The Washington Update – June 13

President Trump Issues Executive Order re: Wildland Firefighting

On June 12, President Trump issued an Executive Order “Empowering Commonsense Wildfire Prevention and Response”

The Executive Order includes the following provisions:

• Within 90 days, the Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior are directed to consolidate their wildland fire programs to achieve the most efficient and effective use of wildland fire offices, coordinating bodies, programs, budgets, procurement processes, and research and, as necessary, recommend additional measures to advance this objective. (Note: this section is consistent with the Fiscal Year 2026 budget proposal to consolidate the U.S Forest Service’s and Department of Interior’s wildland firefighting capabilities into the new U.S. Wildland Fire Service at the U.S. Department of Interior.)
• Within 90 days, these Secretaries also are directed to consult with the Secretary of Homeland Security and expand and strengthen the use of partnerships, agreements, compacts, and mutual aid capabilities that empower federal, state, local, tribal, and community-driven land management to reduce wildfire risk and improves wildfire response, including on public lands; and develop and expand the use of other measures to incentivize responsible land management and wildfire prevention, mitigation, and response measures at the state and local levels.
• Within 180 days, the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the heads of executive departments and agencies represented at the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) are directed to develop a comprehensive technology roadmap, in consultation with the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), to increase wildfire firefighting capabilities at the State and local levels, including through artificial intelligence, data sharing, innovative modeling and mapping capabilities, and technology to identify wildland fire ignitions and weather forecasts to inform response and evacuation; and to promote the use of a risk-informed approach to develop new policies that remove barriers to preventing and responding to wildfires, including through year-round response readiness and better forest health.
• The Trump Administration would promote wildland fire mitigation by modifying or rescinding federal laws, rules, or policies that inhibit the use of prescribed fire or the use of fire retardant to fight wildland fires.
• The Trump Administration also will promote the uses of woody biomass and forest products to reduce fuel loads in areas at risk of wildfires. In addition, it will consider rulemaking to establish best practices to reduce the risk of wildfire ignition from the bulk-power system without increasing costs for electric-power end users, including through methods such as vegetation management, the removal of forest-hazardous fuels along transmission lines, improved engineering approaches, and safer operational practices.
• The Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior, shall review pending and proposed wildfire-related litigation involving electrical utility companies to ensure the Department of Justice’s positions and proposed resolutions in such matters advance the wildfire prevention and mitigation efforts identified in this order.
• In addition, within 120 days ,the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Director of OSTP, the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, and the heads of relevant agencies, shall, as appropriate, identify, declassify, and make publicly available historical satellite datasets that will advance wildfire prevention and response and improve wildfire prediction and evaluation models.
• Within 180 days, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the heads of agencies represented at the NIFC, are directed to:
  • Identify rules that impede wildfire prevention, detection, or response and consider eliminating or revising those rules, as consistent with applicable law.
  • Develop performance metrics for wildfire response, including metrics related to average response times, annual fuels treatments, safety and cost effectiveness, and other subjects, as appropriate for inclusion in strategic and annual performance plans.
  • Within 210 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Defense shall evaluate and, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, prioritize the sale of excess aircraft and aircraft parts to support wildfire mitigation and response.

House Appropriations Committee Marks Up FY 2026 DHS Appropriations bill

On June 9, the Homeland Security Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee voted the Fiscal Year 2024 U.S. Department of Homeland Security Appropriations bill.

The bill includes the following funding levels for federal fire service programs:

($) Millions

Among the provisions in the report language accompanying the bill.

• The bill authorizes the FEMA Administrator to waive requirements to the AFG and SAFER programs.
• FEMA is directed to provide recommendations on the appropriateness of adjusting existing cost-share requirements for FEMA grants.
• The Government Accountability Office is asked to assess the risk assessment model used for allocating UASI funds and recommend any necessary changes.
• The Appropriations Committee asks FEMA to recognize that a rapidly implemented change to the thresholds for disaster declarations could unfairly affect rural states with lower budgets or that are more susceptible to disasters.
• The Appropriations Committee asks FEMA to consider ways to deploy telemedicine and mobile diagnostic units in areas affected by major disasters.
• For mitigation, FEMA is encouraged to identify more ways to support at-risk communities, particularly those in the WUI, that wish to proactively implement mitigation measures, particularly through the pre-disaster mitigation program.
• The full House Appropriations Committee is expected to consider this bill on the week of June 23.

President Trump Issues Executive Orders Re: Counter UAS

On June 6, President Trump released two new Executive Orders meant to strengthen America’s drone industry and combat the misuse of drones.

• “Unleashing American Drone Dominance”
  This Executive Order repeals regulations that were thought to stifle American drone manufacturing. It also directs the Secretary of Transportation to issue a new rule enabling Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations for commercial and public safety use. This order also directs federal agencies to prioritize the purchasing of American-made drones. However, it does not institute immediate bans on foreign-made drones.
• “Restoring American Airspace Sovereignty”
  This Executive Order issues directives meant to address the misuse of drones. The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) must issue a rule that establishes a process to create temporary, or permanent flight restrictions for drone use near secure areas. It also directs the Attorney General of the United States to take measures to review and, if necessary, increase the penalties for the civil or criminal misuse of drones.