget request for any given year was based on the
suppression obligation average for a 10-year period ending 2 years earlier. For example, the FY2018 suppression
budget request was formulated using the 10-year rol ing obligation average calculated from FY2007 through
FY2016. Because it is based on past spending, the rol ing 10-year suppression obligation average is a lagging
indicator of future suppression spending. Lagging indicators, in general, demonstrate patterns across previous
years but do not necessarily signal future trends. As such, the rol ing 10-year suppression obligation average may
not be the most accurate method to predict future suppression spending needs during the budget formulation
process.
The wildfire adjustment, however, essential y froze WFM suppression funding at a baseline equal to the 10 -year
suppression obligation average for FY2015 ($1.39 bil ion combined; $1.01 bil ion for FS, $383.7 mil ion for DOI).
Any amount appropriated above the FY2015 baseline is provided pursuant to the wildfire adjustment. FS did not
report its 10-year suppression obligation for FY2020 or FY2021, since suppression appropriations are now tied to
the FY2015 baseline. DOI reported its 10-year obligation average to be $402.8 mil ion for FY2020 and $430.1
mil ion for FY2021.
Supplemental Appropriations
In addition to regular discretionary appropriations, at times Congress has provided FS and DOI
with supplemental or additional wildfire funding. Congress frequently has provided these funds
for suppression purposes or to repay accounts from which funds were subject to fire borrowing. 30
The funds often—though not always—have been provided in an appropriations law enacted after
the regular annual law. In some cases, however, Congress has provided funds in the regular
annual appropriations law that were designated as additional. Further, Congress sometimes has
designated supplemental appropriations—regardless of the legislative vehicle—as being an
emergency requirement; funds designated as such are not subject to discretionary spending
limits.31

Asked Questions, by Grant A. Driessen and Megan S. Lynch .
28 P.L. 116-94, Division D.
29 2 U.S.C. §901(b)(2)(F)(ii)(II).
30 In some cases, due to the timing of the fire season in relation to the fiscal year calendar, supplemental funding
provided in one fiscal year may be designated to repay accounts that were borrowed from in the previous fiscal year.
31 T he emergency requirements designation under BBEDCA, similar to the wildfire adjustment, allows for the
discretionary spending limits to be adjusted upward to accommodate the designated spending (2 U. S.C.
§901(b)(2)(A)(i)).
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This report distinguishes between three types of supplemental funding:
 Additional, which reflects appropriations designated as additional or
supplemental in the appropriations law that were not designated as emergency
and otherwise were subject to discretionary spending limits.
 Emergency supplemental, which reflects appropriations designated as an
emergency requirement and not subject to discretionary spending limits.
 Wildfire adjustment, which reflects appropriations provided pursuant to the
wildfire adjustment and, as such, not subject to discretionary spending limits.
The primary distinction between additional and emergency supplemental appropriations is how
the funds are treated for budget enforcement purposes. In some cases, the emergency designation
has meant a lower budgetary score for a total appropriation that is higher in nominal dollars than
another total appropriation. For instance, FS and DOI received total wildfire appropriations for
FY2014 of $3.94 bil ion and for FY2017 of $4.18 bil ion (in nominal dollars). These totals
included additional appropriations of $636.0 mil ion in FY2014 and emergency supplemental
appropriations of $407.0 mil ion in FY2017 (see detailed tables in Appendix A). The FY2014
additional funding was subject to budget enforcement, but the FY2017 emergency supplemental
funding was not. Thus, the budgetary score of $3.78 bil ion for FY2017 was lower than the
budgetary score of $3.94 bil ion for FY2014.
Although funds provided pursuant to the wildfire adjustment are not emergency designated, they
are treated similarly to emergency-designated funding in terms of budgetary scoring—albeit
under a different budgetary mechanism. Thus, although the total discretionary appropriation for
FY2020 was $6.11 bil ion, the budgetary score was $3.85 bil ion, because the $2.25 bil ion
wildfire adjustment and $7.0 mil ion in emergency supplemental appropriations were not counted
toward the discretionary spending limit for that year.
Preparedness
Preparedness is defined to include any activity that leads to safe, efficient, and cost-effective fire
management. It includes the range of tasks necessary to protect against, respond to, and recover
from incidents.32 Preparedness activities are funded within FS’s and DOI’s Fire Operations
programs within their respective WFM accounts.
FS and DOI use preparedness funds for various activities. The agencies use these funds to
maintain baseline personnel and provide training and education; manage infrastructure,
equipment, and resources (e.g., aviation assets, engines, communication equipment); develop,
maintain, and advance technological tools to enhance decisionmaking capacity; and prepare and
execute fire management plans, cooperative agreements, and interagency coordination.
Preparedness also includes predictive services, the ongoing evaluation of fire weather conditions,
burn probabilities, and resource status to anticipate fire activity and resource al ocation needs.33
Since FY2018, FS and DOI have used their respective preparedness funds for general y
equivalent purposes. Prior to FY2018, however, the agencies used their preparedness funds for
different activities. These differences primarily relate to FS using suppression funds to cover

32 Preparedness is also defined as the mental readiness to recognize changes in fire danger and act promptly when
action is appropriate (NWCG, “ Glossary”).
33 For more information on Predictive Services, see National Interagency Coordination Center, “Predictive Services
Program Overview,” at https://www.predictiveservices.nifc.gov/predictive.htm.
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various aviation and personnel charges that the agency now funds through the preparedness
activity.34
Fuel Reduction
The size, distribution, and total quantity of wildland fuels (e.g., vegetation, biomass) significantly
affect wildfire behavior and impacts.35 Fuel reduction is the manipulation (including combustion)
or removal of fuels to reduce the likelihood of igniting a wildfire and/or to lessen a wildfire’s
potential damage and resistance to control efforts.36 Fuel reduction projects, or treatments, include
activities such as prescribed burning and forest thinning. Prescribed burning is the deliberate use
of fire in specific areas within specified fuel and weather conditions. Thinning is the mechanical
cutting and removing of some trees in a stand and sometimes is done for purposes such as
enhancing timber production. Fuel reduction also may be accomplished through various other
mechanical, biological, or chemical treatments.
Fuel reduction projects on federal lands are funded through FS’s Hazardous Fuels appropriation
and DOI’s Fuels Management appropriation. These funds also may be used for fuel reduction
projects in high-priority areas in the wildland-urban interface (WUI); the WUI is the area where
structures are intermingled with—or adjacent to—vegetated wildlands, such as forests or
rangelands.37 Fuel reduction funding also may be used to provide financial or technical assistance
for treatments on nonfederal lands or to develop, promote, and market innovative uses of wood
products in an effort to accelerate the removal of hazardous fuels. For example, a portion of FS’s
Hazardous Fuels funding is al ocated to the agency’s Wood Technology and Innovation program,
which provide grants for the development of wood energy facilities, among other activities.38
Prior to FY2018, Congress funded FS’s Hazardous Fuels activity through the Other Operations
program within FS’s WFM account. Since FY2018, however, Congress has funded the activity
through FS’s NFS account. Appropriations laws have continued to fund DOI’s Fuels
Management activity through DOI’s Other Operations program (within the WFM account).
FS and DOI receive funding through other accounts and programs that may be used for activities
that have a fuel reduction component, improve forest conditions, or otherwise reduce wildfire
risk. For example, FS’s Vegetation and Watershed Management program (within FS’s NFS
account) funds a range of restoration activities in national forests.39 Each of DOI’s land
management agencies has a general resource management account that also may fund activities
that have a fuel reduction benefit. Thus, funding provided to each agency’s fuels program does
not reflect al funding available for these activities.

34 FS, FY2018 Budget Justification, May 2017, p. 146, at https://www.fs.usda.gov/about-agency/budget-performance.
35 For more information on wildland fuels, see CRS Report R40811, Wildfire Fuels and Fuel Reduction, by Katie
Hoover.
36 NWCG, “ Glossary.”
37 V. C. Radeloff et al., “T he Wildland-Urban Interface in the United States,” Ecological Applications, vol. 15, no. 3
(2005), pp. 799-805. For more information on the wildland-urban interface, see CRS Report RS21880, Wildfire
Protection in the Wildland-Urban Interface, by Katie Hoover and Kelsi Bracmort .
38 For more information on wood technology and innovation programs, see CRS Report R45219, Forest Service
Assistance Program s, by Anne A. Riddle and Katie Hoover.
39 For more information on FS’s vegetation management program, see CRS Report R43872, National Forest System
Managem ent: Overview, Appropriations, and Issues for Congress, by Katie Hoover and Anne A. Riddle.
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Other Wildfire Activities
FS and DOI both received appropriations for several other wildfire-related activities from
FY2011 to FY2020. These appropriations included funding for wildfire assistance programs, site
rehabilitation, science and research, and general maintenance. Congress provided funding for
some of these activities to both FS and DOI (e.g., the Joint Fire Science Program), but it provided
funding for some activities to one agency or the other. Congress provided such funding to DOI
through the agency’s Other Operations program, within the WFM account. At some times,
Congress provided such funding to FS through its WFM Other Operations program; at other
times, Congress provided this funding to different FS programs and accounts, which varied across
the time period. (For more information on these changes—and other changes enacted to the FS’s
Other Operations program prior to FY2018—see Appendix B.) The list below includes any
activity that received funding through either FS’s or DOI’s Other Operations program between
FY2011 and FY2020.
 Fire Plan Research and Development (R&D). This activity is specific to FS
and contributes funding for wildfire-related research activities within the
agency.40 Congress funded Fire Plan R&D as a specific al ocation within FS’s
Other Operations account until FY2017. Starting in FY2018, however, Congress
no longer specifical y al ocated funding for Fire Plan R&D but indicated that
funding for this program should come from funds appropriated to FS’s FRR
account.
 Fire Facilities. This activity is specific to DOI. It funds construction and
maintenance of DOI fire facilities,41 including facilities administered by
individual bureaus and facilities jointly administered by multiple bureaus.
 Forest Health Management.42 This program is specific to FS. Forest Health
Management consists of two subprograms: a federal lands program funds forest
health monitoring activities on federal lands, and a cooperative lands program
provides financial or technical assistance to states to assess forest health
conditions on nonfederal lands. Prior to FY2014, Forest Health Management was
funded jointly by FS’s WFM Other Operations and SPF accounts. From FY2014
to FY2020, Congress fully funded the program in the SPF account.
 Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP). This program is an interagency partnership
between FS and DOI that provides funding for basic and applied wildfire science
research programs.43 From FY2011 to FY2020, Congress funded this program for
DOI as a specific al ocation within the DOI WFM Other Operations program. For
FS, Congress funded the program as a specific al ocation within the agency’s
WFM Other Operations program until FY2016; starting in FY2017, Congress

40 Other than funding for the Joint Fire Science Program, DOI does not have a department -level program specifically
for wildfire research, though DOI’s bureaus may fund such activities from other funding sources.
41 FS no longer has a specific budget line item for fire facilities, although funds from several FS accounts or programs
may be used for such activities as needed. FS last received appropriations for fire facilities in FY2003.
42 Forest Health Management is sometimes referred to as Forest Health Protection. For more information on this
program and FS’s State and Private Forestry account, see CRS Report R45219, Forest Service Assistance Programs, by
Anne A. Riddle and Katie Hoover.
43 More information on the Joint Fire Science program is available at https://www.firescience.gov/index.cfm.
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indicated that funding for JFSP should come from funds appropriated to FS’s
FRR account.44
 Rehabilitation. This activity refers to the long-term restoration of landscapes
damaged by wildfires and is separate from the funding provided to FS’s and
DOI’s respective suppression programs for postfire emergency stabilization
activities. For DOI, the rehabilitation activity is referred to as Burned Area
Rehabilitation (BAR) and is funded as a specific al ocation within the WFM
Other Operations program. For FS, long-term restoration activities were last
funded as Rehabilitation and Site Restoration in FY2011. Since then, FS has not
received a specific al ocation for long-term site restoration. Instead, the agency
general y funds such activities through its NFS account or other relevant funding
sources.
 State Fire Assistance/Volunteer Fire Assistance Programs. These programs are
specific to FS. These programs provide financial assistance, technical assistance,
and equipment to encourage effective, coordinated, and uniform wildfire
response across different levels of government.45 Prior to FY2014, these
programs were funded jointly between FS’s WFM Other Operations program and
FS’s SPF account. From FY2014 through FY2017, these programs were funded
exclusively within FS’s WFM Other Operations program. From FY2018 to
FY2020, these programs were funded exclusively in FS’s SPF account.
Wildfire Appropriations Data
Reporting Caveats
Because the funding structure for some FS wildfire programs varied between FY2011 and FY2020, it is chal enging
to report and analyze the funding trends over that period. As such, the figures in this report reflect different
activities in some years. For example, figures from FY2011 through FY2013 include funding appropriated to FS’s
Wildland Fire Management account for Forest Health Management programs. Starting in FY2014, funding for these
programs was appropriated to FS’s State and Private Forestry account and thus is no longer reflected as wildfire
funding in this report. In addition, some FS activities did not receive funding al ocations in appropriations laws in
some years and FS did not report funding levels (e.g., Joint Fire Science Program, Fire Plan Research and
Development). As a result, the figures in this report reflect no funding for those programs in those years, although
it is possible some funding was al ocated administratively. Overal , the funding for programs not reflected herein
represented a relatively smal portion of FS’s total annual wildfire appropriations. For example, the cumulative
funding for these programs ranged from 1% to 3% of the agency’s wildfire ap propriation for the year.
In some cases, however, funding that is provided to a different FS account is included as wildfire funding in the
figures reported herein. For example, funding for FS’s Hazardous Fuels and wildfire assistance programs is included
for al 10 fiscal years.
For the 10-year period from FY2011 to FY2020, total appropriations to FS and DOI for wildfire
management were $4.48 bil ion annual y on average in constant FY2020 dollars, which are
adjusted for inflation (and $4.17 bil ion annual y on average in nominal dollars).46 As shown in

44 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Text and Explanatory Statement for the
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017, committee print, 115th Cong., 1st sess., 2017, H.Prt.25-289 (Washington: GPO,
2017), p. 1130.
45 FS and DOI assistance programs funded through FS’s Hazardous Fuels program or DOI’s Fuels Management
programs are not included. In addition, DOI received funding for various assistance programs prior to FY2011. For
more information on the FS programs, see CRS Report R45219, Forest Service Assistance Program s, by Anne A.
Riddle and Katie Hoover.
46 See footnote 9 for additional information about these figures.
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Table 1 and Figure 2, total wildfire appropriations fluctuated annual y but increased over the 10-
year period, in terms of both constant and nominal dollars. In constant dollars, total combined
appropriations increased by 82% from FY2011 to FY2020. Over the 10 years, FS and DOI
combined received the lowest appropriation in FY2012 ($3.05 bil ion in constant dollars) and the
highest appropriation in FY2020 ($6.11 bil ion). The FY2020 appropriation was $633.2 mil ion
(12%) more than the next-highest appropriation, $5.47 bil ion in constant dollars, provided in
FY2008. (The FY2020 appropriation also was 14% more than the $5.34 bil ion provided in
FY2019, the previous fiscal year.) The average annual appropriation in the latter half of the
decade (FY2016 through FY2020) was $5.27 bil ion, 43% higher than the $3.69 bil ion average
annual appropriation in the first half of the decade (FY2011 through FY2015). Appendix A
contains detailed appropriations data tables for FS (Table A-1), DOI (Table A-2), and the two
agencies combined (Table A-3).
Table 1. Forest Service (FS) and Department of the Interior (DOI) Total Wildfire
Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020
(dol ars in mil ions)
Total
Constant FY2020

FS
DOI
Nominal
Dollars
FY2011
2,097.5
778.9
2,876.4
3,361.2
FY2012
2,087.4
575.4
2,662.8
3,053.7
FY2013
2,579.7
794.7
3,374.
3,799.9
FY2014
3,077.3
861.5
3,938.8
4,351.6
FY2015
2,636.4
896.8
3,533.1
3,858.9
FY2016
3,909.3
993.7
4,903.1
5,308.1
FY2017
3,175.4
1,007.7
4,183.1
4,449.6
FY2018
3,932.8
998.1
4,930.9
5,125.8
FY2019
4,300.1
941.2
5,241.3
5,344.7
FY2020
4,852.9
1,252.3
6,105.3
6,105.3
10-Year Average
3,264.9
910.0
4,174.9
4,475.9
Sources: Prepared by CRS using data derived from annual appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations
acts, committee reports, explanatory statements, and detailed funding tables prepared by the House and Senate
Committees on Appropriations.
Notes: See footnote 9 for additional information about this table.
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Figure 2. FS and DOI Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020

Sources: Prepared by CRS. Data are derived from annual appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations acts,
committee reports, explanatory statements, and the detailed funding tables prepared by the House and Senate
Committees on Appropriations.
Notes: See footnote 9 for additional information about this figure.
The totals shown in Table 1 and Figure 2 include regular-enacted discretionary appropriations as
wel as supplemental discretionary appropriations that FS and DOI received in 7 of the 10 years
from FY2011 through FY2020, as shown in Figure 3. This funding included additional and
emergency supplemental appropriations and appropriations provided pursuant to the wildfire
adjustment. Congress general y provided these supplemental appropriations for suppression
purposes or to repay funds “borrowed” from other agency accounts and used for suppression
purposes.47

47 See footnote 30.
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Figure 3. Regular and Supplemental Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020

Sources: Prepared by CRS. Data are derived from annual appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations acts,
committee reports, explanatory statements, and the detailed funding tables prepared by the House and Senate
Committees on Appropriations.
Notes: Regular reflects appropriations provided in the annual appropriations law; Additional reflects
appropriations designated as additional or supplemental in an appropriations law but not designated as
emergency; Em. Suppl. reflects appropriations designated pursuant to the emergency requirement adjustment;
Wildfire Adj. reflects appropriations provided pursuant to the wildfire adjustment. Solid colors reflect
appropriations provided within discretionary spending limits; diagonal hatch marks reflect appropriations that
were not subject to discretionary spending limits. See footnote 9 for additional information about this figure.
The funding trends over the period FY2011-FY2020 are primarily attributable to fluctuations and
increases in appropriations for wildfire suppression (see Figure 4). These variations occurred in
part because of the largely unpredictable nature of wildfires. In constant dollars, total
appropriations for suppression purposes fluctuated from a low of $807.8 mil ion in FY2012 to a
high of $3.65 bil ion in FY2020 (+352%). From FY2011 through FY2020, FS and DOI combined
received $2.20 bil ion annual y on average in constant FY2020 dollars for suppression purposes
($2.06 bil ion annual y on average in nominal dollars). Not al of the suppression funding has
been subject to the discretionary spending limits, however, as shown in Figure 4.
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Figure 4. Suppression Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020

Sources: Prepared by CRS. Data are derived from annual appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations acts,
committee reports, explanatory statements, and the detailed funding tables prepared by the House and Senate
Committees on Appropriations.
Notes: WFM reflects appropriations to each agency’s respective Wildland Fire Management suppression activity;
FLAME reflects appropriations to the FLAME accounts; Addl./Suppl. reflects appropriations designated as
additional or supplemental and/or funds designated as emergency; Wildfire Adj. reflects appropriations provided
pursuant to the wildfire adjustment. Solid colors reflect appropriations provided within discretionary spending
limits; diagonal hatch marks reflect appropriations that were not subject to discretionary spending limits. See
footnote 9 for additional information about this figure.
Suppression received the largest appropriation in 8 of the 10 years between FY2011 and FY2020.
On average, suppression funding accounted for about half (49%) of the annual wildfire
appropriation provided to both agencies; it fluctuated from a low of 26% of the total annual
appropriation in FY2011 to a high of 60% in FY2020 (see Table 2 and Figure 5).
Preparedness received the largest appropriation in 2 of the 10 years between FY2011 and
FY2020. On average, the agencies received $1.52 bil ion in constant dollars for preparedness,
which accounted for 34% of the average annual wildfire appropriation. Funding for preparedness
fluctuated from a low of $1.13 bil ion in FY2011 to a high of $1.72 bil ion in FY2018, in constant
dollars.
The average annual appropriation for fuel reduction purposes from FY2011 to FY2020 was
$590.7 mil ion, 13% of the annual average. Across the time period, funding for fuel reduction
fluctuated from a low of $494.1 mil ion in FY2013 to a high of $669.5 mil ion in FY2019 in
constant dollars.
Average appropriations for other wildfire activities from FY2011 to FY2020 were $174.1 mil ion,
4% of the annual average funding. Funding for other wildfire activities general y decreased
annual y, with a high of $273.1 mil ion in FY2011 (in constant FY2020 dollars) and a low of
$141.9 mil ion in FY2020. Some of the annual and overal fluctuation in the funding provided to
the four different categories can be attributed to changes in FS’s account structure, including
shifts of some activities between suppression and preparedness and changes to FS’s WFM Other
Operations program.
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Table 2. FS and DOI Wildfire Appropriations by Category, FY2011-FY2020
(dol ars in mil ions)
Suppression
Preparedness
Fuel Reduction
Other

Nominal
Constant
Nominal
Constant
Nominal
Constant
Nominal
Constant
FY2011
1,145.8
1,338.9
964.1
1,126.6
532.9
622.7
233.7
273.1
FY2012
704.4
807.8
1,281.0
1,469.0
500.1
573.5
177.4
203.4
FY2013
1,557.2
1,753.5
1,213.3
1,366.3
438.7
494.1
165.2
186.0
FY2014
2,001.9
2,211.7
1,339.5
1,479.9
451.5
498.9
145.9
161.2
FY2015
1,394.7
1,523.3
1,464.8
1,599.9
525.7
574.2
147.9
161.5
FY2016
2,802.7
3,034.2
1,406.3
1,522.5
545.0
590.0
149.1
161.4
FY2017
2,050.0
2,180.6
1,415.4
1,505.6
570.0
606.3
147.7
157.1
FY2018
2,522.7
2,622.4
1,656.3
1,721.8
614.0
638.3
137.9
143.3
FY2019
2,773.8
2,828.5
1,661.8
1,694.6
656.5
669.5
149.2
152.1
FY2020
3,651.7
3,651.7
1,672.4
1,672.4
639.3
639.3
141.9
141.9
10-
2,060.5
2,195.3
1,407.5
1,515.9
547.4
590.7
159.6
174.1
Year
Avg.
Sources: Prepared by CRS. Data are derived from annual appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations acts,
committee reports, explanatory statements, and the detailed funding tables prepared by the Senate and House
Committees on Appropriations.
Notes: Constant refers to constant FY2020 dol ars. Suppression reflects appropriations provided to FS’s and
DOI’s respective WFM and FLAME accounts and funds provided pursuant to the wildfire adjustment, and it
includes supplemental appropriations. Preparedness reflects appropriations provided to the WFM preparedness
activity. Fuel Reduction reflects appropriations provided to DOI’s Fuels Management activity and FS’s Hazardous
Fuels activity. Other reflects wildfire appropriations provided to FS or DOI for purposes other than suppression,
preparedness, or fuel reduction. See footnote 9 for additional information about this table.
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Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

Figure 5. Distribution of FS and DOI Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020

Sources: Prepared by CRS. Data are derived from annual appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations acts,
committee reports, explanatory statements, and the detailed funding tables prepared by the House and Senate
Committees on Appropriations.
Notes: Suppression reflects appropriations provided to FS’s and DOI’s respective WFM, FLAME, and wildfire
adjustment accounts. Preparedness reflects appropriations provided to the WFM preparedness activity. Fuel
Reduction reflects appropriations provided to DOI’s Fuels Management activity and FS’s Hazardous Fuels activity.
Other reflects wildfire appropriations provided to FS or DOI for purposes other than suppression, preparedness,
or fuel reduction. See footnote 9 for additional information about this figure.
Issues for Congress
Overal appropriations for wildfire-related activities have increased considerably since the 1990s.
In FY2020, FS and DOI received the highest combined appropriation to date ($6.11 bil ion). A
sizeable portion of the increase was related to rising suppression costs, even during years of
relatively mild wildfire activity, although the costs varied annual y.
From FY2011 to FY2020, Congress focused primarily on addressing concerns about the cost of
suppression activities, including the extent to which increasing suppression costs have reduced
the availability of funding for other programs. The wildfire adjustment was intended to al eviate
some of these concerns, at least temporarily. Other issues of focus related to the adequacy of
funding for preparedness, fuel reduction, and other wildfire activities. Related concerns included
issues related to the number and effectiveness of aircraft available for wildfire suppression and
the adequacy of efforts to recruit and retain federal firefighters; the scope and scale of fuel
reduction needs, prioritization of treatments to the highest-risk locations, and effectiveness of
treatments; and how much funding to provide for wildfire research, assistance programs, and
postfire restoration. Some of these concerns recently sparked renewed interest, largely due to the
nature of the 2020 wildfire season, and may persist. These issues are discussed in more detail
below by type of wildfire activity.
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Suppression
The impact of fire borrowing has been a topic of congressional focus. Due to the emergency
nature of fire control activities, appropriations laws provide FS and DOI the authority to transfer
money out of other accounts if suppression funds become depleted; this process is often referred
to as fire borrowing.48 When such transfers have occurred, Congress typical y has enacted
supplemental appropriations to repay the transferred funds and/or to replenish the agency’s
wildfire accounts. Sometimes these funds have been provided in subsequent fiscal years.49
Congress sometimes—but not always—has provided these supplemental funds outside of
discretionary budget limits. In other years, the supplemental funding was subject to discretionary
budget limits and thus could be considered as having “competed” with other programs funded
through the Interior appropriations bil .
The authority to access additional funds for suppression operations provides FS and DOI the
flexibility to respond quickly in time-sensitive emergency situations. However, the practice has
generated varied criticisms. Some critics contend the authority is too broad and could provide
little incentive to manage suppression costs.50 Other critics claim fire borrowing detrimental y
affects agency programs; for example, FS and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) have
asserted that fire borrowing disrupts FS’s nonfire operations and hinders FS’s ability to carry out
its statutory missions.51 According to FS, borrowing from other program accounts—even when
the borrowed amount is repaid in subsequent appropriations—creates uncertainty about the
availability of funds and affects program implementation. In addition, some programs are time
sensitive (e.g., land sales) and may suffer adverse effects (e.g., changing land prices) if and when
delayed by fire transfers, according to GAO.52
Some Members of Congress have expressed concern about the impact of fire borrowing on other
FS or DOI activities and about the increasing portion of agency budgets used for suppression. The
FLAME accounts were intended in part to address fire borrowing effects.53 In establishing
FLAME, the conferees on the FY2010 Interior appropriations bil stated their intent that the
funding in the FLAME account, together with appropriations to the WFM account, should fully
fund anticipated wildfire suppression needs and prevent future borrowing of funds from nonfire

48 T he transfer authority has been granted annually in the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations
Acts. See, for example, provisions of the FY2020 Interior appropriations law ( P.L. 116-94, Division D) included in
§102 (DOI) and administrative provisions (FS).
49 Appropriations laws have specified that such transferred funds “must be replenished by a supplemental
appropriation.” See, for example, provisions of the FY2020 Interior appropriations law ( P.L. 116-94, Division D)
included in §102 (DOI) and administrative prov isions (FS).
50 National Academy of Public Administration, Wildfire Suppression: Strategies for Containing Costs, September
2002.
51 See, for example, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), Wildfire Suppression: Funding Transfers Cause
Project Cancellations and Delays, Strained Relationships, and Managem ent Disruptions, GAO-04-612, June 2004
(hereinafter cited as GAO-04-612); T estimony of FS Chief T om T idwell in U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on
Energy and Natural Resources, Hearing to Receive Testim ony on the Federal Governm ent’s Role in Wildfire
Managem ent, the Im pact of Fires on Com m unities, and Potential Im provem ents to Be Made in Fire Operations ,
114th Cong., 1st sess., May 5, 2015; and FS, Fire Transfer Im pact by State, June 9, 2014, at http://www.fs.fed.us/
publications/forest -service-fire-transfer-state-impacts.pdf.
52 GAO-04-612.
53 U.S. Congress, Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Acts, 2010, 111th
Cong., 1st sess., October 28, 2009, H.Rept. 111-316, p.104.
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Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

programs.54 In practice, fire borrowing stil occurred during the years the FLAME accounts were
active (FY2010-FY2018), despite the use of this additional account for suppression operations.
The wildfire adjustment also was intended to address fire borrowing impacts. Through this
mechanism, additional funds are provided for suppression operations. The wildfire adjustment,
however, al ows additional funding for wildfire suppression without needing to enact
supplemental appropriations or borrow and then replenish other accounts. As noted, under the
wildfire adjustment, any additional funding that is appropriated over the FY2015 baseline
essential y would cause the discretionary spending limits to be raised, up to the specified
maximum.55 This adjustment may al eviate concerns that increasing suppression costs would be
funded at the expense of other programs funded through the Interior bil . However, because the
statutory limits for discretionary spending are in effect only through FY2021, the wildfire
adjustment wil no longer apply after that date unless new limits are enacted. If new limits are
statutorily established for any year between FY2022 through FY2027, then the wildfire
adjustment stil wil apply.
Preparedness
The extent to which FS and DOI are adequately prepared for wildfire response activities has been
a topic of congressional interest. Two areas of particular interest involve aviation assets and the
firefighter workforce.
Aviation
A long-standing congressional focus has been the age, extent, and effectiveness of the aviation
fleet (e.g., helicopters, scoopers, air tankers). In particular, Congress has examined the availability
of information to assess those issues. A 2013 GAO study, for example, recommended expanded
efforts to collect information on the performance and effectiveness of firefighting aircraft.56
Based on that recommendation, FS released the Aerial Firefighting Use and Effectiveness
(AFUE) Report in 2020.57 The 2020 report is intended to inform aviation strategies moving
forward, including decisions related to the composition of the federal aviation fleet. The report
identified patterns of aircraft use and established a methodology to measure and evaluate
performance and outcome metrics. For example, the report found that helicopters and scoopers
were commonly used to reduce fire intensity and that fixed-wing airtankers were more commonly
used to reduce wildfire spread.
Congress also has studied the age and extent of the federal aviation fleet. According to the 2013
GAO report, the number of large airtankers available to the federal government decreased
substantial y from 2002 through 2013, in large part due to the retirement of aircraft because of

54 H.Rept. 111-316, p. 104.
55 For more information on budgetary adjustments, see CRS Report R45778, Exceptions to the Budget Control Act’s
Discretionary Spending Lim its, by Megan S. Lynch.
56 GAO identified nine studies from the 1990s through 2013 that examined issues related to aviation needs and
strategies, but GAO noted that the studies were hampered by limited information and did not include performance or
effectiveness information. GAO, Wildland Fire Managem ent: Im provements Needed in Inform ation, Collaboration,
and Planning to Enhance Federal Fire Aviation Program , GAO-13-684, April 2013, at https://www.gao.gov/products/
GAO-13-684. Hereinafter cited as GAO-13-684.
57 FS, Aerial Firefighting Use and Effectiveness (AFUE) Report, March 2020, at https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-
land/fire/aviation/afue.
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Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

age and safety concerns.58 This situation has led to debate regarding the extent to which the
government should invest in owning aviation assets versus contracting with the private sector for
those services. In 2013, for example, Congress authorized the transfer of several Department of
Defense (DOD) aviation assets to FS to be retrofitted and modified for wildfire response
purposes.59 In FY2019, however, FS announced it no longer supported the acquisitions. The
agency stated that its aviation needs could be best met through contracting with the private
sector.60
Issues related to aviation contracts also have been of interest to Congress. The contract-award
process has been controversial at times, and some are concerned that federal contracting
requirements create barriers to private sector entry and could inhibit cost-efficiencies and
effectiveness. For example, in discussions on FY2021 legislation, the House Appropriations
Committee sought to direct FS and DOI to submit a report on aviation-contract-related
concerns.61 More specifical y, the committee wanted the report to address questions related to
extending aviation contracts from the current limit of five years. Providing for longer-duration
contracts may provide more certainty for the private sector and may incentivize increased
competition, but there may be other consequences, such as performance-related issues.
Workforce
The federal government’s ability to recruit and retain firefighters has been under examination
periodical y since the 1990s.62 For FY2019, FS reported about 10,000 full-time equivalents
(FTEs) firefighting positions annual y and DOI reported approximately 4,400 FTEs.63 The federal
wildland firefighting workforce consists predominantly of seasonal hires. Though some seasonal
positions are permanent, many are temporary positions that have to be fil ed annual y. This
situation has led to concerns about efficiency and about the recruitment and retention of
firefighters, particularly when compared with employment opportunities at the state level or in the
private sector. In addition, there have been concerns about succession planning, as many
leadership-level employees approach retirement age.
The 2020 wildfire season exacerbated many of these concerns, as the location, severity, and
extent of the wildfires exceeded interagency (federal, state, and local) firefighter capacities in
many regards. For example, on September 19, 2020, over 32,700 firefighters were supporting
wildfire operations throughout the country, the highest number of deployed firefighters since
record-keeping began.64 This figure included firefighting support from DOD as wel as
international y from Canada and Mexico.

58 GAO-13-684.
59 National Defense Authorization Act for FY2014, P.L. 113-66 §1098.
60 FS, FY2019 Budget Justification, p. 127.
61 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations, Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Bill, 2021, report to accompany H.R. 7612, 116th Cong., 2nd sess., July 14, 2020, H.Rept. 116-448, p. 7.
62 In 1999, for example, GAO identified concerns with the federal firefighting workforce, including issues with pay and
attrition. GAO, Federal Wildfire Activities: Current Strategy and Issues Needing Attention, GAO-99-233, August 1999,
at https://www.gao.gov/products/RCED-99-233.
63 FS, FY2021 Budget Justification, p. 97, and DOI, FY2021 Budget Justification, p. 28.
64 Prepared remarks from FS Deputy Chief for State and Private Forestry John Phipps in U.S. Congress, House
Committee on Agriculture, Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry, The 2020 Wildfire Year: Response and
Recovery Efforts, 116th Cong., 2nd sess., September 24, 2020, at https://agriculture.house.gov/calendar/
eventsingle.aspx?.EventID=1993.
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Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

In part to address some of these concerns, for FY2021, DOI requested $50.0 mil ion to develop a
year-round, permanent wildland fire workforce.65 The funds would come from DOI’s
preparedness and fuels management appropriations and would fund approximately 600 FTEs.
When not working on an active fire incident, the employees would be available to assist with fuel
reduction or other vegetation management projects. DOI anticipates this change could result in
long-term savings related to recruitment and training costs. FS indicated it was currently studying
a similar proposal, although the agency did not include such a proposal in its FY2021 budget
request.66
Fuel Reduction
Funding for fuel reduction has raised several interrelated issues for Congress, many of which
have been ongoing for decades.67 These issues include the adequacy of funding, particularly in
relation to the scope of the fuel reduction needs, and the al ocation of funds to areas most in need
of treatment. Other issues center on the effectiveness of treatments, in terms of both cost-
effectiveness and ability to reduce the risks of catastrophic fires.
A 2019 GAO study examined DOI’s and FS’s respective fuel reduction programs from FY2009
through FY2018. GAO reported the agencies identified a combined total of 117 mil ion acres at
high or very high wildfire potential (63 mil ion acres for FS; 54 mil ion acres for DOI),68
representing nearly one-fifth of the combined federal lands administered by the agencies. GAO
reported the agencies accomplished a combined total of 2.5 mil ion acres of fuel reduction
treatments per year on average from FY2009 through FY2018.69 GAO and the agencies identified
several issues impeding progress toward fuel reduction goals. These issues included workforce
levels, funding uncertainties, and the high cost of treatments, particularly in the wildland-urban
interface (WUI) and other areas most in need of treatments. Other cost chal enges related to the
lack of a market for the biomass removed during treatments; development of such a market could
improve cost efficiencies.
Other Wildfire Activities
Issues related to funding for other wildfire activities general y pertain to the adequacy of funds.
Such issues include the extent to which increasing suppression costs have adversely affected
funding for these programs (and other FS or DOI programs). One area of debate has been the
level and type of assistance the federal government provides to support state wildfire
management programs. Debate centers on whether to provide more funding and/or establish more

65 DOI, FY2021 Budget Justification, pp. 19-20, 23, 35-36.
66 T estimony of FS Chief Vicki Christiansen in U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, U.S. Forest Service Budget Request for FY2021, 116th Cong., 2nd sess.,
February 27, 2020.
67 For example, in 1994, the congressionally chartered National Commission on Wildfire Disasters recommended
federal land management agencies invest more in reducing hazardous fuels in high -risk ecosystems and observed that
“the question is no longer if policy-makers will face disastrous wildfires and their enormous costs, but when.” T he
commission was established by the Wildfire Disaster Recovery Act of 1989 ( P.L. 101-286) after the 1988 wildfires in
Yellowstone National Park. R. Neil Sampson, chair, Report of the National Com m ission on Wildfire Disasters,
Washington, DC, 1994.
68 GAO, Wildland Fire: Federal Agencies’ Efforts to Reduce Wildland Fuels and Lower Risk to Communities and
Ecosystem s, GAO-20-52, December 2099, p. 9, at https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-20-52. Hereinafter referred to
as GAO-20-52.
69 GAO-20-52, p. 11.
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Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

specific programs for activities such as community-level wildfire preparedness planning, fuels
management on nonfederal lands (or specifical y in the WUI), the retrofitting of existing
structures to improve fire resistance, and postfire recovery assistance, among others. Another
focus has been the level of investment in wildfire science and research. Funding for the Joint Fire
Science Program (JFSP), for example, declined substantial y from FY2011 to FY2020. During
this period, appropriations laws did not specifical y al ocate FS funding for JFSP and
appropriations to DOI for JFSP also declined.
Another concern relates to funding for postfire site rehabilitation or restoration, particularly on FS
lands. FS has not received a specific funding al ocation for those activities since FY2011 and it
relies on funding from other agency program accounts. This approach is in contrast to FS’s
funding for site rehabilitation activities after a timber harvest, for example, where the agency is
authorized to retain receipts from timber purchasers to finance reforestation or other site
improvements.70 FS does have access to dedicated reforestation funding, however. Specifical y,
mandatory appropriations from the Reforestation Trust Fund provide up to $30 mil ion annual y
for reforestation needs, funded through tariffs from the imports of specified wood products.71
Though some have cal ed for raising the $30 mil ion annual maximum to provide for additional
resources to address postfire reforestation, among other needs, that figure has not increased since
the fund’s establishment in 1980.

70 T he retained receipts are deposited in the FS’s Knutson-Vandendberg Fund and are available without further
appropriation. For more information, see CRS Report R45688, Tim ber Harvesting on Federal Lands, by Anne A.
Riddle, and CRS Report R45994, Federal Land Managem ent Agencies’ Mandatory Appropriations Accounts,
coordinated by Carol Hardy Vincent .
71 16 U.S.C. §1606a.
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link to page 30 link to page 32 link to page 34 Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

Appendix A. Detailed Wildfire Appropriations Data
The following tables detail the appropriations provided for wildfire purposes from FY2011
through FY2020 for the Forest Service (FS; Table A-1), the Department of the Interior (DOI;
Table A-2), and FS and DOI combined (Table A-3). The tables general y distinguish regular,
additional, emergency supplemental, and rescinded appropriations for each agency’s Wildland
Fire Maintenance (WFM) and FLAME accounts and appropriations provided pursuant to the
wildfire adjustment.

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link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 31
Table A-1. Forest Service (FS) Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020
(dol ars in mil ions)
Account/Activity
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
FY2015
FY2016
FY2017
FY2018
FY2019
FY2020
WFM Account
1,968.0
1,734.9
2,248.7
2,762.3
2,333.3
3,086.3
2,833.4
3,064.8
3,725.3
2,357.6

Fire Operations
1,469.2
1,302.7
1,838.4
2,338.1
1,853.8
2,593.6
2,330.6
3,064.8
3,725.3
2,357.6

Preparedness
673.7
1,004.4
948.5
1,057.6
1,145.8
1,082.6
1,082.6
1,323.5
1,339.6
1,339.6

Suppression
795.5
298.2
889.9
1,280.5
708.0
1,511.0
1,248.0
1,741.3
2,385.6
1,018.0

Regular
995.5
538.2
510.0
680.5
708.0
811.0
1,248.0
1,056.8
1,165.4
1,011.0

Additionala
—
—
379.9
600.0
—
—
—
500.0
500.0
—

Emergency Supplementalb
—
—
—
—
—
700.0
—
184.5
720.3
7.0

Rescissionsc
-200.0
-240.0
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—

Other Operationsd
498.9
432.2
410.4
424.2
479.5
492.7
502.8
—
—
—

Hazardous Fuelse
349.6
317.1
301.1
306.5
361.7
375.0
390.0
—
—
—

Other Activities
149.3
115.1
109.3
117.7
117.7
117.7
112.8
—
—
—
FLAME Account
90.4
315.4
299.0
315.0
303.1
823.0
342.0
342.0
—
—

Regular
290.4
315.4
299.0
315.0
303.1
823.0
—
—
—
—

Emergency Supplementalb
—
—
—
—
—
—
342.0
342.0
—
—

Rescissionsc
-200.0
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
Wildfire Adjustmentf
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
1,950.0
Other FS Wildfire Appropriationsg
39.0
37.2
32.1
—
—
—
—
526.0
574.8
545.3

NFS Hazardous Fuelse
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
430.0
467.5
445.3
FS Total Wildfire Appropriations
2,097.5
2,087.4
2,579.7
3,077.3
2,636.4
3,909.3
3,175.4
3,932.8
4,300.1
4,852.9
Constant FY2020 Dol arsh
2,451.0
2,393.8
2,905.0
3,339.9
2,879.4
4,232.2
3,377.8
4,088.3
4,385.0
4,852.9
Sources: Prepared by CRS using data derived from annual appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations acts, committee reports, explanatory statements, and
detailed funding tables prepared by the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
CRS-25

Notes: NFS = National Forest System; WFM = Wildland Fire Management. Totals may not add due to rounding. FY2020 figures may change, for instance, if additional
appropriations or rescissions are enacted for the fiscal year.
a. These funds reflect appropriations designated as additional or supplemental that were not designated as emergency.
b. These funds reflect appropriations designated as emergency requirements.
c. For FY2011, this reflects a rescission of budgetary authority. For FY2012, this reflects an adjustment based on the use of prior-year emergency funds.
d. The activities funded through the WFM Other Operations program varied between FY2011 and FY2018. Some activities (e.g., Cooperative Fire Assistance) were
funded ful y through the Other Operations program in some years, partial y through the Other Operations program and partial y through the FS’s State and Private
Forestry (SPF) account in other years, and ful y through the SPF account in stil other years. Starting in FY2018, appropriations for activities funded in the Other
Operations program were provided to other FS accounts. Some of these funds are reflected in Other FS Wildfire Appropriations. Some programs, however, did not
receive line-item funding (e.g., Joint Fire Science) under the new accounts and are not reflected in the Other FS Wildfire Appropriations or elsewhere in this table.
e. Prior to FY2018, appropriations for Hazardous Fuels activities were provided to FS through the WFM Other Operations program. Starting in FY2018,
appropriations for Hazardous Fuels activities were provided to FS through the NFS account.
f.
In FY2020, funds provided pursuant to the wildfire adjustment were appropriated to the FS’s Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve Fu nd account.
g. Other Wildfire Appropriations reflect appropriations for wildfire-related activities that were appropriated to other FS accounts, including the SPF, NFS, and Forest
and Rangeland Research accounts. For example, starting in FY2018, this includes appropriations provided to the NFS account for Hazardous Fuels activities.
h. Figures were adjusted to estimated FY2020 constant dol ars using the GDP Chained Price Index from the White House Office of Management and Budget, Table
10.1, “Gross Domestic Product and Deflators Used in the Historical Tables—1940-2025,” in Historical Tables, at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/Historicals.

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link to page 32 link to page 32 link to page 33 link to page 31 link to page 31 link to page 33 link to page 33
Table A-2. Department of the Interior (DOI) Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020
(dol ars in mil ions)
Account/Activity
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
FY2015
FY2016
FY2017
FY2018
FY2019
FY2020
WFM Account
718.1
483.6
703.0
769.5
804.8
816.7
942.7
998.1
941.2
952.3

Fire Operations
489.4
275.4
541.5
596.3
610.6
615.4
727.8
772.2
710.3
716.4

Preparedness
290.5
276.5
264.8
281.9
319.0
323.7
332.8
332.8
322.2
332.8

Suppression
199.0
-1.1
276.7
314.4
291.7
291.7
395.0
439.4
388.1
383.7

Regular
399.0
270.5
261.2
285.9
291.7
291.7
395.0
389.4
388.1
383.7

Additionala
—
—
23.0
36.0
—
—
—
—
—
—

Emergency Supplementalb
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
50.0
—
—

Rescissionsc
-200.0
-271.6
-7.5
-7.5
—
—
—
—
—
—

Other Operations
228.7
208.2
161.5
173.2
194.2
201.4
214.9
225.9
230.9
235.9

Fuels Management
183.3
183.0
137.7
145.0
164.0
170.0
180.0
184.0
189.0
194.0

Other Activities
45.3
25.1
23.8
28.2
30.2
31.4
34.9
41.9
41.9
41.9
FLAME Account
60.9
91.9
91.7
92.0
92.0
177.0
65.0
—
—
—

Regular
60.9
91.9
91.7
92.0
92.0
177.0
—
—
—
—

Emergency Supplementalb
—
—
—
—
—
—
65.0
—
—
—

Rescissionsc
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
Wildfire Adjustmentd
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
300.0
DOI Total Wildfire Appropriations
778.9
575.4
794.7
861.5
896.8
993.7
1,007.7
998.1
941.2
1,252.3
Constant FY2020 Dol arse
910.2
659.9
894.9
951.8
979.5
1,075.8
1,071.9
1,037.5
959.8
1,252.3
Sources: Prepared by CRS using data derived from annual appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations acts, committee reports, explanatory statements, and
detailed funding tables prepared by the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
Notes: WFM = Wildland Fire Management. Totals may not add due to rounding. FY2020 figures may change, for example, if additional appropriations or rescissions are
enacted for the fiscal year.
a. These funds reflect appropriations designated as additional or supplemental that were not designated as emergency.
b. These funds reflect appropriations designated as emergency requirements.
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c. For FY2011, FY2013, and FY2014, this reflects a rescission of budgetary authority. For FY2012, this reflects an adjustment ba sed on the use of prior-year emergency
funds.
d. In FY2020, funds provided pursuant to the wildfire adjustment were appropriated to the DOI’s Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve Fund account.
e. Figures were adjusted to estimated FY2020 constant dol ars using the GDP Chained Price Index from the White House Office of M anagement and Budget, Table
10.1, “Gross Domestic Product and Deflators Used in the Historical Tables—1940-2025,” in Historical Tables, at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/Historicals.

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Table A-3. Combined FS and DOI Wildfire Appropriations, FY2011-FY2020
(dol ars in mil ions)
Account/Activity
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
FY2015
FY2016
FY2017
FY2018
FY2019
FY2020
WFM Account
2,686.1
2,218.4
2,951.7
3,531.8
3,138.1
3,903.1
3,776.1
4,062.9
4,666.5
3,310.0

Fire Operations
1,958.6
1,578.1
2,379.9
2,934.4
2,464.5
3,209.0
3,058.4
3,837.0
4,435.6
3,074.1

Preparedness
964.1
1,281.0
1,213.3
1,339.5
1,464.8
1,406.3
1,415.4
1,656.3
1,661.8
1,672.4

Suppression
994.5
297.1
1,166.6
1,594.9
999.7
1,802.7
1,643.0
2,180.7
2,773.8
1,401.7

Regular
1,394.5
808.7
771.2
966.4
999.7
1,102.7
1,643.0
1,446.2
1,553.5
1,394.7

Additionala
—
—
402.9
636.0
—
—
—
500.0
500.0
—

Emergency Supplementalb
—
—
—
—
—
700.0
—
234.5
720.3
7.0

Rescissionsc
-400.0
-511.6
-7.5
-7.5
—
—
—
—
—
—

Other Operationsd
727.5
640.3
571.8
597.4
673.6
694.1
717.7
225.9
230.9
235.9

Hazardous Fuels/Fuels Mgmt.e
532.9
500.1
438.7
451.5
525.7
545.0
570.0
184.0
189.0
194.0

Other Activities
194.6
140.2
133.1
145.9
147.9
149.1
147.7
41.9
41.9
41.9
FLAME Account
151.3
407.2
390.6
407.0
395.1
1,000.0
407.0
342.0
—
—

Regular
351.3
407.2
390.6
407.0
395.1
1,000.0
—
—
—
—

Emergency Supplementalb
—
—
—
—
—
—
407.0
342.0
—
—

Rescissionsc
-200.0
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
Wildfire Adjustmentf
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
2,250.0
Other FS Wildfire Appropriationsg
39.0
37.2
32.1
—
—
—
—
526.0
574.8
545.3
Total FS & DOIh
2,876.4
2,662.8
3,374.4
3,938.8
3,533.1
4,903.1
4,183.1
4,930.9
5,241.3
6,105.3
Constant FY2020 Dol arsi
3,361.2
3,053.7
3,799.9
4,351.6
3,858.9
5,308.1
4,449.6
5,125.8
5,344.7
6,105.3
Sources: Prepared by CRS using data derived from annual appropriations acts, supplemental appropriations acts, committee reports, explanatory statements, and
detailed funding tables prepared by the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
Notes: WFM = Wildland Fire Management. Totals may not add due to rounding. FY2020 figures may change, for example, if additional appropriations or rescissions are
enacted for the fiscal year.
a. These funds reflect appropriations designated as additional or supplemental that were not designated as emergency.
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b. These funds reflect appropriations designated as emergency requirements.
c. For FY2011, FY2013, and FY2014, this reflects a rescission of budgetary authority. For FY2012, this reflects an adjustment ba sed on the use of prior-year emergency
funds.
d. For FS, the activities funded through the WFM Other Operations program varied between FY2011 and FY2018. Some activities (e.g., Cooperative Fire Assistance)
were funded ful y through the Other Operations program in some years, partial y through the Other Operations program and partial y through FS’s State and
Private Forestry (SPF) account in other years, and ful y through the SPF account in stil other years. Starting in FY2018, appropriations for activities funded in the
Other Operations program were provided to other FS accounts. Some of these funds are reflected in Other FS Wildfire Appropriations. Some programs, however,
did not receive line-item funding (e.g., Joint Fire Science) under the new accounts and are not reflected in the Other FS Wildfire Appropriations or elsewhere in this
table.
e. These funds reflect appropriations to FS’s Hazardous Fuels activity and DOI’s Fuels Management activity. Prior to FY2018, app ropriations for Hazardous Fuels
activities were provided to FS through the WFM Other Operations program. Starting in FY2018, appropriations for Hazardous Fuels activities were provided to FS
through the National Forest System (NFS) account.
f.
In FY2020, funds provided pursuant to the wildfire adjustment were appropriated to FS’s and DOI’s respective Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve Fund
accounts.
g. Other FS Wildfire Appropriations reflect appropriations for wildfire-related activities that were appropriated to other FS accounts, including the SPF, NFS, and
Forest and Rangeland Research accounts. For example, starting in FY2018, this includes appropriations provided to the NFS account for Hazardous Fuels activities.
h. Total reflects final wildfire appropriation to FS and DOI for WFM, the FLAME account, additional appropriations, rescissions, use of emergency funds, use of prior-
year funds, and funds provided for wildfire activities in other FS accounts.
i.
Figures were adjusted to estimated FY2020 constant dol ars using the GDP Chained Price Index from the White House Office of M anagement and Budget, Table
10.1, “Gross Domestic Product and Deflators Used in the Historical Tables—1940-2025,” in Historical Tables, at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/Historicals.

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Appendix B. Structural Changes to Forest Service’s
Wildland Fire Management Other Operations
Program
The following table outlines the changes to the activities funded through Forest Service’s (FS’s)
Other Operations program from FY2011 through FY2020. Starting in FY2018, funding for these
activities shifted to other FS accounts. Prior to FY2018, however, other funding changes occurred
across the time period. The following table lists each activity funded in the Other Operations
program as of FY2011 and describes the changes therein.
Table B-1. Changes to the FS Wildland Fire Management Account (WFM) for Other
Operations
FY2011 WFM Other Operations
Enacted Change to the Appropriations Account(s)
Fire Plan Research and Development
Starting in FY2018: funded in the Forest and Rangeland Research (FRR)
account (though not as a specific al ocation)
Forest Health Managementa
From FY2011 to FY2013: funded jointly between WFM and the State and
(Federal Lands and Cooperative Lands)
Private Forestry (SPF) account
Starting in FY2014: funded entirely through the SPF account
Hazardous Fuels
Starting in FY2018: funded in the National Forest System (NFS) account
Joint Fire Science
Starting in FY2017: funded in the FRR account (though not as a specific
al ocation)
Rehabilitation and Restoration
Starting in FY2012: program responsibilities shifted to the NFS accountb
Cooperative Fire Assistancea
From FY2011 to FY2013: funded jointly between WFM and the SPF
(State Fire Assistance and Volunteer Fire account
Assistance)
From FY2014 to FY2017: funded entirely through the WFM account
Starting in FY2018: funded entirely through the SPF account
Source: CRS, using data derived from FS annual budget documents and annual appropriation s acts, committee
reports, explanatory statements, and detailed funding tables prepared by the House and Senate Committees on
Appropriations.
a. For more information on these programs and the State and Private Forestry account, see CRS Report CRS
Report R45219, Forest Service Assistance Programs, by Anne A. Riddle and Katie Hoover.
b. FS, FY2012 Budget Justification, pp.11-18 to 11-19, at https://www.fs.usda.gov/about-agency/budget-
performance.
c. For more information on the NFS account and programs, see CRS Report R43872, National Forest System
Management: Overview, Appropriations, and Issues for Congress, by Katie Hoover and Anne A. Riddle.

Author Information

Katie Hoover

Specialist in Natural Resources Policy

Congressional Research Service
31

Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

Disclaimer
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Congressional Research Service
R46583 · VERSION 1 · NEW
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