by
Carly Zoerb
| 05/01/2026
The U.S. House Votes to Re-Open FEMA, the USFA, and the NFA
On April 30, the U.S. House of Representatives agreed to pass H.R. 7147, legislation to fund all of the programs at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026, except for the U.S. Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. President Trump signed it into law on the same day.
This bill includes funding for the U.S. Fire Administration, including the National Fire Academy; the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) and Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant programs; and other DHS grant programs. These programs are funded through September 30.
Here is how the funding looks (including President Trump’s FY 2027 budget request):
In Millions ($)
| Program |
FY 2023 |
FY 2024 |
FY 2025 |
FY 2026
(President’s Request) |
FY 2026
(H.R. 7141) |
FY 2027
(President's Request) |
| AFG |
360 |
324 |
324 |
324 |
342 |
324 |
| SAFER |
360 |
324 |
324 |
324 |
342 |
324 |
| USFA |
60 |
71.21 |
71.21 |
64.166 |
72.140 |
69.602 |
| UASI |
615 |
553.5 |
553.5 |
415.5 |
584.25 |
415.5 |
| SHSGP |
520 |
468 |
468 |
351 |
494 |
351 |
| US&R |
37.83 |
40.83 |
40.83 |
37.83 |
56 |
37.832 |
Congress already is beginning work on the FY 2027 appropriations bills.
The U.S. House Passes the Farm Bill, including Wildland Fire Legislation
On April 30, the House also passed the Farm, Food, and National Security Act (H.R. 7567), which is commonly known as “the Farm bill.” The bill would broaden the eligibility of the Volunteer Fire Assistance by:
- Change qualifying community population thresholds from 10,000 to 15,000 or less.
- Change percent of volunteer (non-salaried) firefighting personnel from 80 percent to 70 percent.
- Allow for Secretarial discretion on waiving match requirements, similar to other fire and state and private forestry programs.
It also includes provisions to promote hazardous fuels removal and require the U.S. Forest Service to conduct wildland fire suppression operations with the purpose of containing wildland fires no later than 24 hours after they are detected.
The Senate must now consider its version of the Farm bill.
The U.S. Senate Passes the Pipeline Safety Legislation
On April 29, the Senate unanimously passed the Pipeline Safety Act of 2026 (S. 2975). This legislation would reauthorize the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials and Safety Administration (PHMSA) for another five years.
The bill would:
- Authorize $980 million over five years ($185 million for FY 2026; $190.365 million for FY 2027; $195.886 million for FY 2028; $201.556 million for FY 2029; and $207.412 million for FY 2030) for pipeline safety programs administered by PHMSA. It also would authorize PHMSA to collect up to 1 percent of that amount from fees paid by pipeline operators and owners of underground natural gas storage facilities.
- Authorize $ 10 million annually for emergency response grants.
- Authorize $ 175 million over five years for PHMSA’s operating expenses.
S. 2975 also would create an Office of Public Engagement and include a provision for a Public Alert Notification System for pipeline facilities. It also would require PHMSA to study the effectiveness of fire shutoff valves or equivalent technologies and, depending on the results, would authorize rulemaking for new standards. In addition, it would increase civil penalties for pipeline safety violations (e.g., maximum for a series of violations increases from approx. $2.7 million to $4 million) and require pipeline operators to proactively mitigate risks from geohazards and inspect facilities following such events.
This pipeline safety legislation still awaits consideration by the full House of Representatives. The House and Senate may need to go to conference to work out the differences in their respective bills.
NIOSH FFFIPP Releases New Reports
This week, the Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program released two new reports: