I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9704 

To direct the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of the Interior, and 

the Secretary of Homeland Security to carry out a quadrennial fire 

review, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 19, 2024 

Mr. NEGUSE (for himself, Mr. MOLINARO, and Mr. HARDER of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committees on Agriculture, Transportation and Infrastructure, and Science, Space, and Technology, for a 

period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of the 

Interior, and the Secretary of Homeland Security to 

carry out a quadrennial fire review, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Wildfire Risk Evalua5 tion Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

2 It is the sense of Congress that— 

3 (1) wildfire management is a complex, multi-ju4 risdictional issue that requires a whole-of-govern5 ment approach before, during, and after a fire; 

6 (2) wildfires spread quickly and may invoke 

7 various Federal, State, Tribal, and local jurisdictions 

8 simultaneously; 

9 (3) effective wildfire management requires 

10 interagency, cross-boundary, strategic, and holistic 

11 solutions; 

12 (4) relevant Federal, State, Tribal, and local 

13 governments should be included in any planning, de14 cision making, or response activities with respect to 

15 wildfire management; 

16 (5) a purpose of a quadrennial fire review is to 

17 forecast conditions that may present the greatest 

18 challenges for wildland fire management throughout 

19 the 20-year period immediately following such review 

20 and inform the development of long-term, strategic 

21 actions to address such challenges; 

22 (6) the report of the Secretary of Agriculture 

23 and the Secretary of the Interior entitled ‘‘The Na24 tional Strategy: the Final Phase of the Development 

25 of the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management 

26 Strategy’’ (April 2014), as updated by the report enVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:28 Oct 07, 2024 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9704.IH H9704

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1 titled ‘‘National Cohesive Wildland Fire Manage2 ment Strategy Addendum Update’’ (January 2023), 

3 represents a strategic, collaborative effort to address 

4 wildfire management in all landscapes and using the 

5 best science available to make meaningful progress 

6 towards the 3 goals established in such report re7 garding— 

8 (A) resilient landscapes; 

9 (B) fire-adapted communities; and 

10 (C) safe and effective wildfire response; 

11 and 

12 (7) the report of the Wildland Fire Mitigation 

13 and Management Commission entitled ‘‘ON FIRE: 

14 The Report of the Wildland Fire Mitigation and 

15 Management Commission’’ (September 2023) pre16 sents a consensus set of recommendations developed 

17 by 50 diverse experts and intended to result in im18 proved outcomes for wildfire management in the 

19 United States. 

20 SEC. 3. QUADRENNIAL FIRE REVIEW. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretaries, acting jointly 

22 through the qualified agencies, shall conduct a quadren23 nial review of the comprehensive wildfire environment in 

24 the United States that includes— 


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1 (1) a quantitative analysis of changes to built 

2 and natural environments since the most recent 

3 quadrennial fire review and the impact of such 

4 changes on pre-fire mitigation, wildfire incident re5 sponse, and proactive recovery from wildfire; and 

6 (2) an analysis of the intersection between wild7 fire and public health, conducted in coordination 

8 with the Administrator of the Environmental Protec9 tion Agency and Secretary of Health and Human 

10 Services, acting through the Center for Disease Con11 trol and Prevention. 

12 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 12 months after the 

13 date of the enactment of this Act, and every 4 years for 

14 the 20 years thereafter, the Secretaries shall jointly sub15 mit to the relevant committees a report that contains— 

16 (1) the results of the reviews conducted under 

17 subsection (a) and specifies the administrative ac18 tions and outcomes that have occurred as a result of 

19 such reviews; 

20 (2) a summary of— 

21 (A) the challenges relating to wildfire that 

22 are anticipated during the 20-year period imme23 diately following the report; and 

24 (B) the most significant long-term wildland 

25 fire management challenges; 


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1 (3) recommendations regarding such Federal 

2 legislation and administrative actions as the Secre3 taries determine necessary to address the results de4 scribed in paragraph (1) and the challenges de5 scribed in paragraph (2); 

6 (4) an evaluation of any progress made to7 ward— 

8 (A) achieving the 3 goals established in the 

9 report of the Secretary of Agriculture and the 

10 Secretary of the Interior entitled ‘‘The National 

11 Strategy: the Final Phase of the Development 

12 of the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Man13 agement Strategy’’ (April 2014), as updated by 

14 the report entitled ‘‘National Cohesive Wildland 

15 Fire Management Strategy Addendum Update’’ 

16 (January 2023); and 

17 (B) implementing recommendations set 

18 forth in the report of the Wildland Fire Mitiga19 tion and Management Commission entitled 

20 ‘‘ON FIRE: The Report of the Wildland Fire 

21 Mitigation and Management Commission’’ (Sep22 tember 2023); and 

23 (5) projected future scenarios to highlight areas 

24 of consideration for realignment of programs, strate25 gies, capabilities, and the workforce that will assist 


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1 the Secretaries in addressing the challenges de2 scribed in paragraph (2). 

3 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 

4 (1) QUALIFIED AGENCIES.—The term ‘‘quali5 fied agencies’’ means— 

6 (A) with respect to the Secretary of Agri7 culture, the Forest Service; 

8 (B) with respect to the Secretary of the In9 terior, the Department of the Interior; 

10 (C) with respect to the Secretary of Home11 land Security, the Federal Emergency Manage12 ment Agency and the United States Fire Ad13 ministration; and 

14 (D) such other entities as the Secretaries 

15 determine appropriate. 

16 (2) RELEVANT COMMITTEES.—The term ‘‘rel17 evant committees’’ means— 

18 (A) the Committees on Natural Resources, 

19 Homeland Security, and Science, Space, and 

20 Technology of the House of Representatives; 

21 and 

22 (B) the Committees on Energy and Nat23 ural Resources, Governmental Affairs, and 

24 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

25 Senate. 


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1 (3) SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ 

2 means the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of 

3 the Interior, and the Secretary of Homeland Secu4 rity. 

Æ 


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